Soundcore has made a name for itself in the last few years for having produced a variety of performant and feature rich earbuds and headphones at very affordable prices.
The Life P2 originally came out in 2019 and is still fairly popular despite being quite dated now (in TWS years). The aptly named next generation Life P3 came out in mid 2021 and added, among other things, EQ app compatibility and active noise cancellation.
How much of an improvement is the Life P3 over the Life P2? Or is it even? How do these two pairs of wireless earbuds compare? I have fully reviewed both of them and will answer those questions here.
Soundcore Life P2 vs P3 Side by Side at a Glance
Soundcore Life P2 vs Life P3 Charging Case?
The Life P2 case, like the buds, is on the large side. But it still has a nice pocket friendly shape, and is very sturdy with a nice lid hinge. The Life P3 case is somewhat smaller, but, the sides and lid are flimsier.
Winner: Life P2
Soundcore Life P2 vs Life P3 Specs and Features
| Spec | Life P2 | Life P3 |
|---|---|---|
| price-tier ⓘbudget: around $30 or less value: around $30-$60 performance: around $60-$100 premium: around $100-$200 elite: more than $200 |
budget | value |
| driver style | (not specified) | single 11mm dynamic |
| earbuds battery life | 7h | 10h |
| total + case battery life | 40h | 50h |
| weatherproofing | IPX7 | IPX5 |
| onboard controls | buttons | touch based |
| warranty | 18 months | 18 months |
| active noise cancellation | no | yes |
| transparency mode | no | yes |
| Bluetooth version | 5.0 | 5.2 |
| EQ app compatibility | no | yes |
| Multi-device support | no | no |
While there are some marginal improvements spec wise from the Life P2 to Life P3, the two big ones for the Life P3 are the ANC/transparency and Soundcore app support, which is one of the better wireless earbud apps currently out there by the way.
While the Life P2 is fully waterproof, the Life P3 curiously has a lower IP code and is only water resistant up to splashing.
Winner: Life P3
Does the Soundcore Life P2 or Life P3 have better isolation?
While the natural isolation of the Life P2 is actually decent for this style of earbud, so too is that of the Life P3, and with the added ANC to the latter the overall noise attenuation of the Life P3 is significantly superior to that of the Life P2.
Winner: Life P3
Does the Soundcore Life P2 or Life P3 have better onboard controls?
The Life P2 has buttons that have a nice feel for those who prefer buttons over touch controls, which the Life P3 has. The default control schematic is flawed on both of these, but with the P3 you at least have the option to customize the controls in the app, which you cannot do with the Life P2
Winner: Life P3
Does the Life P2 or the Life P3 Have Better Fit and Comfort?
I was able to get a comfortable fit with a secure seal with both the Life P2 and Life P3. The Life P3 fit is shallower and I opted for larger tips, while the Life P2 has firmer and deeper fit with the medium tips. I prefer the latter, but plenty of people prefer the former.
Winner: draw/personal preference
A note before the next section: this page describes how I evaluate the sound quality of headphones and earbuds.Does the Life P2 or the Life P3 Sound Better?
You’d think the Life P3, being an upgrade, and with its added EQ customizability, would be the clear winner here, but interestingly that is not the case. Even with all the EQ tinkering I could do to make the Life P3 sound its best, the Life P2 still, overall, sounds better – better detail, better tone, and better separation.
As I said in my review (linked below) I was and still am really impressed with how good the Life P2 sounds, and it was a big surprise because Soundcore’s newer TWS earbuds all seem have bad tuning issues out of the box, including the Life P3. I don’t know what they did differently before with the life P2, but they should go back to it.
Some people might prefer the sound of the Life P3, especially because you can kind of shape it to whatever you want it to be, like a bright bass cannon for example which the Life P2 is not. But, as is the case a lot of time in the audio world, the older stuff sounds better.
Winner: Life P2
Which Should You Choose Between the Soundcore Life P2 or Life P3?
As I say, I’m a fidelity and music guy first and foremost, and the Life P2’s natural sound profile being as superior as it is to the Life P3’s sound, even with EQ tinkering, is reason enough for me to go with the Life P2. Also noteworthy is that the Life P2, because it’s a legacy product now, has been significantly discounted and you can now find it for about half the price of the Life P3.
The Life P3 is still a good product though – if you want something that’s more bassy, or that you can really customize, or that has ANC and better overall isolation, you might prefer the newer Life P3. By the way, I wouldn’t be surprised if it too got some discounts sooner than later.
Get the Life P2 wireless earbuds on Amazon (affiliate link)
Get the Life P3 wireless earbuds on Amazon (affiliate link)
Relevant Articles
• Full Soundcore Life P2 review
• Full Soundcore Life P3 review
• Is Soundcore a good audio brand?
• The best budget tier (under $30) true wireless earbuds
• The best value tier (under $50) true wireless earbuds
