These Budget Earbuds Turned An Audiophile Into An Open-ear Believer

ZDNET's cardinal takeaways

• The Soundpeats PearlClip Pro earbuds are disposable now connected Amazon for $59.
• The PearlClip Pro earbuds connection high-quality sound and a creation that holds to your ear, nary matter really progressive you are.
• The controls of nan PearlClip Pro earbuds return immoderate getting utilized to.

As a runner and a person of music, I'm ever looking for earbuds that tin wed those 2 things successful an progressive shape factor. For nan longest time, nan perfect action has been bone-conducting headphones, but they're often lacking successful immersive audio. 

I precocious started considering open-air earbuds arsenic my go-to for running, but nan problem is their touch power tin beryllium challenging owed to nan buds' activity (they bent complete your ear, which intends they tin beryllium a spot floppy).

Also: Why I urge these DJ headphones to each audio professionals - particularly astatine their price

Then nan clip-on style of earbud came to my attention. It's a caller style, and astatine first I was reticent to effort them, assuming, by quality of their design, that they wouldn't person capable grip to enactment connected my ear. 

But past I tried Soundpeats' PearlClip Pro earbuds, and recovered that their clever creation and weight distribution made them enactment put successful my ears -- moreover erstwhile connected a run. Here's really they fared during my testing. 

My experience

After a speedy unboxing, I unlocked my Pixel 9 Pro and assumed nan pairing process would beryllium automatic. Nope. I had to manually brace them and it took a fewer tries (and a telephone reboot) to get it to work. As a Pixel user, I've grown accustomed to nan telephone auto-connecting to caller devices. When that doesn't happen, I retrieve really frustrating Bluetooth tin be.

Fortunately, I was capable to get nan earbuds connected soon after, truthful I slipped them complete my ears and turned connected my Spotify tally list.

The sound

I was instantly taken by nan value of sound. It's not that it blew maine away, but for a brace of open-air earbuds, nan PearlClip Pro were beautiful impressive, particularly fixed their $59 price. That's inexpensive for a brace of earbuds that present a decent EQ curve, pinch plentifulness of lows and highs and not truthful overmuch successful nan midrange that your ears create fatigue aft an hr aliases 2 of pounding nan pavement.

Also: These wireless headphones transported maine to audio nirvana - and are my caller all-time favorite

As nan songs progressed during my run, I was pleasantly amazed that each genres had extent and clarity (even erstwhile nan euphony utilized a spot excessively overmuch compression). Even better, I could perceive everything erstwhile cars aliases trains were near. The only caveat to that is, dissimilar bone-conducting headphones, I had to little nan measurement a spot to perceive ambient sound.

And that brings maine to nan 1 nit I person to prime pinch these earbuds.

Touch controls

This is wherever things spell a spot southbound for nan PearlClip Pros: nan touch controls are a spot difficult to use. First off, nan touch pad is connected nan information of nan earbud that goes into your ear, truthful it tin beryllium challenging to get nan touch correct (especially erstwhile running). Second, nan controls tin beryllium confusing: 

• Double pat connected either bud pauses
• Single pat connected nan near bud lowers nan volume
• Single pat connected nan correct bud raises nan volume
• 1.5 2nd pat connected nan near bud jumps backmost to nan opening of nan existent track
• 1.5 2nd pat connected nan correct bud jumps to nan adjacent track

It's those 1.5 2nd taps that are really problematic. Don't clasp it agelong capable and you'll either raise aliases little nan volume. Hold it excessively long, and thing happens (unless you clasp it for 10 seconds, which turns nan buds off).

Jack Wallen/ZDNET

I've grown accustomed to a double-tap skipping to nan adjacent way and having to effort and count for 1.5 seconds tin beryllium a existent problem erstwhile you're much willing successful keeping your bosom complaint astatine a definite level. It took maine a while to yet get it down, but it should beryllium acold easier than it is.

Also: I'm a instrumentality of Marshall speakers, but I didn't expect these discounted headphones to sound this good

However, that confusing spot of tapping and rubbing doesn't discount nan value of sound these earbuds produce. I'm much than happy to place that, acknowledgment to nan sound, knowing that nan touch controls will yet go 2nd nature.

Finally, I didn't person to instal an app for these earbuds and that is simply a much-needed relief. If nan PearlClip Pro earbuds didn't nutrient decent sound, I would person hoped for an app to set nan EQ. 

ZDNET's buying advice

These types of earbuds are champion utilized for 2 types of people:

• Those who are progressive and don't for illustration bone-conducting earbuds.
• Those who tin ne'er get a bully seal pinch accepted earbuds.

If you autumn into either of those categories, you'll admit nan comfortableness and sound value produced by nan PearlClip Pro earbuds. If you don't autumn into either of those categories, you could still bask nan PearlClip Pro earbuds, but you mightiness find nan controls a spot excessively cumbersome for mundane use.

I'll happily move retired my aging bone-conducting headphones for nan PearlClip Pro earbuds, hoping that my fingers get utilized to moving nan controls.

Soundpeats PearlClip Pro Earbuds specs

• 12mm Dual-Magnet Driver
• Open soundstage pinch enhanced bass
• Automatic Left/Right Channel Adaptation pinch Charging Case
• Battery life - 6h + 18h, 10-min speedy complaint for 2h playtime
• Bluetooth: V5.4
• Profiles:HFP/A2DP/AVRCP
• Chipset:BT8932D
• Supported Bluetooth Codec: AAC/ SBC
• Single Earbud Weight: 5.85g
• Charging Case pinch Earbuds: 46.8g
• Control Type: Touch
• Waterproof Rating: IPX5