Open Ear Vs In-Ear? How These Earbuds Differ And Which Is Best?

Forbes

2 days ago

Open ear is the new challenger to in-ear headphones. Is there a winner in this battle? Anker
Some months ago, I encountered an entirely new format of earphones for the first time in the guise of the open-ear Soundcore C40i earbuds — and they were something of a revelation. As the name suggests, open-ear earbuds are designed specifically to let you hear sounds from the outside world as you listen, while also removing the listening fatigue associated with conventional in-ear designs.
With the new open-ear Soundcore AeroClip and the Soundcore Liberty 5 earphones as reference, I thought it was an opportunity to weigh the pros and cons of each technology, so you can decide which works best for you.
Open-ear earbuds refer to wireless earphones that clip onto your earlobe rather than inside or over it. A rear section houses ng the battery and Bluetooth tech, while sound chamber sits on the other and both are connected by a band made of Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU), a rubber-like plastic material that is lightweight, flexible and durable.
Open ear earbuds has a jewelry-like appearance and let you hear the outside world as you listen. Anker
Thanks to what your grandparents would think of as the wonders of 'modern technology' all of this can be contained in a tiny earbud that, in the case of the Soundcore AeroClip , weighs a mere 5.9g. The TPU material enables it to grip your earlobe firmly but without significant pressure, so you can barely feel them, and as there's nothing inside your ear canal and nothing covering your ear, you can barely tell that you're wearing them.
The band also doubles up as a touch-sensitive pause and skip button and for accepting calls, which is clever.
Looks-wise, the small, rounded band gives the appearance of jewelry, and as an old-fashioned type, it did cross my mind that they may look odd on me, but fortunately, this proved not to be the case, and I didn't get any strange stares — or at least, no more than normal.
Ah, but surely, they are going to fall off, you might be thinking. Not so. Much to my surprise, I found that whether pounding the streets on a run, they didn't budge, giving me confidence that I could use them in many situations.
That is the case, however, only if you put them on correctly. Put them over your earlobe the wrong way round and they will come off, which I learnt the hard way, when — well, there's no way to sugar coat this — one fell off my ear and into the toilet bowl. Yikes!
On the upside, this was a great opportunity to test their IPX4 rating, and after I fished it out, washed and dried it off, the bud showed no ill effects, demonstrating its durability. Air Conduction
As the earbuds are some distance away from your ear canal, you might wonder how they work. The answer is the science of conduction, with the angled side-firing speaker driver beaming the sound waves towards the ear canal.
As there is no seal over the ear, outside sounds can be picked up as you would expect, so when running or cycling, or crossing the street on the way to the shops, you can hear traffic or be more likely to hear someone approaching you, which is a bonus for safety. Alternatively, you might be secure inside your home but want to be able to hear the doorbell as you wait for that package to arrive. Surround Sound
What I wasn't expecting was how good the open-ear Soundcore AeroClips sounded. For such a tiny thing, with no physical contact to the ear, the clear and engaging output seemed almost magical, and as sound isn't being beamed directly into your ears, there was a strange sensation of not being certain if the audio was coming from the smartphone, which meant some slightly panicked checking the first couple of times.
Whether for podcast voices or for 'breeze hop' (aka relaxing funky beats, which is a term I think I've just made up) were natural and easy to listen to. Switching things up with Oasis Live at Cardiff and the beefy weight of the guitars and the gravel in Liam's older voice showed their presence.
Microphone quality was also fine, as somehow, the tiny AeroClip buds contain four microphones, and my voice came across clearly on a call, even in a crowded restaurant.
So, are open ears the perfect solution? Well, not quite.
The key feature of being able to hear outside sounds at the same time as your audio is also a downside. When things get too noisy, you simply cannot hear what you're listening to anymore well – and as for using them on the deafening London Underground – forget it.
In ear headphones such as the Soundcore Liberty 5 are ideal for when you want to block out the ... More outside world, such as when traveling on the subway. Anker The Benefits of In-Ear
This, then, is exactly where a more traditional in-ear headphone design, such as the Liberty 5, comes in.
If open earbuds are aimed at letting outside noise in, in-ears are designed to do the opposite, and at just £100 ($100), the Soundcore Liberty 5 earbuds are a great affordable option.
At just 4.6g the buds are even lighter than the AeroClip , which is extremely light, and with no open speaker driver, it also allows for a more durable IP55 water and dust resistance rating. However, the bud is directly in your ear so there's no getting away from the fact that you are more aware of it. Sound quality priority
While not a 'high-end' earphone, the Liberty 5 s have a strong emphasis on sound quality.
To get that, though, you must spend time ensuring that they fit well and that a variety of easy-to-swap tips in different sizes are provided. From previous experience, I had assumed that I had abnormally small ear canals and so went straight for the smallest ones.
However, my mistake was flagged up by the 'HearID' sound test routine in the app. This test analyzes your hearing and adjusts the headphones' output but before it starts it checks if your earbud has a proper seal. It promptly informed me that I did not. After correcting this, I immediately noticed an improvement in the sound quality. Once completed, the test determined that I had above-average hearing for my age, so I was happy to forgive being caught out by it.
The Liberty 5 s are undoubtedly a step up in audio terms compared to the Aeroclips (especially if your source device supports LDAC), with meatier bass response and clearer detail.
The Dolby Sound mode opened podcast audio up nicely, and while you can use custom modes, such as Bass Booster and Acoustic, I'd eschew these and use the Custom EQ mode. It takes time to optimize it, but the result will be worth it, whatever you're into.
In-ears will also usually provide active noise cancelling (ANC). While some open-ear buds offer this (which appears contradictory considering that open-ear buds are designed to let sound in), for truly effective ANC, you need a sealed design — and the Liberty 5 s do a good job.
The app provides five intensity levels and shortcuts for airplane or vehicle travel and there's also a 'Wind Noise Reduction' setting, which often catches ANC out, so to speak. Finally, there's also a gaming mode, which reduces latency and boosts 'footsteps and voices' at the risk of connection instability.
If you do need to hear the outside world, there's a 'Transparency' mode, but you have to manually activate it and it isn't as natural an experience as open-ear buds. So, which is best?
What this brief compare-and-contrast tour of open-ear vs in-ear demonstrates is that it isn't a question of better, but more about what you want to prioritize.
If you appreciate being able to keep an ear on your surroundings, then open ear is the way to go, but there's no getting around that in a noisy environment, such as an office, they may not work. And while I love the airy feel of the open ears, there's no doubt that for non-causal listening, you'll get more from an in-ear design. That said, you will have to accept that, while it's not uncomfortable, you'll still be aware that there is something in your ear.
There is, it turns out, no such thing as a free lunch. As such, you may need both open Ear and in-ear earbuds. It's fortunate, then, that Soundcore offers affordable options, so you can pick up both of these for less than the price of high-end options from other brands, which, in these cash-strapped times, should be music to your ears. Further reading Forbes Soundcore C40i Earbuds Review: No Noise Canceling — No Fear By Benny Har-Even Forbes NuraTrue Pro Cuts Cords But Not Corners With CD-Quality Lossless Audio Over Wireless By Benny Har-Even Forbes Acefast Acefit Pro Open-Ear Headphones Review By Benny Har-Even