SOUNDPEATS RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones Review

Reading Time: 6 minutes

Tech Specs

Product:	SOUNDPEATS RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones
Features:	– Open-ear Design& Air Conduction Tech – Patented λ Enhanced Bass Algorithm& 16.2mm Dynamic Driver – Liquid Silicone Comfort& 1.09oz Lightweight – 14 Hrs Playtime& Type-C Charging – BT 5.3 Stable Multiple Connection – App Control& Standardized Touch Control
Website:	SOUNDPEATS: https://soundpeats.com/products/runfree-sport-headphones?variant=45119254266106   Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C2V5ZVNV
Price:	£55.99 on Amazon / $59.99 (USD) on SOUNDPEATS website

Music and exercise can be a great combination. However, I’ve found it difficult to find a pair of headphones that can provide a comfortable experience for exercising outdoors and for more vigorous activities like running. Are the SOUNDPEATS RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones the answer to this conundrum? I’ve been putting them through their paces to find out how they measure up. Here’s my rapid review with all the key points.

Out of the Box

The RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones arrived fully charged and I had them connected to my smartphone within seconds. You can start using them without downloading the app if you want to get going quickly, but the app does offer adaptive EQ – more on that later. It’s easy to stop and start music on the go as the on/off/start/pause button is raised above the others. To move the volume up/down, it’s the buttons either side of this one.

Comfort and Fit

The relatively loose-fitting, over-ear design is different to running headphones I’ve tried before, where each earpiece has been independent of the other. In this case, the earpieces are linked via a sturdy, yet flexible wire that rests at the base of your neck. Whilst running it’s hardly noticeable. Even with the snuggest fitting earbuds, there’s a teeny worry at the back of your mind that one might fall out when you start to move and sweat. There’s no need to worry about that at all with the RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones, they stay secure on your head with no compromise to sound quality.

I tested the headphones during a range of activities; running outdoors, treadmill running, interval training outdoors (sets of sprints followed by jogging back over shorter distances), indoor cycling machine sessions, and strength training (similar to HIIT). With each activity, it was easy to let myself get immersed in the music and my training. More often than not, I forgot that I was wearing the headphones.

Sound Quality

Straight out of the box, the calibre of sound provided by the headphones is excellent. In the SOUNDPEATS app there is a range of pre-set EQs and the option to create custom EQs, yet where the RunFree headphones really shine is with the Adaptive EQ. By completing a short test within the app with the headphones connected, you can create your own adaptive EQ profile which is then saved to your headset.

With my adaptive EQ profile switched on, the difference is subtle but noticeable. Sound is crisper, more present and has a greater depth and range of bass and treble. It feels more immersive and for those music lovers like me, it taps into that emotive part of your brain that only high-quality headphones and speakers can reach. It gives you that music rush.

Whether you use the Adaptive EQ or not, there is a balance between being able to hear your music and ambient noise around you. This is very useful when out road running as you can always hear approaching cars as well as your tunes. In windy weather, without the adaptive EQ I could still hear my music, but the wind was also quite loud. After creating my adaptive EQ profile, the wind became more of a background noise but I could still hear it. I would say that I think I’m a little more sensitive to sounds like this than most though. That being said, once I got running I noticed it far less, often forgetting about it.

A Fantastic Training Aid

The RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones have been a brilliant training aid in my preparation for the Cardiff Half Marathon. At times, being able to listen to music whilst training has provided great motivation. It’s not just simply being able to listen to music though, it’s that the music has such depth – it’s like listening to music on a larger sound system, but just for your own ears.

Bluetooth Range and Taking Calls

For most of the activities, I didn’t stray far from my phone whilst wearing the headphones. Whilst I was doing interval training, I took the opportunity to test the sound quality over a distance. In the image below my phone was in my bag and I ran a little way beyond the goal posts in the distance without noticing any drop in sound quality or any signs of poor connection.

While out walking my dog, I tested the built-in microphone on a call with a friend using WhatsApp. During the call I walked along a main road and there were gusts of wind up to about 30 mph. Whilst I could still hear the cars and wind gusts, I could hear my friend clearly above the traffic and wind, and vice versa.

Battery Life

14 hours of playtime felt like longer. I completed multiple workouts of varying lengths before I had to plug in for a charge, so I’d say this amount of playtime is more than adequate. Once the battery got low, a low battery icon for the headset was visible on my phone to alert me. Shortly before the battery ran out, a handy voice warning repeated several times, interrupting the music. You charge via a USB-C cable which is provided in the box.

SOUNDPEATS App

I had a bit of an issue being able to create an account. A message kept coming up saying that the password I was using to create my account didn’t contain the correct characters, but there was no information about the desired password criteria. I tried the usual things, adding upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, special characters etc. but to no avail. I was using an iPhone and finally managed to solve the issue by getting a friend to create my account on his Android phone.

It was worth getting into the app though, as this is where I was able to create my adaptive EQ profile. You might find some of the instructions in the adaptive EQ test a little confusing, I think this was down to the translation into English. For example, in one part you are told to indicate if you hear a noise, but the message on the button you tap says ‘I hear voices’. The noises I heard were not voices.

For me, none of these issues were deal breakers. There were resolutions and I’m confident that if my friend hadn’t been able to create my account, I would have been able to do this by contacting support.

Would I recommend them?

Without hesitation. The RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones provide high quality music for immersive training sessions. They’re comfy and secure to wear with an unobtrusive and stylish design. You can create your own adaptive EQ profile for a personalised experience and the headset balances music and ambient sounds well. The battery lasts for a decent length of time before needing a charge and it’s easy to see when you need to charge your device. If you need to, you can even take a call during your workout via the built-in microphone.

From the perspective of someone passionate about both music and sport, the SOUNDPEATS RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones tick all the boxes. If you’re looking for a new pair of sports headphones, I’d recommend giving these a try.

5 out of 5

5

You can buy the SOUNDPEATS RunFree Open-ear Sports Headphones on the SOUNDPEATS website here, or on Amazon here

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