As Weird as they are Wonderful: Anker Soundcore AeroClip Review
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Finally, a pair of open-ear earbuds that feature some bass! Our first impression of the AeroClip was so impressive that we almost saw them as the salvation of open-ear earbuds for audiophiles. In the course of our nextpit review, however, it became clear to accept some disadvantages when it comes to audio quality. The review reveals what these are and whether the Soundcore AeroClip is worth buying!
Great sound quality with bass despite an open-ear design
Quite pretty when worn
LDAC support when used with Android
Good battery life (8 hours)
Bad
Wearing comfort not always optimal
Limited control via gestures
Maximum volume is not always sufficient when on the move
Few comfort functions
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Anker Soundcore AeroClip: All deals
Price & availability
Anker offers the Soundcore AeroClip at an RRP of $169.99 a pop. There are three colors, of which we reviewed the Champagne Mist version. In addition to the AeroClip, Anker also offers other models in a clip format. Both the reviewed models and the alternatives are available via the following store link at Amazon!
AeroClip boasts a clip design instead of hanging them over the ears
Design and Build Quality
Size
6.2 x 1.8 x 4.5 (charging case) – 3 x 2 x 2.3 (earbud)
Weight
43g (charging case) – 7g (earbud)
Choice of material
IP certification
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We are familiar with classic plug-in earbuds since Apple’s AirPods were released. For some time now, models such as the Nothing Ear (Open) (review) or the Shokz OpenFit 2 have been released, where you hang them over your ear. Designs such as the OpenClip are still relatively rare, even if they did not invent the clip design. Soundcore itself offers the C40i, Huawei has the FreeClip, and Bose also has the Sports Open earbuds as part of its range.
One advantage of this rather unusual attachment to the ear is how it creates a certain ear jewelry effect. This sounds less relevant for techies at first, but a friend I spoke to about open-ear headphones found the AeroClip particularly exciting for this reason. On the other hand, the top of the ear remains free, which can sometimes be more comfortable for those who wear glasses.
One disadvantage of the design is that it is rather unusual and even uncomfortable for me to wear them in the long term. Although I’m used to having something on my ear because of earrings, I began to feel some uncomfortable pressure after wearing them for an hour. Taking the earbuds off even hurt a little. It may very well be how your ears are better suited to the size of the OpenClip. Incidentally, you can’t “enlarge” the earbuds’ carrying ring. Soundcore only includes two sleeves for the rear part of the earbuds, which have been designed to improve the fit for smaller ears.
Apart from comfort, there is another disadvantage to the design of the earbuds. The control options are comparatively limited. It is not unusual for manufacturers to install touch-sensitive surfaces on earbuds. In the case of the AeroClip, it is via the silver rings that we control the earbuds via taps. However, we can only double and triple-tap when it comes to issuing a command. The app does not offer simple taps and swiping movements, which would be particularly intuitive due to the design, and they do not work, either.
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To end on a positive note, the earbuds are protected against water and dust based on the IPX4 rating. That’s perfectly fine, and it allows us to wear them in the rain. I also particularly liked the charging case in the review. It is much more compact than the charging case of many other open-ear earbuds. This is an advantage of the design in this format. At the same time, the earbuds’ temples act as small handles, making it particularly easy to remove the earbuds.
Wear detection is missing from the AeroClip
Software
Software
App for Android & iOS – Bluetooth 5.4 – Touch controls
Comfort functions
Dual pairing – Spatial audio
We are already familiar with the Soundcore app from numerous other earbuds. It is logically structured, has a modern look, and offers instructions and a support feature. In terms of convenience functions, however, the AeroClip remains on the lower end of the feature chain. They offer limited control functions on the earbuds themselves and even come without wear detection. As a result, the music continues to play when we remove the earbuds.
However, the fact that Soundcore integrated an 8-band equalizer into the app is a very positive development. This allows us to adjust the sound of the earbuds in a very precise manner according to our preferences. In addition, the earbuds support spatial audio on Android, which results in more ‘spacious’ sound. Dual pairing also allows us to connect to two devices simultaneously. The switch is then automatically made to the device that currently plays audio.
If you lose one of the earbuds near your smartphone while maintaining the Bluetooth connection, you can try to locate it by having it emit a loud sound. This makes the compact earbuds easier to find.
Bass at last: The major advantage of the Soundcore AeroClip
Performance
Driver
12mm matched driver, titanium-coated – 2 microphones per earbud
Frequency response
Codecs
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The first time I listened to music with the AeroClip, I experienced a “Wow” moment! I have had the opportunity to try out some open-ear earbuds over the last few months and was pleasantly surprised by the new Soundcore models. They offer a noticeable and quite powerful bass punch, which models such as the Nothing Open (Ear) or Soundcore’s own AeroFit 2 (review) normally lack.
The clip design struck a good balance between a fairly direct placement of a driver on the ear and enough space to let sounds through. The driver size of 12 mm is also decent, although not unusually large. As a special feature, we also find LDAC, an HD codec in connection with Android devices, which we also miss with most open headphones.
The result is a very clear and powerful sound, which we can adjust based on our preferences using the 8-band equalizer. Simply fantastic! The sound experience would be perfect if there weren’t two drawbacks:
First, the earbuds are comparatively quiet, which can be problematic when combined with the lack of passive noise shielding. When I was out and about in noisy city traffic, I usually used the earbuds at full volume. And even then, I had to concentrate a little on listening to lines of text or even podcasts. This is where the Shokz OpenFit 2, which had an insanely loud maximum volume, were much more impressive.
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Another reason I also wanted to mention the Shokz model: The manufacturer is much better at keeping the sound characteristics constant when the volume changes. The OpenClip from Soundcore lost a little bass at higher volumes, as the Nothing Ear (Open) did. This is annoying, as the earbuds simply sound better in quiet environments at medium volume.
If you were to buy the earbuds and miss LDAC in the Bluetooth settings, make sure that both the Soundcore app and the earbuds themselves are running the latest software version. You should then be able to activate LDAC in the earbuds’ app settings.
Finally, as there is no Active Noise Cancellation, I would like to talk about the call quality: As with many other open-ear earbuds, I particularly liked making calls with the AeroClip. This is because I can still hear my voice when I have the earbuds in my ears. Soundcore also installed two beamforming microphones per earbud and uses artificial intelligence for noise suppression. My test callers attested to the quality of my calls.
Great battery life, but lacking for open-ear headphones
Battery
Battery life
8h music playback – 32h via charging case
Charging speed
Quick-charging for 3 hours in 10 minutes
The AeroClip can play music for 8 hours per charge, and with the charging case, you can extend the runtime to a total of 32 hours. This places the earbuds on par with in-ear headphones without Active Noise Cancellation. Compared to other open-ear models, however, they are slightly below average.
As these runtimes are still very good for earbuds and, above all, very suitable for everyday use, we’re not going to give the Clips a pass. Soundcore also left nothing to be desired when it comes to quick charging: A charge of just 10 minutes provides three hours of music playback. The only thing missing from the charging case is wireless charging, which is a shame!
Is it worth buying the Soundcore AeroClip?
After my first impression, I almost had the feeling that Soundcore had developed the best solution for open headphones with the AeroClip. This is because the earbuds finally offered more pressure in the bass range than other open-ear models that are worn over the ear via a headband. The AeroClips were able to maintain this impression over the course of the review duration, with the only real criticism being the comparatively low volume.
The best in-ear headphones compared
For my ears, which had been proven to be reliable and adaptable in my headphone reviews, however, they were rather uncomfortable to wear in the long term. Although Soundcore was able to increase the characteristic clip, I found the pinching sensation unpleasant and even painful in the long run. Of course, this may be different when it comes to your ears, so you’ll just have to try the design out for yourself.
In the end, the only general misgivings of the earbuds are the rather mediocre volume level, the limited control options on the earbuds, and the lack of wireless charging support. These are not major points of criticism, which are offset by advantages such as very good dual pairing and the extremely compact charging case compared to other open models. Nice!
