These Cleer Arc Open Earphones Are Great For Sports And Small Ears
The Cleer Arc earphones perch on the top of the wearer’s ears and pipe sound into the ear canal.
Cleer
Cleer’s Arc open earphones are a superb idea… on paper, at least. Imagine a pair of earphones that can sit snuggly on your ears but without blocking your hearing, enabling you to be still aware of everything that’s going on around you. This is the concept of open earphones and several manufacturers hope the idea will be the next big craze among sportsmen and women.
I first reviewed a pair of open earphones from Always in November. The idea is so simple that you wonder why it wasn’t thought of before. And then you try them and all becomes clear. The idea is excellent; a pair of earphones you can hook over each ear which then dangles a high-quality loudspeaker just at the entrance of your ear canal.
You get to hear your favorite music from your smartphone via Bluetooth while still being aware of what’s happening around you, such as traffic sounds, the presence of other people, or the ring of a doorbell. Unfortunately, that is also the downside of the idea because the earphones probably allow too much extraneous sound to reach the user’s ears, competing with the music.
The Arc open earphones from Cleer are well made and capable of producing excellent sound.
Cleer
The Cleer Arc are beautifully made and they look gorgeous. They feel like a high-quality product and are housed in an oval, zippered fabric case where they are charged when not used. To wear the Cleer Arc, the user slips the earpieces over the top of the ears like a pair of hearing aids. The idea is to position the speakers as close to the ear canal opening as possible.
However, the fit of the earpieces will depend on the size of the user’s ears. For example, I found I couldn’t get the speakers close enough to my ear canal, which spoiled the sound and reduced the volume levels. I also didn’t find them all that comfortable to wear. Maybe I have problematic ears.
Pairing the Cleer Arc earphones with a host smartphone is easy and there’s also a companion smartphone app available for iOS and Android. The app can be used for tweaking some of the earphone settings. Once the Cleer Arc are paired with a smartphone, they will automatically reconnect with the host whenever they are taken out of their storage case.
When not being used, the Cleer Arc earphones are stored in this zippered charging case. A full … [+] charge of the Arc provides up to seven hours of playtime.
Cleer
Now, presuming the user can get a good fit with the earpieces, the sound quality of these earphones is pretty good thanks to 16.2mm graphene neodymium drivers. There’s an excellent bass level and plenty of detail in both the mids and the treble. A full charge of the earbuds will deliver up to seven hours of playtime, enough for three or four sessions in the gym or on the bike.
Each earpiece also has touchpad controls for tapping and pausing the music or skipping tracks. It’s also possible to take phone calls while out for a jog thanks to built-in noise-canceling microphones. The sound quality of phone calls is good, although how well you can hear the call depends very much on the amount of external noise that’s also reaching the user’s ears.
The concept of a pair of earphones that can alert you to what is happening around you is sensible, especially for people who enjoy their sports. Sony’s LinkBuds are a case in point and perhaps a better implementation of the concept. For me, the fit and the size of the Cleer Arc don’t work well for someone with more prominent ears. Anyone with dainty ears may not get on very well with the Cleer Arc.
The size of the Cleer Arc earbuds can’t be altered but the speakers are hinged.
Cleer
Verdict: The Cleer Arc open earphones are a good idea, in theory. These are well-made earphones capable of making an excellent sound if they fit your ears. The earphones have a fixed size and their adjustment is limited to a basic hinge motion. If you have smaller ears, you may be lucky and achieve the perfect fit. But if your ears are the size of a baby elephant’s, you may be disappointed. One slight negative is the lack of support for the AAC codec used by Apple iOS devices. These open earphones could be a good idea for cyclists and joggers, but any potential buyers would be wise to try them for size first to ensure they fit correctly.
Pricing & Availability: The Cleer Arc earphones are available now, costing $129.99 / £129.99.
More info: cleeraudio.com or cleeraudio.co.uk
Tech Specs:
Drivers: 16.2mm Neodymium. Frequency response: 20Hz – 20kHz. Microphones: Two beamforming mics with cVc noise canceling. Audio codecs: SBC, apt-X. Battery life: 7 hours. Water resistance: IPX4. Weight: 14.5g (per earbud), 96.5g (both earbuds and case).
The Cleer Arc fit by sitting on top of the wearer’s ears a little like hearing aids. How close the … [+] speakers are to the wearer’s ear canals will depend on the size of the ears.
Cleer
