JBL’s SoundGear Clips are trying something a bit different. Not only are they designed to provide an on ear listening experience that lets you hear the world around you while enjoying your audio, they’re designed to look good doing it.
The clip on form factor is definitely the focus here, and if in ear earbuds annoy or agitate your ears, or you find more traditional earbuds uncomfortable, these are worth taking a look at.
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Design and Fit
Style is at the forefront of the Soundgear CLIPS. JBL has clearly set out to make these look more like a fashion accessory than a standard earbud. It boasts a translucent, metallic finish and comes in four colours, Copper, Blue, Purple, and White. Each of them has a distinctive look, but like anything in fashion, whether they suit your personal style is, of course, down to you.
As the name suggests, they use a clip on mechanism that hooks around the earlobe, with the speaker sitting over the ear canal rather than inside it. JBL calls this the SonicArc shape. These are on ear earbuds, not in ear, so there's nothing to push in or seal. It means you can listen to music while still being able to hear everything around you.
To get the fit right you rotate them up or down behind your ear, and while it takes some getting used to, especially if you haven't worn this form factor before, once you find the sweet spot it works well. The wire hook is flexible enough to get them in the right position but holds its shape well enough that they feel secure. Ear shape may affect how easily you get there, though it wasn't an issue for me.
The design integrates naturally with other accessories. Earrings don't get in the way, and worn alongside sunglasses they don't look out of place. Comfort holds up well for the first few hours, though extended wear does become more noticeable over time, which may simply come down to adjusting to an unfamiliar form factor.
The touch controls sit on the panel behind the ear, handling playback, calls, and volume. The touch system is responsive and accidental inputs weren't an issue during testing. Volume is managed through single and double taps on the left earbud, which does feel cumbersome at times. All gestures are remappable through the JBL Headphones app but it is limited to playback and volume controls and switching what side they're on.
The earbuds also carry an IP54 rating for water and dust resistance.
Sound
They use JBL's OpenSound air conduction technology, meaning audio is delivered without sealing the ear canal. They’re equipped with an 11mm dynamic driver and an Adaptive Bass Boost algorithm for playback.
The sound holds up well. Bass is present and reasonably punchy, which isn't a given with this type of design, and at moderate volumes the overall sound is solid for casual listening, podcasts, and music throughout the day. If you push the volume higher though, things get a little tinny, which is a limitation of the open ear format as much as anything else.
At moderate volumes leakage is well controlled, with the volume at 50%, my partner sitting right next to me couldn't hear anything coming from my earbuds. Pushing the volume higher does let some sound escape though.
Being open ear earbuds, there isn’t much passive noise cancellation here, but that’s the point. It’s very easy to maintain situational awareness and hear your surroundings when wearing these earbuds.
Calls
They come with a four mic array with an AI trained beamforming algorithm. Through the JBL Headphones app you can select whether to use one or both mics per earbud depending on how you're wearing them.
The quality is serviceable, people were able to hear me clearly enough when making calls but it does sound a little bit distorted at times.
Battery/Case
The earbuds have an 8 hour battery life with an additional 24 hours in the case. There’s a speed Charge function that will provide three hours of playback from a ten minute charge as well which is a handy safety net if you’re going out the door.
The case is on the larger side compared to some other earbuds but it’s not unreasonable to carry. It has a clear design with a flip up lid that feels solid, a USB-C charging port on the back and a flat base so you can present the earbuds standing up. It does the job.
App and Features
The JBL Headphones app is the same app you'd use with any other JBL earbud, so if you've used it before there's nothing new to learn. It covers everything you'd expect, EQ with six presets or a full 10 band custom equaliser, left and right sound balance, a max volume limiter, and the ability to remap the touch controls. It does what it needs to do.
It’s also compatible with Google Fast Pair and multipoint Bluetooth, so you can connect to two devices simultaneously.
Verdict
The Soundgear Clips are for anyone who wants to stay connected to their surroundings while listening to music or taking calls throughout the day.
The design is the headline act here with JBL opting for something a bit different, and depending on your own tastes, perhaps a bit more stylish. But they also lend themselves well to someone who might find traditional earbuds, especially in ear options, uncomfortable.
For open ear earbuds, the sound quality works and the battery life delivers on its promises. The volume controls can be a little fiddly and extended wear does become noticeable over time, but neither is a dealbreaker.
If you’re looking for open ear earbuds and want something that stands out, these are worth taking a look at.
