Soundcore C30i by Anker, Open-Ear Earbuds, Clip-On Headphones, Lightweight Comfort, Stable Fit, Firm-Shell Design, Attachable Ear Grips, Big Drivers for Clear Audio, 30H Play, IPX4 Water-Resistant

My favorite headphones for doing things in. I forget I'm wearing these. They're so comfy and actually do have quite a bit of bass. Even the deep sub-bass in deep house is still there. I can't even believe that I can listen to the very bass focused music I like with these. They're missing that bit of growl that super deep bass has. These are definitely not as thick or rich sounding, can even be a little sharper sounding than the Bose QC 35 ii I have. To be expected. These sound more like standing in a really big room listening to music. You're not close to the music but it feels expansive and light especially since you can feel and hear your surroundings and you don't feel plugged up by over the ear headphones or earbuds. (They don't give the sound of an echo but some things feel like the sound is coming from all around you, which is delightful. You can turn on the EQ to"3D surround" and that's kind of echo-y and even more surrounding you, though I don't prefer that setting.) Before these I was practically living in my Bose QC 35 ii over ear headphones and now I'm not often tempted to put the Bose on. Bought them for audiobooks, stayed for music. I even thought that I love to live in noise cancelling every minute of my day, but it turns out that when ambient sound isn't distorted by earbuds and I have lovely music or books perfectly and comfortably in my ears, I prefer these to noise cancelling. I am a person who is quite irritated by bad sounds (dishes clanking, my electric toothbrush, cars driving, etc). I thought I liked that disconnected feeling you can get listening in noise cancelling, but it turns out that it's really nice to feel more in the real world while I listen to things. I can also put the sound to a level where I have some background beats/tunes and still listen to birds and the river. So lovely. They've been on many walks and hikes. I've jogged a bit with them in, washed dishes, put shirts over my head, and put on glasses and masks and hats. They haven't fallen out once. I was concerned that a lot of these type can't be turned on without their case so I'd always have to bring the case. Nope. It seems that it will stay in standby mode even if when it's not connected to anything for hours, and will still be on and ready to go when I reconnect the device (phone usually or my garmin watch). I have worn them literally all day most days since I've received them. The battery easily lasts the day, though sometimes I am not sending sound through them. Most of the time I'm on multiple hour calls and listening to music or audiobooks constantly, and only charging while I sleep. People report that my mic sounds very good. There are a few YouTube videos about this, if you're interested. My ears were a little bit sore on day 1 and 2 but I think it was because I was messing with the position and pulling them on and off frequently and incorrectly. It's worth sliding them up the ear before you take them on and actually putting them on up there before sliding them in place. You'll get used to it quickly and it's easy to find the sweet spot in your ear that sounds best and then just always put them there. They feel really light once you have them on. I have had 2 pairs of bone conduction headphones (one was the Shockz open move) that were so hard to wear with a hat, sunglasses, and a mask. Even without all the other stuff near my ears, I would always need to reposition those. These are just chilling there in place, not pushing my ears outward like the shockz. I'm pretty sure these also sound quite a bit better, and still sound great when they're not positioned perfectly.

I am seriously overjoyed at finding these! They are truly the only design on the market that keeps my ear free enough for my purposes. They are perfect for using in the office. I only wear the left one, since everyone else’s desks are to my right, and changed the audio settings in my phone to mono so I don’t miss any parts of the music. I work as inside sales support for a small electrical distribution firm so I have to be ready to answer the phone and be able to hear my coworkers in the small office too. I can pick up the phone and hold it to my left ear easily even with this on. I just pause the music first. I wanted something that wouldn’t need to be removed every time I had to hold the phone to my ear and this is it. I can also leave the music playing and hold the receiver to my right ear and hear the call perfectly. I used the app to change the touch commands. I have the “Hold for 2s” setting for the Play/Pause and it’s perfect. It’s easy to trigger by just holding the earbud with your thumb on the back. No fumbling around trying to find the sensor or needing to try multiple times to make it work. I did notice that it’s much more easily/accidentally triggered if you don’t use the plastic ear grips. I use the smallest one and it completely solved the problem of accidentally triggering the Play/Pause with my hood. I don’t necessarily need to use the ear grips for making the earbud fit, it fit fine without it, but adding the smallest one did not make them too tight at all. It’s super comfortable and I wear it for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, and there is no soreness. I forget it’s on my ear. I’ve tested how well it will stay put by shaking my head and moving around in all sorts of dramatic way which I would never do in daily life and it doesn’t budge. The main reason I needed these is because I work in an office with 4 other people and they listen to the same god-awful music on a Bluetooth speaker every day. I was being driven insane by having to hear stuff like Limp Bizkit, Creed, Britney Spears, and 90s dance hits every day. I’m a music snob with some obscure, niche tastes and I didn’t want to make everyone else in the office unhappy by requesting to take over the speaker a few times a week. Even with just wearing the left earbud it drowns out their music and I can’t tell what they’re listening to. There is truly no sound bleed from these either. I don’t have it super loud, but loud enough to enjoy my music. I tested it and can’t even hear anything coming from the earbud if I have it in my hand or on my desk. I have long hair that hides my ears and I doubt anyone in the office even knows I have the earbud on. They definitely can’t tell I’m listening to my own music to drown out their nightmare office music. The sound quality is just fine for the average person. My husband is an audio engineer and I’m sure he would have some complaints about sound quality, but he lives and breathes audio so he’s very hard to please. For the purposes of passively listening to music while actively busy working, these are perfect. I first bought some of those bone conduction things with the strap around the back since the speakers sit on the temples and not on the ears at all, but I hated them and had to keep repositioning them because the strap would get bumped by my hair or hood. Plus it’s way more obvious that you have them on. The charge is impressive and I could probably go 3 or 4 days without charging, listening to music 8 hours a day. I love that the case holds a charge and I don’t even have to plug it in during the week and it recharges the earbud. I only plug it in on the weekend to charge it up for the week. You can find the battery levels for both earbuds and the case itself in the app. Lastly, I love how it looks. It really doesn’t matter compared to everything else, but I think it looks cool with the clearish outside and the components visible. It’s just a nerdy bonus for me. I truly LOVE this product!

I've been an earbud user for years now but hated feeling isolated from my surroundings, especially around the house when hearing a family member or not missing a doorbell is critical. "Transparency mode" on the devices I tried it on always had a habit of amplifying background noises but still making me feel closed off. A few other inexpensive open-ear solutions I'd tried had mediocre audio quality that was too tinny & hollow to stick with. I'd seen higher-end open-ear solutions but they always felt overpriced for what I wanted. The clear design of the C30i caught my eye, and the price seemed good enough to roll the dice on. After a few weeks of use, I think they're a fantastic fit. I was worried that hard plastic clips sitting over my ear would be uncomfortable after a while or still make me feel isolated -- but I can genuinely say that they're comfortable and unobtrusive enough that I routinely forget I'm wearing them. Feature-wise, they're basic but get the job done. They pair easily and stay connected well. They have solid battery life. The alert tones for pairing or tap commands sound fine and aren't loud or intrusive. The tap controls work fine (once you get used to having to double-tap for things that are a single-tap on most earbuds). Qi charging for the case or positional spatial audio would be nice to have, but I'm not going to complain at this price point. As for audio quality, you need to know what you're getting into. The audio on the C30i is clear and clean. For audiobooks and podcasts, I can't complain one bit. The volume level is perfectly fine and voices all sound great. The sensation is very similar to having decent desktop PC speakers that follow me around. For music, it's a bit more mixed. Because of the design, there just isn't much of any bass, and the overall sound profile just doesn't sound very full. Tinkering with the EQ can add a bit of richness, but you're just not going to get the full sound response you'd want for real music listening. That said, it's serviceable for playing some light background music, watching videos, or playing games. But podcasts and audiobooks are really where these things shine, and that's 95% of what I use earbuds for. I'm tempted to try a hook-style open-ear options like the Aerofits as I know that form-factor can deliver a bit more bass, but I'm honestly not in a rush. The comfort / performance / cost balance on these would be HARD to beat, and the fact that I'm a sucker for transparent plastic gadgets helps, too.

Unlike some others of a similar clip style, these have no flex to them at all. That makes them just a little more difficult to put on compared to some. In fact these looks suspiciously similar to the Soul Openear S-Clip that came out late last year. More on that later. The Soundcore c30i are slightly too small for my ears; that's my chief complaint. Those with smaller ears will probably really like these earphones. The fact that Anker included 2 sets of attachments to make them fit smaller and yet even smaller ears make me think that maybe my ears are just abnormal 👂🫣. SOUND QUALITY Sound quality is fine for this style earphones for me. While you can easily get better sound from regular earbuds that are 1/3 of this price, what you're paying for here is this clip form factor that produces a good sound. Unlike many other form factors, the sound that you experience here is largely impacted by the shape and size of your external ear because that dictates where the speaker port falls and the angle the sound is directed. For me, these do sound quite a bit better than some of the other cheaper clip styles that I've tried recently. FORM & FIT The part that sits in the ear is nice and thin; I appreciate that it's not larger. That part reminds me of the old Sony W08L headphones. I can barely notice that part after a few minutes inside of my ears. Unfortunate, the outer part of my ears become sore after about an hour. The loop portion is just slightly too small/short for my ears and it presses firmly against antihelix cartilage of my ear. I was hoping to wear these for 3-4 hours but my limit is about 90 minutes and then shorter every session for the rest of the day. These just aren't comfortable enough for me to wear all the time... But they're good enough for me to keep them in my pocket for work calls or a short stroll with music. Side note, it appears that Anker just took the Soul OpenEar S-Clip (released late last year) and remade it. The overall form and fit are similar, but the materials used here seem better in my opinion. The sound that they produce are also quite different. This is not a review of the S-Clip, but the short is that I personally prefer the c30i... but if you're looking for something cheaper, you can sometimes find the S-Clip for half the price of the c30i. However, with the S-Clip, you get zero customization. I'd imagine that we'll have better and cheaper options of this style by the end of the year. Still, the Soundcore c30i is good enough for me until then. YMMV. They would be quite nice if they happen to fit your ears. EDIT: I've since found a pair of clip style earbuds that work way better for me. If these C30i don't work out for you, try the the JLab Flex Open

I've been using the Soundcore C30i for about three months now, mostly at work, and they've held up really well. The clip-on design is genuinely clever and keeps them secure without needing to go in your ear canal. That said, if you have thicker ear cartilage like mine, they can pinch or fold your ear a bit at first. A bit uncomfortable, but it does get better over time once you find the right spot on your ear, so don't give up on them too quickly. Being open-ear, there is naturally some sound leakage at higher volumes, which is just the trade-off with this style of headphone. If you work in a noisy environment like I do, it's basically a non-issue. Sound quality is surprisingly balanced for an open-ear design. Don't expect heavy bass or fine audio detail, but for music, podcasts, or calls while working, they more than get the job done.

I'm honestly shocked at how lightweight these feel on my ears. I have smaller ears so usually earbuds are too big for my canals and fall out. My previous pair was Raycon Everyday Earbuds with extra small earbud tips I had to purchase separately. I actually tried the Soundcore over the ear design before these, and they were WAY too big for my ears - the way the front part with the speaker rested on my ear was so uncomfortable. Then I tried these thinking there's no way a "clip on" earbud won't hurt my ears or bother me. But these are excellent so far! -Easy to set up the app so you can make some limited choices about gesture functions -Very lightweight - a little odd putting it on your earlobe at first but you get used to it quickly -Really nice sound quality for an everyday earbud -The "open ear" design does not leak clear sound to people standing near you unless you have it turned way up. At a normal level sound (for me) my husband said he could hear that I was playing something but he couldn't tell what it was -I can't really speak to the case battery life beyond that it's great for my current low daily use - currently only around an hour or so but as the weather warms up I'll be using them for longer. I haven't had to charge the case at all in the week I've been using them! This tells me that the case is either not constantly charging the earbuds even after they are full (which my Raycons did, annoyingly, since that zapped the case battery which disabled the charging pins which then turned my earbuds on and playing my podcasts in the case...) OR it just has very good power distribution

EDIT: After I wrote this review, Anker reached out to me and offered to send me the updated version (Soundcore C40i) of these buds at no additional cost to me. I had not even heard of them being released as they apparently just came out. I tried to leave a review there but as I didn't technically purchase them, Amazon is not allowing me to, so I'm just going to leave a brief review here. I'm happy to report that the worst issue of the earlier version has been fully resolved so far as I can tell, as there is no discomfort whatsoever and they are much easier to put on and off. Unfortunately, one issue did remain and that is that my earlobe shape is apparently not well-suited for this style of earbud. They push the bud too far away from my ear canal and the sound comes through to me as super tinny with low volume. At first I thought that they just didn't put out enough sound, but once I pressed them closed to my ear canal, they actually sounded really good with decent volume and a full sound, so I'm sure it's just my lobe shape. I would be far less hesitant to recommend the C40i's to anyone interested as the pain issue is now gone, but I would still make sure you are aware that the sound may not be optimal for you if your ears are shaped a certain way. ------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------------- I read many reviews before I purchased this and many people raved about the comfort and fit these earphones provide. When I got my pair though, I was immediately struck by how difficult they were to put on and more importantly, how much they hurt! It wasn't super painful at first, but after wearing them for less than an hour, it became unbearable. I also found that just the act of putting them on and taking them off caused my left ear to swell a small amount which also made it harder to put back on. When comparing to other earphones with the same general form-factor, I think the obvious flaw is in the fact that the C30i are 100% rigid with absolutely zero flex. That makes comfort, easy of putting on and taking off, and even sound quality largely reliant on your specific ear shape and size. Clearly, these earphones work great for some, but I have never decided to return a product as fast as these. That out of the way, I will say that the sound was surprisingly high with little-to-no bass. I use Tozo Open Egos and while they won't blow you away with their sound quality, they were much better than the C30i. That may be due to a poor fit, but I have no way of determining that for certain. Lastly, I have questions about the placement of the touch controls. I was surprised to learn that they were on the back of the device, meaning that to use the controls, you essentially pinch your ear, with the thumb pressing against the back of your ear. The controls seemed to functino well, but I would imagine that depending on your body, the back of the earphones may make contact with your neck and cause accidental activations. Bottom line, while these may be servicable earphones for some, the fact that they are the cheapest earphones in this form factor by a mile means nothing if you can't comfortably use them. If they intrigue you and you are looking for the budget option, I can't say not to try these, but I would say that you should be prepared to return them if the odds are not in your favor.

I love open ear design headphones. I've been using variations of them for several years and I think they are just the best for what I use them for. I have a housecleaning business. So I need my hands free to answer phone calls, and I like to listen to podcasts and music while I'm working. My last foster puppy ate one of my over the ear buds by oledance (I had those for two years and loved them), soni was on the hunt for a new pair. I had seen the cuff style by Bose, but I was NOT spending that kind of money on earbuds lol. Anyways. Enter the Soundcore earcuff headset. I was so excited to find this style at such a great price, and all of my Bluetooth speakers are by souncore, so I was confident in the product right out the gate. Here's what I noticed. Out of the box, I was a little bummed about the case. It feels cheap, and it's super small (easy to lose haha). I've also noticed it doesn't hold as beefy as a charge as my last charging case by oledance. Which is fine really, it's not like I don't have chargers everywhere. So, a slight disappointment but not anything to get totally bothered over. The cuffs themselves are fantastic!! I'm a smaller person (seriously, I'm the size of a twelve yr old), so fit is generally an issue for me. These fit great, even without the included caps that help adjust for size. There are two sets of caps that are two sizes and they work really well to help the cuff he a bit tighter and hold it where you want it. So, while not necessary, I do use the caps as they help a touch. The cuffs are incredibly comfortable and don't fall out or off. I tested right away by shaking my head around, doing a couple floor rolls, and moving around like I'm at work (cleaning houses). Not only do they not move like at all, but they are insanely comfortable. I don't even know that I have them in most of the time, have panicked about them not being there when they are, and have even gotten confused about there the music is coming from when a button on my phone gets pressed accidentally. The accidental sounds coming from them really drive home how great they are, as it seriously sounds like it's coming from around you when you don't realize you accidentally turned Spotify on. Battery life is fantastic!! I can listen to whatever for HOURS and by the time I go to bed, I still have like 20% battery left at the least! Charging speed is also impressive. I was able to get my charger to finish the last half of my day in about 30 minutes. I still had several hours to go and they rocked the rest of the way through, and then some. The sound is great. I'm not a crazy audiophile, so I'm not super finicky about the sound. Bit I think these are pretty great for what they are! Having the app with the custom EQ setting is totally key. Plus, you can save several custom equipment settings for different types of entertainment. This is more than I need, but I think it's a great feature. I can't hear very well sometimes when I'm in the car. But I feel like with open ear headsets, that is to be expected. Phone call quality is great. Every person I've talked to since I've got these, I've made a pint to ask and everyone seems confused why I would ask and tell me I sound great haha. The touch controls are a little wonky, as others have said. There's definitely a curve to getting the hang of where the button is and what position your head and your hand need to be in to be efficient, and also how firmly you must tap to make it work. I do really enjoy that you can customize the controls through the app as well. You can also set each bud to respond differently to the prompt ling touch. For example, I can set my left bud to turn the volume up with two taps, and the right one to skip a song with two taps. And so on.... I'm conclusion! They aren't the very very very best, but for $70 I'm not mad. I'm actually impressed. And I'm super duper happy I bought these! I even went ahead and purchased the over the ear style that souncore offers (they are like twice the price) (I started getting , but they don't fit my ears well. And they literally sound exactly the same as what I have. So back they go! In conclusion. These are great. I think they are well worth the money. Humans with larger ears (as brought up in other reviews) probably won't like these as far as comfort is concerned, but not everything fits anyone. Definitely recommend!!!