HUAWEI FreeClip Review: Unmatched comfort for earbuds

HUAWEI is known for its weird, quirky, and unique products. Have you ever wanted a smartwatch that could house wireless earbuds? Well, HUAWEI’s got that. Whether you’re after a wireless pair of earbuds, a flagship smartphone, a laptop, a monitor, or even a foldable, the company makes a lot of unique devices that offer various levels of convenience. The latest device to join this ecosystem is the new HUAWEI FreeClips, which looks nothing like conventional wireless earbuds.

The HUAWEI FreeClip, to put it frankly, looks weird at first sight. However, don’t let the looks fool you, as you’re looking at one of the most comfortable wireless earbuds I’ve ever tried. The FreeClip offers a few distinctive features that solve real problems. Suppose you’re a daily commuter, outside runner, or someone who likes to be aware of their surroundings. The FreeClip offers exactly what you need: a great audio experience, ambient noise that lets you be aware of your surroundings, and water resistance that keeps you going regardless of the weather.

HUAWEI FreeClip: Price & Availability

HUAWEI officially unveiled the FreeClip wireless earbuds on December 12, 2023. The wireless earbuds come in two colors, Black and Purple. The FreeClip will be available in the UK and Europe from late December, and it’ll retail for £179.99 in the UK, and €199 in Europe.

The HUAWEI FreeClip is available on Huawei’s website, and UK users who purchase between December 12, 2023 and January 29, 2024 will receive the HUAWEI Band 8 for free.

What’s in the box

• Earbuds with the charging case
• Quick start guide & warranty card
• USB Type-C charging cable

While our review unit came in an unmarked box, the retail unit will come with a standard small package, containing all the essential accessories to get you up and running. The box will include the usual paperwork with the quick start guide, warranty information, and a USB Type-C charging cable.

Design

• Open-ear design
• Shell-shaped, compact charging case
• The earbuds clip-on and provide a comfortable fit without blocking the ear canal
• Interchangeable earbuds

The HUAWEI FreeClip isn’t your standard and conventional earbuds. It has an open-ear design that allows you to be more aware of your surroundings. The FreeClip is a truly new and innovative product, and it changed my listening habits thanks to the open design. The open-ear design allows a wide variety of use cases, and while these aren’t perfect for use on the plane or train, they’re excellent for the type of users who want to be aware of their surroundings.

The FreeClip is a truly new and innovative product, and it changed my listening habits thanks to the open design.

The earbuds are rounded on all sides, and weigh just 5.6 grams. The curved case features a shell-shaped design, weighing just 44.5 grams. The shape makes the case feel slightly smaller than cases from other competing brands, such as Apple’s AirPods Pro, making it easier to carry in pockets and backpacks. The case also features a USB-C port on the bottom, and a button on the right side that’s used for pairing.

The FreeClip’s design consists of three parts: the Comfort Bean, the Acoustic Ball, and the C Bridge. The Bean can comfortably fit the curvature of the human ear, while the acoustic ball rolls onto the skin, fastening the earbud securely onto the ear. The C Bridge is the small connector that keeps it all together. HUAWEI says it contains nine core and memory wires and supports gesture signals, but more on that later.

The C Bridge was engineered and tested on more than 30,000 real-life users to ensure durability and an ergonomic design. While it might not be for everyone, my experience has been rather positive. I have a few family members who dislike the shape of modern earbuds, and they have been all but impressed with the design and the comfort of the FreeClip.

Clipping the earbuds to your ear isn’t something most people are familiar with, but it took me roughly 5-10 tries before I figured out and learned the muscle memory of placing them on my ears. Despite the mixed initial feelings and thoughts about the earbuds, I got used to them within a matter of minutes. After two weeks of regular use, I can now comfortably say that these are some of the most comfortable earbuds I’ve ever used.

After two weeks of constant use, I can now comfortably say that these are some of the most comfortable earbuds I’ve ever used.

The FreeClip doesn’t fall off, move, or wiggle around. It’s secure and easily stays on whether you’re walking, exercising, or sitting at your desk. They’re lightweight, compact, and provide a great overall experience that makes me wish I tried this form factor and design sooner.

Specifications

• The FreeClip is IP54 water-resistant (earbuds only)
• Gesture input
• USB-C and wireless charging

HUAWEI didn’t mention what kind of drivers are used in the FreeClip earbuds, but we know that it supports a variety of codecs, including SBC, AAC, L2HC, and LC3, providing a solid experience for a wide range of audio encodings.

The buds also contain a VPU (Voice Pick Up Bone Sensor), IMU (Inertial Measurement Unit), Hall, and CAP (Capacitive) sensors to provide an enhanced experience, and to recognize a variety of inputs and the user. Each earbud contains a gesture input method on the C-bridge connector area of the earbud, making it convenient and easy to change or pause songs.

Sound Quality & Features

• Immersive sound experience
• Seamless multipoint connection
• Text

I’ve tested the HUAWEI FreeClip using my Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 and the 2021 MacBook Pro. Multipoint pairing was flawless, and it worked perfectly. While listening to a podcast on the Mac, the audio immediately stopped upon receiving a call, prioritizing communication.

HUAWEI didn’t tell us what drivers it’s using in the FreeClip. That said, the earbuds provide a great overall experience. The FreeClip gets plenty loud, and there’s little sound leakage on lower volumes. However, a person sitting close to you will be able to hear what you’re listening to at or above 60% volume, so you might want to keep it in the middle while visiting a library or other quiet environments.

The FreeClip produces plenty of bass without any distortion. I felt the earbuds focused more heavily on higher and mid frequencies, regardless of the sound effect I’ve used. In an attempt to cater more to my personal preference, I decided to stick to using the earbuds in the “Elevate” mode. This mode boosted the bass slightly while lowering the highs and mid-tones, without distorting the other frequencies. The earbuds felt natural and delivered an immersive listening experience without my ears feeling pressured.

Unlike many other earbuds, the FreeClip comes with an automatic standby mode that’s triggered after 30 seconds of inactivity. This saves battery and ensures the earbuds can last for an extended period on a single charge.

The FreeClip produces plenty of bass without any distortion. I felt the earbuds focused more heavily on higher and mid frequencies, regardless of the sound effect I’ve used. In an attempt to cater more to my personal preference, I decided to stick to using the earbuds in the “Elevate” mode. This mode boosted the bass slightly while lowering the highs and mid-tones, without distorting the other frequencies. The earbuds felt natural and delivered an enjoyable listening experience without my ears feeling pressured.

When it comes to control, the FreeClip supports double-tap and triple-tap features. A double-tap on either side can Answer/End calsl, or have no functionality. Each side can also be individually customized to Play/Pause, Skip to the next song, go back to the previous song, or wake the voice assistant. The triple-tap works in the same way, but these only allow you to set the next song, the previous one, or none.

Each earbud has a bone-conduction microphone that can deliver clear audio. In a quiet room, the microphone provides decent overall quality, and has a built-in Call Noise Reduction feature that uses the two microphones and the VPU to reduce crowds, wind, and other loud noises around you.

Latency performance was generally great, with minor delays – while watching videos on my Mac. There was minimal audio lag in games while playing on my phone, and connectivity was stable while using the earbuds with either of my devices. I haven’t noticed any major latency issues, drops in connection, or stutters that would’ve raised any alarms or would’ve looked out of the ordinary. The Freeclip was excellent, and everything worked flawlessly out of the box.

Battery

• Full-day battery life
• Wireless charging
• Quick charge

HUAWEI says the FreeClip can last up to 36 hours on a single charge. The earbuds provide up to 8 hours of music playback or 5 hours of talk time. The buds support quick charging, and 10 minutes is advertised to get you 3 hours of music listening. A full charge for the FreeClip earbuds takes about 40 minutes. For reference, each earbud houses a 55 mAh battery, while the case has a 510 mAh cell inside.

It’s worth noting the case itself has a USB-C charging port, and it’s compatible with wireless chargers, making it easy and more convenient to use daily. During my use, I found that the FreeClip could last anywhere from 6-8 hours while listening to music, depending on the volume. My usual volume sits between 50-80%, depending on whether I’m listening to a podcast, or one of my favorite playlists.

HUAWEI also says that the case, without the FreeClip earbuds, can go from 0-100% in about 60 minutes using the wired connection, and about 150 minutes using wireless charging.

Generally speaking, the FreeClip lasts as long, if not even longer, than most other earbuds in its category. It’s possible to last a full workday, and even when you’re pushing it to its limits, a quick charge here and there will provide enough to power through the entire day.

HUAWEI FreeClip: Should you buy it?

Buy it if…

• You’re looking for an excellent pair of open-ear earbuds
• You want a compact, lightweight, and stylish earbuds that’s comfortable to wear for extended periods
• You care about quick and wireless charging
• You need water-resistant earbuds

Don’t buy it if…

• You want noise-canceling earbuds
• Ambient noise isn’t a must-have feature
• You’re not a fan of clip-on earbuds

The HUAWEI FreeClip is an excellent pair of earbuds, and at £180, it offers all of the essential features that most people need. It’s cheaper than some other competing alternatives on the market, and it offers interchangeable earbuds, wireless and quick charging, and a more comfortable design – for as long as you can get used to these earbuds clipping on your ears.

There are many things to love about the FreeClip, and one of the main reasons I’m going to hold on to these comes down to my preference for knowing what’s happening around me. While noise-canceling earbuds will continue to be my go-to devices while traveling, the FreeClip is already my daily, helping me navigate, do sports, and do other activities that require me to stay alert.

If you’re a similar user, or perhaps you have a passion for fashion, the FreeClip will offer a unique look that looks good and more elegant. The earbuds sound great, offer seamless connectivity features, and are compact enough to fit any pocket, backpack, or handbag easily. At £180, it costs more than the Sony LinkBuds. However, it offers a few additional features that might just be enough to convince you to spend the extra.