SoundPEATS RunFree Lite BT 5.3 Open Ear Headphones
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General/Info/Packaging/Comfort
Soundpeats is no stranger in the wireless earphones market, i have tested and reviewed several products from the brand and generally i have good impressions towards it because of the price performance ratio.
RunFree Lite came in a rather simple packaging consisting of the earphone itself and a charging cable, a storage pouch/case would be nice though.
In terms of comfort, RunFree Lite is, as the name mentioned, light and free. I wore the RunFree Lite during my mountain biking session, with the helmet on as well as the RunFree Lite, I did not experience any discomfort throughout my ride, except there are times where the earpiece is out of alignment and i have to do some minor adjustment to get it to sound right, other than that, it fits very well.
Test Setup
- Run Free Lite paired to iPhone 12 Mini
- The rated battery life is 17 hours, i have paired it to my phone and let it run for whole night (approximately 8 hours) and the next day i still have about 60% of battery, so if you are only using it for workouts, say each session 1-2 hours, you probably only have to charge it once a month or perhaps two weeks once if you are fairly active
- Multipoint connection works, paired with my phone and laptop. Take note that you have to pause the sound on another connection in order for it to switch properly
- Bluetooth connection is stable and i did not experience any interference or drop out throughout my ride (My phone is stashed on my seatpost bag)
Foreword
My review is solely based on what I hear via my equipment and I never consider my reviews to be objective in any way rather a subjective approach. Do take into consideration that everyone’s ear anatomy is not the same, so the psychoacoustics perception might be different as well, but i believe it will not stray too far
Sound Impressions
RunFree Lite is not meant to be an audiophile product nor it claimed to be one, it is marketed towards those who are active and want to listen to some music during their workout. RunFree Lite is warm sounding in nature, vocals are forward and trebles are slightly dark but with sufficient details, Bass is hit or miss depending on the fit and alignment, as this is not a bone conduction earphone, so it is important that you position the earpiece correctly in order for it to sound right. Bass is punchy with sufficient quantity for enjoyment. There really isn’t much to say about the sound quality, it works and sounds good for the price and fits the intended purpose.
Final Thoughts
RunFree Lite is not targeted at audiophiles but rather consumers who are active and in the lookout for a pair of affordable sports earbuds. In terms of sound quality, it does what it does, not exceptional and not bad given the asking price, comfortable to use throughout the session, the only caveat that i have is with the earpiece, i do wish the hook is adjustable so that the earpiece can always be in the correct position, other than that, everything else is good for the asking price. Recommended if you’re in the lookout for some sport earbuds to accompany you throughout the session.
At the time of writing, RunFree Lite is currently on sale at 24$ instead of 30$.
If you are interested in getting a pair, head over to their amazon store from the link below to get one
SOUNDPEATS RunFree Lite - Non affiliated Link
Product Page Link
A big thanks to Ellen from SOUNDPEATS for sending this over for the purpose of this review. All thoughts are of my own
How I review: (See Previous Reviews)
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Socials: Biolink
Model: SoundPEATS RunFree Lite
Price: Currently £24.99 at Amazon UK - use coupon code TPFMWGAR
Website: SoundPEATS
Review Reference: RC092
Manufacturer Specification:
1 x Wireless Headphones
1 x USB Type-C Charge Cable
1 x User Manual: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese
YouTube Review:
Introduction
Welcome to the @regancipher review of the SoundPEATS RunFree Lite. I guess a better question would be 'What took them so long' given their assault in every other audio tech product area, but if you were wondering where SoundPEATS were heading next in 2022, it is a path well trodden, to varying degrees of success thus far, by the likes of Tronsmart, Haylou and QCY - sports headphones.
The RunFree Lite are a quite basic set of sports headphones that do boast some premium features, such as LDAC support - something I never thought I'd see in headphones of this ilk - and Multipoint connectivity, something quite commonplace and a feature I've never really understood on sports headphones!
Here I'll take a look at some of the merits, and assess in comparison to some of the other air conduction headphones on the market.
Unboxing
The unboxing is the 'very basic' SoundPEATS flavour, with the headphones and a USB A-C cable held firm in a plastic carton inside the usual cardboard enclosure, with a model demoing how the headphones look on the front, and the headline features on the back.
In terms of features, there aren't too many here, and neither should there be given the key design brief for audio devices of this ilk is to ensure adequate volume, decent sound and a comfortable fit. The manual is typical SoundPEATS - in 7 different languages, with diagrams and text used clearly and to good effect.
Design & Performance
The Runfree Lite are constructed from plastic and 'skin-friendly' silicone, and this allows for a very lightweight footprint of just 27g, around 4g lighter than the Tronsmart Space S1 and 6g lighter than the JBL Nearbuds. The idea is that these headphones wear very comfortably, allowing the user the ability to hear their surroundings without having to activate ambient mode, so they're targeted predominantly at runners and cyclists. They differ from bone conduction headphones in that they use the usual method of piping sound at you - your ears - via targeted outlets using 16.2mm drivers.
The design is, as you would expect, 'Shokz-style' in that a band runs around the back of your neck, and the main section that houses the speaker hooks over your ear, with the speaker output positioned to nestle onto your ear without any additional pressure, in a similar vein to how the Oladance look and feel. The construction is IPX4, which falls a little way short of some of their competition, sadly, although it does match the much more expensive JBL Nearbuds. They're OK for a run when there's a light spot of rain, but don't get any ideas about swimming or showering with them.
Whilst the lightweight footprint is ideal for 'feeling-free' comfort, on the flip side, it doesn't give you a great deal of play if the default configuration isn't ideally suited to the shape of your head. I found that the length of the band and shape of the driver area was fine for my right ear, but bowed out on my left ear. With something like the Haylou Purfree, the titanium construction means it is quite maleable to the shape of my fat, boxy head.
On lower cost headphones like these and the Tronsmart Space S1, it is a little bit of a lottery as to whether they will fit your head perfectly - for me, unfortunately they didn't, but that doesn't mean they won't for you. The Space S1 seem to have a bit more length to the cable, and this enabled a better fit, at least for me. Whilst the main control plane area is plastic, there are no 'buffers' like on the Tronsmart Space S1, so you are unlikely to feel any medium-term discomfort.
The tactile buttons are nice and responsive, but given the usb charge socket is on the bottom of the right-sided control plane, that means the button area has to be located somewhere else. SoundPEATS have positioned them in the centre, so you end up using them in the same way you would your TWS, with your elbow positioned forwards, and your forefinger positioned backwards. It is unusual, but it actually works pretty well in practice. There are three buttons - the central button powers the device on when held down for three seconds, and acts as the main Multi Function Button, initiating play or pause (and answer calls) with a short press, voice assistant with a double tap, gaming mode with a triple tap, and rejecting a call when held for 1.5s. Double tap also switches between calls when on a call. The other buttons are for volume control, and the volume up doubles up to cycle tracks forward when held down for 1.5s, likewise the volume down.
There is a small LED next to the buttons, which flashes white and red when pairing, and stays white until there is music playing. There is an opening for the voice mic on the right hand side, and they actually handle calls OK with no ambient noise, but introduce any wind or incessant crowd noise and your calls or voice notes become decimated.
Audio
The Runfree Lite, surprisingly, use the LDAC codec, and whilst audio isn't going to be reference quality given the form factor, it is actually one of the better sounding air conduction sets I've tested by some distance. It blows away the tinny sounding Space S1, delivering a smoother, more natural sound without the harsh highs that are synonymous with headphones in this category, which was a really pleasant surprise - especially as the peaks at 5k and 8k suggested otherwise. There is a decent amount of volume, so you should hear above your surroundings in all but the busiest environments.
Sound in AAC or SBC doesn't suffer too much either, with very little perceptible difference.
Other Features
Battery life is pretty good - I got just over 10 hours first time around, and just over 15 hours when I toggled LDAC off. This was about the same as the Tronsmart Space S1, and is much better than the low-cost Lenovo alternatives such as the X3 & X4.
The RunFree Lite have solid connectivity - Bluetooth 5.3, using the ever-reliable WUQI WQ7033X series chipset which has served their recent releases so well. They do surprisingly have app support - here you can see the battery volume at a glance, toggle gaming mode, control volume and even choose one of the nine SoundPEATS presets. You've also got a ten band custom EQ that allows you full-frequency control, which is a nice touch.
Multipoint works seamlessly, as is often the case with devices of this ilk. Just pair with your first device, disconnect, pair with your next device, then manually connect to device A. Unfortunately, there's no control of Multipoint in the app, and this can drain the battery a little, so use only when required!
Gaming mode is another nice touch, and it is one of the many features which greets you with a spoken confirmation. Latency is already very respectable on this model, certainly for videos, and gaming mode improves it further, although it is questionable as to whether it has any real value on a model like this.
Summary
The RunFree Lite are a good option for those who don't want to spend heavily on sports buds. Provided they fit you well, you're getting pretty good value for money here, with sound which punches above their weight, good ergonomics and strong battery life.
The RunFree Lite are currently on offer on Amazon UK at the very competitive price of £26.59. This is a third of what you would pay for the JBL Nearbuds, and an even lower percentage of forking out for something like the Shokz Openrun or Haylou Purfree. It's fair to say that the overall package falls some way short of those products, but not everyone wants to spend £100+ on a headset they will only use occasionally, and if you're in that category, the RunFree Lite might be a good option for you.
SoundPEATS Review Inventory:
SoundPEATS Life Classic
SoundPEATS Opera05
SoundPEATS Capsule3 Pro
SoundPEATS Mini Pro HS
SoundPEATS Air3 Deluxe HS
SoundPEATS Air3 Pro
SoundPEATS Mini Pro
SoundPEATS H2
SoundPEATS T3
SoundPEATS Mini
SoundPEATS Air3
SoundPEATS TrueAir2+
SoundPEATS TrueAir 2
SoundPEATS H1
SoundPEATS T2
SoundPEATS Sonic
About SoundPEATS:
SoundPEATS seem to have become an overnight sensation, wiping up a large portion of budget TWS earbud market share with a business model that has served them (and Anker before them) exceptionally well - good distribution channels (via Amazon), good support, a catchy name and product that performs well at a very competitive price point. In reality, they have been around a long time - whilst Shenzhen SoundSOUL IT Co LTD is a different trading name to Ginto E-Commerce, they share the same business address (including room number) as them - you may know their brand name better as Dudios. With Dudios not sounding quite so cool as Soundpeats, maybe the brand transition has been instrumental in their success, but having been around since 2010 and patents in Bluetooth tech stretching back to 2015, they are not the plucky upstarts that some may think - they know their stuff, have a great network of contacts, and now a very solid brand in Europe, and deservedly so.
The thing that sets SoundPEATS apart from other vendors, and makes them my favourite budget earbud vendor, is that they are completely transparent over their components. Whether they use Realtek, Qualcomm or Airoha chips in their buds, they are totally open about it, and as a reviewer this really helps, because whilst I have, and do, dismantle buds to check the way that certain things have been implemented (such as the power management, mems mics, etc) and I really don't like having to do it with every set of earbuds, because they then become unusable.
Instagram: regancipher
YouTube: regancipher
Squiglink: regancipher
Socials: Biolink
Model: SoundPEATS RunFree Lite
Price: Currently £24.99 at Amazon UK - use coupon code TPFMWGAR
Website: SoundPEATS
Review Reference: RC092
Manufacturer Specification:
- Brand: SoundPEATS
- Model: RunFree Lite
- Driver: 16.2mm Driver
- Chipset: WUQI WQ7033MX
- Mic: Dual Mic, -38±1db sensitivity
- ANC: No
- Codecs: LDAC, AAC, SBC
- App Support: Yes
- Volume Control: Yes
- Gaming Mode: Yes
- Multipoint Connectivity: Yes
- Earbud Weight: 27g
- Case Charge Capacity: 130mAh
- Quick Charge: No
- Wireless Charging: No
- Single Use Playtime: Up to 17 hours
- Charge Time: Approx. 90 min
- Bluetooth Range: 10m advertised
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth® 5.3
- Bluetooth Protocols: HFP 1.7/ A2DP 1.3/ AVRCP 1.5
- Water Resistance: IPX4
1 x Wireless Headphones
1 x USB Type-C Charge Cable
1 x User Manual: English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese
YouTube Review:
Introduction
Welcome to the @regancipher review of the SoundPEATS RunFree Lite. I guess a better question would be 'What took them so long' given their assault in every other audio tech product area, but if you were wondering where SoundPEATS were heading next in 2022, it is a path well trodden, to varying degrees of success thus far, by the likes of Tronsmart, Haylou and QCY - sports headphones.
The RunFree Lite are a quite basic set of sports headphones that do boast some premium features, such as LDAC support - something I never thought I'd see in headphones of this ilk - and Multipoint connectivity, something quite commonplace and a feature I've never really understood on sports headphones!
Here I'll take a look at some of the merits, and assess in comparison to some of the other air conduction headphones on the market.
Unboxing
The unboxing is the 'very basic' SoundPEATS flavour, with the headphones and a USB A-C cable held firm in a plastic carton inside the usual cardboard enclosure, with a model demoing how the headphones look on the front, and the headline features on the back.
In terms of features, there aren't too many here, and neither should there be given the key design brief for audio devices of this ilk is to ensure adequate volume, decent sound and a comfortable fit. The manual is typical SoundPEATS - in 7 different languages, with diagrams and text used clearly and to good effect.
Design & Performance
The Runfree Lite are constructed from plastic and 'skin-friendly' silicone, and this allows for a very lightweight footprint of just 27g, around 4g lighter than the Tronsmart Space S1 and 6g lighter than the JBL Nearbuds. The idea is that these headphones wear very comfortably, allowing the user the ability to hear their surroundings without having to activate ambient mode, so they're targeted predominantly at runners and cyclists. They differ from bone conduction headphones in that they use the usual method of piping sound at you - your ears - via targeted outlets using 16.2mm drivers.
The design is, as you would expect, 'Shokz-style' in that a band runs around the back of your neck, and the main section that houses the speaker hooks over your ear, with the speaker output positioned to nestle onto your ear without any additional pressure, in a similar vein to how the Oladance look and feel. The construction is IPX4, which falls a little way short of some of their competition, sadly, although it does match the much more expensive JBL Nearbuds. They're OK for a run when there's a light spot of rain, but don't get any ideas about swimming or showering with them.
Whilst the lightweight footprint is ideal for 'feeling-free' comfort, on the flip side, it doesn't give you a great deal of play if the default configuration isn't ideally suited to the shape of your head. I found that the length of the band and shape of the driver area was fine for my right ear, but bowed out on my left ear. With something like the Haylou Purfree, the titanium construction means it is quite maleable to the shape of my fat, boxy head.
On lower cost headphones like these and the Tronsmart Space S1, it is a little bit of a lottery as to whether they will fit your head perfectly - for me, unfortunately they didn't, but that doesn't mean they won't for you. The Space S1 seem to have a bit more length to the cable, and this enabled a better fit, at least for me. Whilst the main control plane area is plastic, there are no 'buffers' like on the Tronsmart Space S1, so you are unlikely to feel any medium-term discomfort.
The tactile buttons are nice and responsive, but given the usb charge socket is on the bottom of the right-sided control plane, that means the button area has to be located somewhere else. SoundPEATS have positioned them in the centre, so you end up using them in the same way you would your TWS, with your elbow positioned forwards, and your forefinger positioned backwards. It is unusual, but it actually works pretty well in practice. There are three buttons - the central button powers the device on when held down for three seconds, and acts as the main Multi Function Button, initiating play or pause (and answer calls) with a short press, voice assistant with a double tap, gaming mode with a triple tap, and rejecting a call when held for 1.5s. Double tap also switches between calls when on a call. The other buttons are for volume control, and the volume up doubles up to cycle tracks forward when held down for 1.5s, likewise the volume down.
There is a small LED next to the buttons, which flashes white and red when pairing, and stays white until there is music playing. There is an opening for the voice mic on the right hand side, and they actually handle calls OK with no ambient noise, but introduce any wind or incessant crowd noise and your calls or voice notes become decimated.
Audio
The Runfree Lite, surprisingly, use the LDAC codec, and whilst audio isn't going to be reference quality given the form factor, it is actually one of the better sounding air conduction sets I've tested by some distance. It blows away the tinny sounding Space S1, delivering a smoother, more natural sound without the harsh highs that are synonymous with headphones in this category, which was a really pleasant surprise - especially as the peaks at 5k and 8k suggested otherwise. There is a decent amount of volume, so you should hear above your surroundings in all but the busiest environments.
Sound in AAC or SBC doesn't suffer too much either, with very little perceptible difference.
Other Features
Battery life is pretty good - I got just over 10 hours first time around, and just over 15 hours when I toggled LDAC off. This was about the same as the Tronsmart Space S1, and is much better than the low-cost Lenovo alternatives such as the X3 & X4.
The RunFree Lite have solid connectivity - Bluetooth 5.3, using the ever-reliable WUQI WQ7033X series chipset which has served their recent releases so well. They do surprisingly have app support - here you can see the battery volume at a glance, toggle gaming mode, control volume and even choose one of the nine SoundPEATS presets. You've also got a ten band custom EQ that allows you full-frequency control, which is a nice touch.
Multipoint works seamlessly, as is often the case with devices of this ilk. Just pair with your first device, disconnect, pair with your next device, then manually connect to device A. Unfortunately, there's no control of Multipoint in the app, and this can drain the battery a little, so use only when required!
Gaming mode is another nice touch, and it is one of the many features which greets you with a spoken confirmation. Latency is already very respectable on this model, certainly for videos, and gaming mode improves it further, although it is questionable as to whether it has any real value on a model like this.
Summary
The RunFree Lite are a good option for those who don't want to spend heavily on sports buds. Provided they fit you well, you're getting pretty good value for money here, with sound which punches above their weight, good ergonomics and strong battery life.
The RunFree Lite are currently on offer on Amazon UK at the very competitive price of £26.59. This is a third of what you would pay for the JBL Nearbuds, and an even lower percentage of forking out for something like the Shokz Openrun or Haylou Purfree. It's fair to say that the overall package falls some way short of those products, but not everyone wants to spend £100+ on a headset they will only use occasionally, and if you're in that category, the RunFree Lite might be a good option for you.
SoundPEATS Review Inventory:
SoundPEATS Life Classic
SoundPEATS Opera05
SoundPEATS Capsule3 Pro
SoundPEATS Mini Pro HS
SoundPEATS Air3 Deluxe HS
SoundPEATS Air3 Pro
SoundPEATS Mini Pro
SoundPEATS H2
SoundPEATS T3
SoundPEATS Mini
SoundPEATS Air3
SoundPEATS TrueAir2+
SoundPEATS TrueAir 2
SoundPEATS H1
SoundPEATS T2
SoundPEATS Sonic
About SoundPEATS:
SoundPEATS seem to have become an overnight sensation, wiping up a large portion of budget TWS earbud market share with a business model that has served them (and Anker before them) exceptionally well - good distribution channels (via Amazon), good support, a catchy name and product that performs well at a very competitive price point. In reality, they have been around a long time - whilst Shenzhen SoundSOUL IT Co LTD is a different trading name to Ginto E-Commerce, they share the same business address (including room number) as them - you may know their brand name better as Dudios. With Dudios not sounding quite so cool as Soundpeats, maybe the brand transition has been instrumental in their success, but having been around since 2010 and patents in Bluetooth tech stretching back to 2015, they are not the plucky upstarts that some may think - they know their stuff, have a great network of contacts, and now a very solid brand in Europe, and deservedly so.
The thing that sets SoundPEATS apart from other vendors, and makes them my favourite budget earbud vendor, is that they are completely transparent over their components. Whether they use Realtek, Qualcomm or Airoha chips in their buds, they are totally open about it, and as a reviewer this really helps, because whilst I have, and do, dismantle buds to check the way that certain things have been implemented (such as the power management, mems mics, etc) and I really don't like having to do it with every set of earbuds, because they then become unusable.
AmericanSpirit
You Soundpeats reviews are so consistent, love it!
I’m going to try.
I’m going to try.
