REVIEW: Truly Wire-free Earbuds

Earhooks are either yellow or black.

by Craig Leweck, Scuttlebutt
I’m not the first one to spend money on new technology, so I’ve been the guy with corded in-ear headphones while the rest of the planet converted to wire-free earbuds. I didn’t want to worry about recharging something else, but the envy soon grew. I was ready to switch.

Fueled by frugality, I had a few requirements. I didn’t want to spend a pile of money on something that seem losable, I wanted them to have earhooks so they’d stay secure, and I wanted them to be water proof. The later was probably not vital, but I liked the idea.

Ready to go shopping, I got an email from iLive asking if I wanted to try out their Truly Wire-free Earbuds (IAEBTW59B). I typically don’t do reviews, because you know whatever I am reviewing I got for free, and that should negate my credibility. I like keeping my credibility credible.

But I thought, I do actually need them, and if they suck I’ll throw them away and go shopping. More importantly, they had my three requirements, so they were actually something I might have bought. So I agreed, they arrived, and I’m here to tell you they don’t suck.

They easily paired with my iPhone, they were comfortable in my ear, they looked good, and the earhooks kept them secure. While I’m no audiophile, they sounded good to me, so my next move was to take them into the shower. Again, success, though I was hopeful they would float. They don’t, which makes me happy I have the earhooks.

I saw they were rated as IPX7 waterproof, which meant nothing to me until I googled it, which made me an expert in the rating game. The scale goes from 0 to 9, with 7 allowing for immersion up to 1 metre depth, which is considered good for earbuds.

While the specs say they have a wireless range of 49 feet, I was 30 feet from my iPhone when they started crackling. As for battery life, I’ve not used them continuously to challenge the claim of 4-5 hours at 50% volume, but they’ve held a charge each time I needed them. I’m not aware of any gauge for monitoring batter life other than just doing it regularly or waiting for the audio signal that warns of a low battery.

So back to my credibility. Should you buy them? I don’t know. You have a lot of choices, but if you asked me if I’d buy them, I’d say yes. If that works for you, that works for me.