I have always been an earbuds enthusiast. They were small and convenient and easy to store. Conversely, they were also easy to misplace and lose.
I didn’t jump on the blue tooth train early, always opting for a corded pair because I didn’t want any kind of interruption to the ability to listen to music, or answer a phone call. Also, I didn’t trust that I would get the same sound quality that I got from a corded connection.
Of course, a corded pair wasn’t the most convenient when you’re doing something that required being hands-free, like working out or doing house chores – the two main activities when I HAVE to listen to music. For house chores, I loved the convenience of our Bluetooth speaker, but I learned in this past year, with both the husband and I working from home, blasting my music while he tried to work was not very polite.
When we got new mobile phones earlier this year that no longer had an earphone jack, I finally accepted that I needed to go Bluetooth. When my husband handed me a Cleer Enduro ANC headset to try, I was still reluctant to switch and even bought an adapter so I could still use a corded pair.
Grudgingly, I downloaded the Cleer+ app and charged up the headset. Pairing it up to my Samsung Galaxy S21was simple enough. Then I slipped them on and I instantly became a believer. First of all, I didn’t realize how noisy our house was with the AC, an air purifier, and an air fan going until I slipped on the Cleer Enduro ANC headset. It definitely muted all the environmental noise I didn’t even realize I’d gotten used to hearing all day, every day. Then I adjusted the ambient noise control in the app to full noise cancelation and it quieted the background to near-total silence, which was amazing.
The real test of the Bluetooth 5.0 and AptX Adaptive streaming was how my music apps sounded and I have to admit they never sounded better. With Cleer’s 40mm patented Ironless Drivers™ the Hi-Res sound is incredible. The audio was strong, clean, and clear. Playing with the Equalizer feature on the app is a feature I could see myself wasting a lot of time with because it’s just so fun, customizing levels with just a slide of my finger.
And if my husband was frustrated by my not listening to him in the past, with the Enduro ANC headset on, I have the best excuse now “These are noise canceling, babe! I truly couldn’t hear you!” Yes, I know I could adjust the ambient noise setting so I could let in outside noise without removing the headset – but I will conveniently forget that. He could always call me if needed. I appreciated that the headset did not need a protruding mic for me to be able to take and receive calls, and the sound quality of phone calls was just as clean as the music I listened to.
The headset is also surprisingly lightweight, another reason why I always went with earbuds – their weight wasn’t noticeable, but neither is the Enduro’s. The Bluetooth earbuds I had always needed to be charged every day if I wanted to make sure I could use them the next day, and sometimes the pair wouldn’t charge consistently in their charging case – one earbud would go out mid-workout sometimes – which is why I had Bluetooth trust issues. The Enduro headset gives me 2 hours on 10 minutes of emergency charging when I forget, but when a full charge gets you up to 60 hours, the emergency charges are few and far between. Even after full days of listening to lo-fi hip-hop as I focused on work, the Enduro headset has been reliable when I’ve had to pop them on again when preparing dinner or cleaning up. The Cleer+ app also assures me by confirming I have plenty of charge left.
For my first over-ear Bluetooth headset, the Cleer Endurance ANC has set the bar high with its bold, articulate sound, long battery life, and lightweight comfort. I will definitely not be losing or misplacing this headset.
