SoundPEATS Clip1 Review: Surprising “Budget” Open Ear Clip On Earbuds that Are Dolby-Ready with Hi-Res LDAC and 40-Hour Battery

SoundPEATS Clip1 Review

This is the inHeadphone reviews at Serious Insights have been analyzing a few recurring themes over the last couple of years: how much comfort can be engineered into compact designs, how far budget earbuds can stretch premium codecs, and where trade-offs between awareness and isolation land in daily use. SoundPEATS has figured prominently in that conversation, from Air5 Pro’s sub-US$80 adaptive ANC and LDAC mix to Capsule3 Pro+ blending Hi-Res audio and hybrid ANC at a still-accessible price. Along the way, open-ear models like Tozo Open Buds, Cleer Arc and SoundPEATS GoFree2 have provided alternative options, prioritizing situational awareness and comfort for runners, walkers and office dwellers who resist sealed ear canals.

SoundPEATS Clip1 enters that landscape as a clip-on evolution of the company’s open-ear work, distinct from the earhook style of GoFree2 and the earlier Pop Clip, yet anchored firmly in the same “value with ambition” design philosophy. It brings Dolby Audio and LDAC to an ultra-light, awareness-first form factor while maintaining the long battery life and robust app integration associated with recent SoundPEATS launches. In that sense, Clip1 is another iteration in an ongoing dialogue about how far an affordable, open-ear device can go in combining comfort, safety and serious audio engineering.

I view the SoundPEATS Clip1 less as an isolated product and more as part of an ongoing argument about what “good enough” looks like in audio when comfort, awareness and battery life sit alongside fidelity and features. The spec sheet, the early-bird program, and the launch positioning all suggest a device that wants to live on an ear all day from commutes to calls, fromworkouts to intense gameing sessions, all without demanding the kind of financial commitment associated with flagship ANC earbuds or premium open-ear models from Bose, Shokz or Cleer. And you know what, they are pretty impressive in that context.

Media Amazon discount code: SPCP1PR01 good through November 19, 2025.

SoundPEATS Clip1 Specifications

Category	Specification
Wearing style	Clip-on open-ear
Single earbud weight	5 g
Earbuds + case weight	55.5 g
Structure	N-Flex Arch™ memory wire (0.6 mm ultra-thin nickel–titanium alloy)
Comfort notes	Ultra-lightweight design, comfortable with glasses or masks
Driver type	φ12 mm dual-magnet dynamic drivers
Driver diaphragm	Titanium PVD coating
Audio processing	DynamicEQ™ Pro algorithm
EQ	Customizable EQ via app
High-res support	LDAC and Hi-Res Audio (Hi-Res Wireless)
Surround processing	Dolby Audio
Wireless	Bluetooth V5.4
Bluetooth profiles	HSP, HFP, A2DP, AVRCP
Supported codecs	AAC, SBC, LDAC
Smart Features	AutoSense™ automatic left/right ear detection
Other features	Multipoint connection, wear detection, drop detection (planned), fast charging, low-latency gaming mode, AeroVoice™ wind noise reduction
Control type	Touch
Earbud battery capacity	45 mAh × 2
Charging case capacity	450 mAh
Earbud charging time/Case charging time	1 hour/2 hours
Charging port	USB Type-C
Total playtime (manufacturer rated)	30 hours total
Durability/Waterresistance rating	IPX5

What we like

Pros

• Light 5 g open-ear clip-on design with 0.6 mm N-Flex Arch memory wire
• Awareness-friendly, breathable fit that keeps ears ventilated
• Hi-Res LDAC audio, Dolby Audio, DynamicEQ Pro and 12 mm dual-magnet drivers
• Smart feature set with multipoint, AutoSense, wear/drop detection, low-latency mode and app customization
• Up to 8 hours playback (40 hours with case) plus 10-minute quick charge for ~2 hours of use
• IPX5 water resistance for sweat and light rain
• MSRP around US$69.99 with launch discounts during the early release window

The SoundPEATS Clip1’s industrial design reads like a focused response to earlier clip-on and open-ear experiments. Each earbud weighs about 5 grams and hangs from an ultra-thin 0.6 mm N-Flex Arch memory wire formed from nickel-titanium alloy. The wire and soft silicone combine into a clip that wraps the ear rather than pinching it, with an explicit promise of compatibility with glasses, helmets and masks. The housing places the battery behind the ear and the driver at the front, which visually echoes other clip-on designs while keeping the assembly relatively discreet. The overall effect is a piece of hardware that aims to disappear once it is on, rather than constantly reminding the wearer that gear is hanging off the ear.

Comfort and awareness sit at the center of the SoundPEATS Clip1’s story. The open-ear clip-on design keeps the ear canal unblocked, allowing air circulation and minimizing contact points. SoundPEATS positions this as “safe listening”: music and spoken content sit in front of the ear, while traffic, announcements and conversations still break through. The company ties this explicitly to everyday activities—work, household tasks, running, commuting, workouts—rather than a narrow sports-only pitch. That framing aligns well with the “third option” narrative: not sealed like traditional in-ear buds, not as mechanically unusual as bone conduction, but an alternative that privileges awareness and comfort without abandoning traditional drivers.

On the audio side, SoundPEATS Clip1 carries the kind of spec sheet usually associated with more expensive earbuds. The 12 mm dual-magnet dynamic drivers use a titanium-coated diaphragm, paired with LDAC for high-resolution wireless playback and Dolby Audio processing for spatial enhancement. SoundPEATS layers its own DynamicEQ Pro algorithm on top, a system that adjusts frequency balance dynamically based on content and volume to maintain a consistent perceived tuning. LDAC, Dolby and DynamicEQ give Clip1 a flexible toolkit: cinematic emphasis for movies, more straightforward fidelity for music, and adaptive smoothing for mixed listening across podcasts, calls and playlists.

The feature set goes well beyond basic Bluetooth audio. Bluetooth 5.4 underpins multipoint connectivity, a low-latency Game Mode, and a “Find Earbuds” capability in some regional listings. AutoSense detects which ear each earbud occupies and automatically flips stereo channels, while wear detection pauses and resumes playback as Clip1 is removed or re-seated. A planned firmware update adds drop detection, which will trigger notifications when an earbud falls, reducing the risk of losing it. AI-based environmental noise cancellation and AeroVoice wind reduction focus on calls rather than music, helping speech stay intelligible when the surroundings get noisy. Three-zone touch controls give Clip1 more nuanced gesture mapping than many budget earbuds, tying into the PeatsAudio app for configuration.

Battery life delivers on the “all-day” promise. SoundPEATS specifies up to 8 hours of playback per charge at 60% volume using AAC, with the charging case extending runtime to approximately 40 hours. LDAC playback is quoted at up to 4 hours in high-quality mode, which is consistent with the additional bandwidth and processing overhead. A 10-minute quick charge adds around 2 hours of listening, which aligns Clip1 with the more efficient members of the SoundPEATS family rather than its earliest open-ear devices. That mix of conservative power draw and sizable case capacity makes Clip1 plausible as a device that stays in rotation for several days between full charges, even with liberal daily use.

Water resisantce comes in at an IPX5 rating, which covers sweat and light rain. Paired with the awareness benefits of the open design, this makes the SoundPEATS Clip1 appropriate for runs, bike rides and gym sessions where both safety and moisture resistance matter. The Clip1’s effectively targets generalists who split time between screens, sidewalks and cardio machines, rather than specializing in any one environment.

Pricing cements the positioning. as the SoundPEATS Clip1 clip on earbuds launch globally at US$69.99 (regularly $79.99), with regional variations such as €75.99 in Europe, and an early-bird promotion that offered 35% off between late October and mid-November, along with deals on Amazon (a $14 coupon at the time of the review, on top of the $10 regular price reduction). In some markets, layered discounts brought the effective cost under US$50. That keeps Clip1 firmly within the “budget with ambitions” category that has characterized SoundPEATS’ recent hardware, even as it carries Dolby, LDAC and a very contemporary suite of app-mediated features.

What could be improved

Cons

• Bass and sub-bass lack depth compared to in-ear designs
• Open-ear design keeps external noise present, limiting isolation
• No active noise cancellation
• LDAC, Dolby Audio and DynamicEQ Pro cannot all be used at the same time, and LDAC disables multipoint and some effects
• Still needs work on sustainable packaging (plastic blister tray) and the elimination of plastic wrap on the box. Tying corporate sustainability messaging to individual products is also important.

Open-ear devices come with predictable compromises in low-frequency reproduction, and Clip1 follows that pattern. Deep bass and sub-bass rely on sealing the ear canal to pressurize sound; an open architecture leaks that energy back into the environment. Measurements and listening reports consistently describe Clip1 as limited in lower-end extension compared to in-ear designs, with sub-bass in particular falling short of what larger closed or sealed earbuds deliver. The mid-bass still carries enough weight for many tracks, but listeners who prioritize dense electronic bass or club-level thump should not expect those experiences from this form factor.

Clip1 also does not include active noise cancellation. Its design intentionally keeps environmental sound present, and all noise-handling technology focuses on call clarity rather than creating a bubble of silence. That means transit, air travel and other high-noise situations will still sound like transit, air travel and high-noise situations. Listeners who have already built a toolkit that includes sealed ANC earbuds for planes and offices will likely see the SoundPEATS Clip1 as a complement focused on outdoor and mixed environments rather than a universal replacement.

Because the design leans so hard into openness and awareness, environmental noise remains a constant companion. Traffic, HVAC systems, and crowd noise stay audible even at moderate volumes. The directional output of the drivers reduces sound leakage enough for everyday use, but there is no passive isolation to dampen the surroundings. That is a design choice aligned with the SoundPEATS Clip1’s mission, yet it also means that quiet, focused listening in noisy spaces will favor other devices.

The interaction between advanced audio modes introduces some friction. SoundPEATS’ own support materials state that high-bandwidth modes and dual-device connectivity cannot always coexist. When LDAC is enabled, dual-device connection via multipoint may be unavailable due to Bluetooth bandwidth limits, and the Clip1 documentation explains that “even the latest Bluetooth versions cannot handle both simultaneously.” Regional product pages also clarify that Dolby Audio and LDAC cannot be used at the same time on Android; listeners must choose either Dolby with DynamicEQ or LDAC. In practice, that turns Clip1’s impressive codec and processing roster into a set of mutually exclusive options rather than a collection of always-on enhancements.

SoundPEATS Clip1: The bottom line

SoundPEATS Clip1 extends the company’s push into open-ear audio with a design that keeps comfort, awareness and everyday usability at the center while layering on serious audio technology. The lightweight clip-on architecture, 5 g-per-earbud chassis, and flexible N-Flex Arch aim for all-day wear, and the feature stack: Hi-Res LDAC, Dolby Audio, DynamicEQ Pro, Bluetooth 5.4, multipoint, AutoSense, AI-assisted calling, and IPX5 resistance, which reads more like a midrange flagship than a budget experiment.

The familiar trade-offs remain: limited deep bass, and no ANC, along with some complexity in how advanced modes interact. For listeners who already rely on sealed ANC earbuds for isolation, SoundPEATS Clip1 makes sense as that “third option” SoundPEATS describes: an always-on companion that keeps music, calls and awareness in balance at a price that stays firmly in value territory. That’s the right argument for these earbuds.

SoundPEATS provided the Clip1 for review. Images courtesy of SoundPEATS unless otherwise noted.

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