Lypertek Soundfree S30 review: Budget-friendly open-ear headphones will keep you running without breaking the bank

All the gear, no idea? If you’re looking to do battle with your bulge ahead of the Christmas waistline onslaught, but need to keep some pennies in the coffers for the seasonal wishlists of your loved ones, Lypertek has you sorted.

The Lypertek Soundfree S30 offers road-safe music playback in a lightweight and comfortable package, letting you hit the road with tunes in tow, and money in your pocket.

Here’s 5 reasons why cash-conscious fitness fanatics might want to give the Lypertek Soundfree S30 a listen.

Lypertek Soundfree S30: In short…

• Open-ear headphones perfect for runners that need situational awareness
• Built-in song storage means no need for a phone
• IP68 waterproofing lets you swim while wearing the headphones
• Rear safety LEDs for outdoors night runs
• Up to 8 hours battery for marathon workouts
• Solid sound quality, if not class leading
• Available now, priced £79.95 — almost half the price against comparable rivals

1. Designed for safe outdoors exercise

The Lypertek Soundfree S30 don’t go in your ears — instead, its two speaker units sit in front of your ears on either end of a semi-circle headband, using cartilage conduction to generate sound by making small vibrations on your outer ear and tragus (the inner bit that some people get pierced) to allow you to hear your music or calls.

This means, as the tech’s name suggests, your ears are open to hear what’s going on around you. This is important if you’re exercising out on the street or in a busy gym, as you can enjoy your audio without losing awareness of any obstacles or movement around you. In fact, many outdoor races no longer let you compete with earbuds in your ears so as to avoid any clumsy bumps with fellow competitors and to hear instructions from marshalls.

They’re pretty comfortable too — made of silicone and titanium, the band rests around the rear of your head, with the speaker units hooking over your ears. The Soundfree S30 is light enough (just 23g) to forget you’re wearing it most of the time — though those with smaller heads might feel the band bounce around a bit.

IP68 waterproofing — good for submersion up to a 10 metre depth — makes them good for swimmers, with control buttons in easy reach under the left arm and on the edge of the left arm, letting you jump tracks, adjust volume, take calls and move through EQ modes.

One final safety feature — a little array of LED lights sit on the rear of the arms, and pulse when in use. Like taillights for your head, they're useful for anyone running along country lanes at dusk. Neat!

2. All the audio, plus your surroundings

With open-ear headphones, you’ve got to keep your expectations in check when it comes to audio quality — these aren’t going to compare to the sound quality you’ll get from in-ears like the AirPods Pro 3, let alone premium over-ears like the Bowers and Wilkins PX8 S2. They serve a different purpose than what you’d expect from an audiophile-aimed listening experience.

And that’s fine! The Lypertek Soundfree S30 put on a good show with your tracks and podcasts, while letting you keep aware of your surroundings. The audio profile favours higher frequencies and mid-range sounds — it's here where the most detail and clarity lives. There’s a bass-oriented EQ setting, but things get a bit muddy, so you’re better off leaving it on Lypertek’s balanced preset. If you like to jog to a podcast or rock music, these will be great — it’ll do a fine job with a thumping beat, but don’t expect clubnight levels of bass for dance and electronic fans.

Even at loud volumes, there’s essentially no audio leakage for those around you too, thanks to the technique employed here. It may take a little while to get used to the tickle of the vibrations, though.

3. Your tunes, built in

As you’d expect from wireless headphones, the Lypertek Soundfree S30 has Bluetooth built in (6.0) for connecting to phones and music players and streaming your tunes. But in a useful move — especially for those that want as few devices as possible with them when they’re exercising — there’s also built in storage for onboard playback.

32GB will give you enough room for around 8,000 tracks, with support for MP3, WAV, FLAC, WMA, APE and M4A file types. Plug the headphones into your computer and it’s then a simple matter of dragging and dropping your tracks onto the device.

4. Marathon-ready battery life

Despite being lightweight, the Lypertek Soundfree S30 offers up to 8 hours of battery life per charge. If you’re looking to maximise your battery life, you’re better off streaming from a device rather than playing onboard tunes, which will drain the battery faster.

8 hours of battery is plenty of time for a slow-paced marathon, and should be enough for a week’s worth of daily hour-long workouts between charges. That’s important, as the Soundfree S30 doesn’t offer any fast charging option, with its adapter taking over two hours to fully recharge the headset.

5. Great value

Available now, the Lypertek Soundfree S30 costs just £79.95. For open-ear headphones, that’s a relative steal. Though there are fancier models on the market, they can cost twice, even three times as much as what Lypertek is offering here. It makes the Lypertek Soundfree S30 a good choice for those unsure whether or not open-ear headphones are for them, or those simply looking to save a bit of dough.

Final Verdict

The Lypertek Soundfree S30 headphones offer a solid package for budget-conscious fitness enthusiasts. Their open-ear design puts safety first during outdoor activities, while the built-in MP3 storage frees you from carrying a phone in your gym shorts. With IP68 waterproofing, rear safety LEDs, and up to 8 hours of battery life, they're built for endurance — even if it takes a little while to charge them. While the sound quality is solid rather than spectacular, it's just right for podcasts and most music genres, especially given the affordable £79.95 price point. For those seeking a comfortable, feature-rich, and safe audio solution for their workouts without breaking the bank, the Lypertek Soundfree S30 is an excellent choice, proving that you don't need to spend a fortune to enjoy your tunes and get ripped at the same time.

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