Soundcore’s latest flagship noise-canceling wireless earbuds are packed with all of the latest tech you might expect, including a sleek and smart charging case with its own display screen. But their price is the real headline: The Buy at Soundcore are just $130. While many manufacturers are increasing prices because of inflation, somehow the Liberty 4 Pro are less expensive than the two generations that preceded them. They’re available starting October 3 on Amazon in white, light blue, and black color options.
Though they’re the latest version of the Liberty Pro family, the Liberty Pro 4 have ditched the stemless designs of the lineup’s second– and third-gen models in favor of the stem-based shape Soundcore has used on its other recent models like the Liberty 4 and Liberty 4 NC.
The buds use the same squeeze-and-slide controls as those other models, which can be customized in the Soundcore app. Inside each earbud is the latest version of Soundcore’s coaxial driver architecture, which places a 4.6mm titanium tweeter in front of a 10.5mm woofer.
The charging case uses the same slide-to-open mechanism that we saw on previous Liberty Pro models, but this time, the pairing button has been replaced with touchbar.
Tapping it once turns on the built-in display on the interior of the case. The display can show the level of charge for each earbud as a percentage, and if you swipe on the touchbar while wearing the earbuds, it will move the dial on an ANC display — from maximum noise cancellation to maximum transparency.
The light blue and black models get a mirror-like finish on their charging case lids, with a translucent window that lets you see the case’s display even when closed. On the white model, you’ll need to open the lid to see it.
Soundcore claims that these earbuds offer its best ANC so far. It combines six microphones, and a barometric pressor sensor, with Soundcore’s ANC 3.0 algorithm. According to the company, it adapts to the user’s environment three times per second. We’re not sure Soundcore gets bragging rights for that stat — Apple says its AirPods Pro 2 can monitor the environment for loud noises 48,000 times per second. Then again, the AirPods Pro 2 cost $119 more than the Liberty 4 Pro.
Speaking of the AirPods, the Liberty 4 Pro have spatial audio modes, much like Apple’s earbuds, including head tracking.
Also supported is Sony’s LDAC Bluetooth codec for hi-res wireless audio, Google Fast Pair, Bluetooth multipoint, and a new Easy Chat feature that lowers the volume and switches to transparency mode when you start speaking. The one thing that appears to be missing is support for Auracast.
The case can charge wirelessly or via USB-C, and Soundcore claims the earbuds will get 10 hours of playtime with ANC turned off and 7.5 hours with ANC enabled. When you include the case’s capacity, that totals up to 40 hours and 30 hours respectively.
Instagram is making its way to yet another screen, and this time, Apple TV is getting a taste of the Reels rabbit hole. The company has launched a dedicated Instagram app for Apple TV, bringing Reels, longer videos, and live shows to the big screen. So, if watching one quick clip on a phone somehow turns into an hour of scrolling, there's now a much larger screen for that.
Instagram brings Reels and more to Apple TV
Audio-Technica, a brand well known for making some of the best studio and professional headphones on the market, has just come out with the ATH-AWX7000, which the company itself claims to be its "finest headphones ever." The new flagship closed-back headphone has debuted at an eye-watering price of $3,799. It combines hand-finished Japanese woodwork with a newly developed 58mm driver.
The earcups are made from Kiso cypress, a prized wood historically used for Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples. Each housing is finished by hand with traditional Echizen lacquer, which brings out the grain and is expected to darken over time. The frame and sliders are finished in a deep navy kachi-iro shade traditionally associated with samurai.
This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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