LG is one of the latest companies to enter the true wireless headphones game, with the new LG Tone Free headphones. The headphones offer an AirPods-like design, a small and easily pocketable charging case, and more.
At $150, the LG Tone Free headphones aren’t overly expensive — and they even offer a protective coating that LG claims will kill 99.99% of bacteria. But are the headphones worth buying? We put them to the test to find out.
Design
The first thing to notice about the LG Tone Free headphones is their design, and the headphones look pretty nice. Of course, they clearly draw inspiration from Apple’s AirPods and offer a black color-scheme instead — but that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
The earbuds themselves are about an inch long, with a relatively large main module and a small arm. Each bud is also touch sensitive — which means that you can tap the earbuds to control playback and volume. Touch controls will take a bit of getting used to, but they’re not overly complicated. The main downside is that it’s very easy to control the headphones accidentally when you put them in your ears or take them out, o even just when you adjust them — and the headphones aren’t smart enough to recognize that was a mistake.
Perhaps the best thing about the Tone Free headphones’ design is the design of the charging case. The case is super small, and will easily fit into most people’s pockets. That said, the earbuds don’t necessarily slot into the case as easily as they could, so you’ll have to make sure they align properly when you put them back in. On the back of the case, thankfully, there’s a USB-C port.
Also in the box, you’ll get a charging cable and a total of three pairs of ear tips, including the tips that come pre-installed on the headphones. It’s pretty much everything you’ll need.
Comfort
The LG Tone Free headphones are in-ear headphones, and they don’t really have hooks or a design that’s aimed at ensuring that they stay in your ears. That means that they have to stay in your ears solely with the arm that extends into your ear canals — but thankfully, they’re pretty good at doing so.
Generally speaking, the headphones are comfortable enough for most use, and while they will start to get a little uncomfortable after a few hours of use, for most basic use they should do just fine. They’re not bad at staying in your ears, however they’re also not built for sports or running, and if you want to use them for that, they’ll probably fall out.
Sound
These headphones aren’t very expensive — so you might assume that they also don’t sound very good. Ultimately, the headphones offer some decent audio qualities — but the overall sound profile isn’t very deep, and there’s little bass to speak of.
The bass is actually probably the worst thing about these headphones. Not only does it really not extend very deep, but the little bass that is there seems to be tucked away behind the rest of the audio.
The mids are fine , but again, not really all that impressive. The low mids seem to carry over from the bass in that they’re not as present as we would have liked. The high mids are present enough, which is good to hear.
The highs also don’t extend as far as we would have liked, but it’s less an issue here than it is with the bass. You’ll get some cut from cymbals, at least.
Generally, the audio just isn’t up to par from what you would expect from LG. Sure, the headphones aren’t as expensive as some competitors, but there are much better true wireless headphones for the price.
Performance
The LG Tone Free headphones connect to your listening device through Bluetooth 5.0, and we found that they retained a good connection throughout testing. The battery life on offer sits in at 6 hours on a charge, which is pretty good. The charging case will get you an additional two charges — so you’ll get a total of 18 hours of listening time.
Conclusions
The LG Tone Free headphones aren’t a complete flop. They have a solid design, despite the accidental button presses, and the charging case is nice and small. But the headphones just don’t sound that great, and there aren’t many smart features to make up for it.
If you have $150 to spend on a pair of true wireless headphones, then it’s worth considering options like the JLab Audio Epic Air Sport, which will be much better at staring in your ears, sound far better, and are easier to use.
| Store | Price |
|---|---|
 |
$149.99 |
| COMPANY | $149.99 |
| Frequency response | Unknown | Active noise cancellation | No |
| Driver size | Unknown | Noise attenuation | Unknown |
| Driver type | Dynamic | On-ear controls | Yes |
| Design | Closed | Microphone | Yes |
| Sensitivity | Unknown | Eartip material | Silicone |
| Rated impedance | Unknown | Magnet material | Unknown |
| Total harmonic distortion | Unknown | Water resistance | IPX4 |
| Rated input power | Unknown | Battery life | 6 Hours (+12 Hours) |
| Maximum input power | Unknown | Wireless distance | 10m (33ft) |
| Wireless connection | Bluetooth 5.0 | Cable length | N/A |
| Wired connection | No | Case type | Charging Case |
| Detachable cable | N/A | In-the-box |
|
| Weight | 1.76oz | Colors | Black |