JVC - Open-Ear Headphones HANP1TB - Black

I've been testing the JVC Nearphones HANP1TB for the last week. Overall, these are an impressive piece of tech. They are comfortable, long-lasting, great-sounding, and are the perfect alternative to earbuds. In the box, there were two nearphones, a charging case, and a short USB-C charging cable. Pairing the nearphones with my phone was very simple. Before I could tap on my phone's Bluetooth button, the phone immediately detected the buds, and two taps later, setup was complete. The nearbuds are uniquely designed with a springy hinge on the speaker side that enables them to slide over my ear cartilage and sit right in front of my ear canal. I really like this design because it prevents ear fatigue and it doesn't isolate my hearing from the rest of the world around me. Needless to say, they feel lightweight and very comfortable to wear. Even after long periods of wear, I could barely tell I was wearing them. Best of all, they sounded excellent. While watching YouTube videos or podcasts, voices were accurate and very clear. And whether I was listening to activity in the background or music on Spotify, everything just sounded great. Highs were clear, mids were present and pronounced, and the bass was not boomy but still acceptable. The nearphones also work with the JVC Headphones app. From there I can modify touch controls,  adjust volume, turn on low latency mode, and adjust sound profiles to one of three presets. However, the touch controls on the nearphones were not necessarily the best. They work fine, I just found myself reaching for my phone to control volume or skip songs.  With all that said, These have become my favorite set of nearphones and I highly recommend them.

As I opened the box, the JVC HA-NP1T earphones looked like two small pieces of fine jewelry made out of shiny black stones. The shape is unusual compared to traditional earphones. Connection and set-up were easy, but I needed to look at the manual to learn how to slip them on. However, I was pleasantly surprised to discover how comfortable and light they are. I barely noticed their presence even after wearing them all day at work. I like the open-ear design that is ideal for my office environment as I’m not cut off from the outside activities as I’m listening to my favorite music or podcasts. The battery life is good and, from a full charge, the charge would be a little 50% after almost seven hours of use. Ergonomically, those JVC earphones are among the most comfortable earphones I’ve owned. They hold on firmly yet gently to my ears. On a couple of occasions, I wore them during my exercise and they stayed in place even with constant sudden head movements. That’s a big plus for me, but I’m not sure about their level of waterproofing in case of heavy sweating. Unlike many modern earphones that have touch controls, this model operates with a single push button on each earphone that performs all the basic functions to play, pause, skip, volume and more. In my opinion, the buttons lack responsiveness and require practice to get the right results. They can be customized through the app which has a good and simple user interface. It’s stable and the connection to the earphones has been reliable. On the box, JVC printed ‘Nearphones’ which perfectly describe the way they sit outside the ear canal as opposed to traditional earphones. I’m assuming it’s a kind of bone conduction technology as the sound is clear and even immersive depending on what you’re listening to. The sound quality is great with podcasts and quite good when playing music. I’m guessing because of their placement outside the ear canal, you will notice a lack of bass but the highs come out almost perfect. In a noisy environment, it becomes a challenge to hear comfortably. They performed well while making calls, and the sound was clear. The microphone captured my voice well according to my interlocutors on the other lines. Overall, my experience with the JVC HA-NP1T Nearphones was mostly positive. They are not premium earphones and I believe touch controls would have made them more user-friendly or the push buttons could have been more responsive. However, they are very comfortable and they have style. You can wear them all day without getting ear fatigue and the quality of the sound can be qualified as good, especially with podcasts.

The unique open ear cuff design is perfect for me because they are secure, comfortable, allow you to hear things around you, and do not interfere with my glasses (a common issue for me with over the ear type open ear headphones). I regularly wear them while working, because you can wear them in between online meetings and they do not interfere with your ability to have an in-person conversation. The ear cuff is light weight and has a perfectly weighted spring so it is comfortable, but secure enough for a workout (and they are IPX4 water resistant so they should hold up to a little sweat). Pros: 1. Great design and a cool look. In the world of Air pods and their look-a-likes, these stand out and I often get questions/comments on them. 2. Single ear support. Great when you are just using them for meetings and calls. 2. Programmable buttons - there is a real button (not a finicky touch sensor) on each earphone that can be set via the JVC Headphones app to have multiple functions based on the number/length of presses, music or phone call, left/right side, and single or double ear configuration (I kept mine simple, just using them for volume and mute/pause/play). 3. Supports multiple Bluetooth devices connections. This is convenient, because I often swap between my computer and iPhone through out the day. 4. Built-in mics for calls and meetings. 5. Charging case with simple battery level/charging lights and a short USB-C cable. With boost given by the charging case these can easily make it a few days between charges. 6. Simple and useful app (JVC Headphones) for basic equalizer settings, custom button functions, audio quality, battery level, and turning off the blinking status light. Things To Consider: 1. These are great for casual use, but they are not going to wow you with their sound quality or punch - this is really a tradeoff for the open ear design and light weight. Calls are clear and people I spoke with said I was clear on their end, but a few said I did not sound natural - more robotic. When listening to music there is not much bass, and I wish they were a tad louder for noisy environments. The JVC Headphones app has an equalizer, but there are only 3 settings (Normal, Bass, and High); Bass did nothing to help, but High made the music noticeably brighter and louder - it is the best setting.