The LynkNano Buying Guide

◆

The SoundPEATS Clear ($35) and the SoundPEATS C30 ($39) are only $4 apart, yet they are built for quite different people. Choose the wrong pair and you either pay for features your phone cannot use, or miss the one feature you actually wanted.

Side by side

I. Noise cancelling — the biggest difference

This is the question that decides it for most people. The C30 has true active noise cancelling — up to 52dB, with Commuting, Cycling, Office and Library modes in the free PeatsAudio app, tuned to reduce the ear-pressure feeling strong ANC can cause.

The Clear does not have ANC. It has ENC, which sounds similar but is quite different: ENC cleans up your voice on calls so the other person hears you rather than the street. It does not quiet the world around you. The silicone tips block some sound simply by sealing your ear, as any in-ear bud does.

If you want quiet on a bus, a plane or in a busy office, choose the C30.

II. iPhone or Android?

The C30 supports LDAC, a high-resolution Bluetooth codec. LDAC works on many Android phones, but iPhones do not support it. On an iPhone the C30 uses AAC instead — it still sounds very good, you simply don't receive the Hi-Res stream.

The Clear uses SBC and AAC only. That sounds like a drawback, but for iPhone owners it isn't: you pay for nothing your phone cannot use, and the Clear sounds the same on an iPhone as on Android.

• Android, and you want the best sound: C30.
• iPhone: either works — choose on noise cancelling (C30) or on looks and price (Clear).

III. Battery life

The C30 lasts longer: about 10 hours from the earbuds and 52 hours in total with the case, and a 10-minute USB-C charge gives about 3 hours.

One honest note: LDAC roughly halves the C30's battery (about 5 hours per charge), and noise cancelling costs some time too — SoundPEATS' own figures show about 6h 50m with ANC on over AAC.

The Clear gives about 7 hours per charge and 40 hours in total. With no ANC drawing power, volume is the main thing that changes it.

All battery figures are SoundPEATS lab data and vary with volume and settings.

IV. Calls

Both handle calls well. The C30 has the edge outdoors, with six microphones (three per earbud) and a wind-resistant design rated to about 45 km/h. The Clear's two microphones with ENC are good for everyday calls indoors.

V. Gym, rain and gaming

• Sweat and rain: the C30 is IP54, the Clear IPX4 (earbuds only). Both handle sweat and light rain.
• Mobile gaming: the Clear has a dedicated Game Mode that reduces audio lag; the C30's Bluetooth 6.0 also lowers latency for video and games.

VI. Looks

The Clear has a genuinely transparent shell that shows the parts inside — if that caught your eye, nothing else in our range looks like it. The C30 offers more colours: White, Black, Orange and Pinkish Purple.