Truke’s new series of Open-ear Wireless Stereo (OWS) earbuds are designed to eliminate the stress that comes with using traditional in-ear buds. The earbuds hover over the ear canal instead of pushing inside it. Previously, we reviewed the Truke Buds Freedom OWS and found them to be a good alternative to standard TWS for users who don’t fancy the in-ear design. The soundstage offered by the Freedom OWS, while not as ‘full’ as we’d like, was still decent enough for its price category. We now turn our attention to the Liberty OWS, which is currently priced at Rs 1,899. These earbuds pack the same 16mm Beryllium drivers as the Freedom OWS. They also feature 360 Spatial Audio for a more immersive listening experience. We used the Truke Buds Liberty OWS for a week, here is our review of the earbuds.
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In This Article
Truke Buds Liberty OWS Review: Design
Here’s what you get inside the Truke Buds Liberty OWS retail box:
- Charging case with earbuds inside
- USB Type-A to Type-C cable
- Warranty card
- User manual
The design of the Truke Buds Liberty OWS is similar to the Freedom OWS. The charging case sports the lunchbox form factor and needs two hands to be flipped open. There is a small notch under the lid to help with this task. The top of the lid has a glossy finish, while the bottom of the case has a matte texture. A thin strip separates the lid from the bottom half of the case. The USB port is positioned below the hinge.
The inside of the case has a contrasting colour, giving the OWS a dual-tone theme. The matte finish on this inlay elevates the feel of the device. The two earbuds are firmly locked into their respective magnetic cutouts.
Truke Buds Liberty OWS comes in two colour options – Aqua Blue and Black. We used the former for the review. The charging case is prone to scratches if it is kept inside pockets with keys and loose change. However, given the size of the case, we found it much more convenient to tuck it away in a backpack.
The key difference between the Freedom and the Liberty OWS lies in the earbud design. While the size of the two earbuds is similar, the Liberty OWS has a more uniform touch panel without any fingertip-shaped indentation. This touch panel has the Truke branding right in the middle along with a small notification light. It is bordered by a plastic frame finished in silver.
The titanium wire ear hooks wrap around the ear while the buds hover over the ear canal. For the earbuds to deliver the best audio output, you need to ensure that they are not obstructed by the tragus. This will require some adjustment before you get it right. The fit of the earbuds isn’t quite there yet. While the earbuds are designed to be loose and ‘open’ we would have preferred the ear hooks to be tighter and more secure.
The good thing about the open-ear design of these earbuds is that it makes you more aware of your surroundings. Since there is no passive noise cancellation whatsoever, you can put these earbuds on while going on a jog and be conscious of the traffic around you. If you have sensitive inner ear skin, you will like the hygienic advantage that comes with this OWS.
The earbuds are rated IPX5 for water resistance. We wore them while working out and were pleased to find that they were unfazed by the sweat. However, the ear hoos tend to get a little slippery when things get sweaty.
Truke Buds Liberty OWS Review: Performance
The Truke Buds Liberty OWS uses 16mm Beryllium drivers to deliver the audio output. These drivers are also present on the Freedom OWS. Also on board are SBC and AAC codecs, ENC, Bluetooth 5.4, low latency mode, and voice assistant support.
The soundstage presented by the Liberty OWS is not dominated by a beefy low-end. The bass is tuned nicely and doesn’t muddle other frequencies. Compared to other TWS products in this price range, the Liberty’s soundstage is a lot more close to neutral.
While we like neutral-sounding earbuds, the output produced by the Liberty OWS feels slightly muffled. This is something we noticed on the Freedom OWS as well. The two earbuds feature the same driver, so they’re plagued by the same issues. On the bright side, there is minimal to no audio leakage despite the open-ear design of the earbuds.
The listening experience was ideal within the 40-80% range. In this window, the audio did not leak outside of the buds and the sound produced by the drivers was relatively lush. We listened to rock classics like The Beach Boys’ seminal record ‘Pet Sounds’ and the more avant-garde ‘In the Court of the Crimson King’ by King Crimson and were satisfied by the details that the Truke Buds Liberty OWS managed to pack in the output. The soundstage did justice to the layered sound of both albums.
Another thing we like about the Liberty OWS is its finely-tuned touch controls. The larger size of the earbuds allowed us to use the frame for any adjustment. This meant the touch panel was kept free of any accidental touches. The controls for navigating the songs and answering/rejecting incoming calls are very intuitive as well.
Truke Buds Liberty OWS also has a handy gaming mode which can be triggered by tapping the left earbud 3 times. In this mode, the audio latency of the earbuds drops down to 40ms. We played Call of Duty Mobile while wearing the earbuds and did not experience any audio lags or annoying delays. The crispness of the sound of gunshots and the faint crescendo of approaching footsteps were relayed perfectly by the earbuds.
The calling experience offered by the Liberty OWS is not bad either. The earbuds use their ENC chops to extract the voice of the speaker, clear the background noise, and relay it to the caller. This works smoothly in an indoor setting, but some background noise manages to creep in while using the earbuds in an outdoor environment.
The Liberty OWS’s battery specs and performance are identical to its Freedom sibling. The charging case packs a 500mAh battery pack and the earbuds are equipped with 50mAh units. Truke claims a maximum playtime of up to 10 hours on the earbuds alone. The charging case extends this playtime to 50 hours. During the week-long review period, we used the Truke Buds Liberty OWS for 5-6 hours a day. By the end of the week, we were left with a 30% charge. Using a USB Type-C cable, we were able to fully charge the case in under 2 hours.
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Verdict
Truke continues to impress with its diverse range of affordable audio products. The Liberty OWS is meant for users who do not want passive noise cancellation of any kind. The open-ear design makes sure that the earbuds do not contribute to any wax buildup inside the ear. The soundstage of this OWS is close to neutral and isn’t marred by a dominating blanket of bass.
The lack of app support is one glaring issue we have with Truke’s product at large. For a TWS priced around Rs 2,000, we expect the option to customise the touch controls and choose from different sound profiles.
Truke Buds Liberty OWS: Pros
- Open-ear design
- No ear fatigue
- Good battery life
Truke Buds Liberty OWS: Cons
- May be loose on smaller ears
- No companion app
