Soundcore’s Liberty 4 true wireless earbuds are AirPod alternatives that pack a lot of bang for your buck. These feature-rich headphones are indeed Soundcore’s solution to Apple’s AirPods, but they come with even more features at a much lower price.
In addition to premium sound quality and active noise cancellation, they feature a very long battery life, heart-rate monitor, posture monitor, spatial audio, and an app with lots of customization options. The only thing they can’t compete with Apple is the native iOS integration; otherwise, they’re near-perfect.
Design and fit test
Soundcore Liberty 4’s design is much like the AirPod in terms of style but with some added unique details and a sleek glossy black finish to top off the look. The ear tips are not your standard round but oval in shape. The stem is not cylindrical but more triangular and has squeeze buttons for controlling your phone. You even have the option to adjust the sensitivity.
We find the fit to be very comfortable and reasonably secure. The earphones might loosen a little while running or with intense head movements, but for working and commuting, they fit perfectly.
Charging case
The charging case is one of our favorite parts of the Liberty 4 earbuds– it’s sleek and polished. The square pebble case is smooth all around, and the top slides back to reveal the buds. It’s a gratifying and solid slide that locks open and closed.
Another unique detail is that the inside of the case illuminates when you open it, and the earbuds shimmer with a soft glow.
Battery and wireless charging
The battery is as good as it gets — 9 hours on a single charge, 28 hours with the case, and about three hours on a 15-minute charge. The case charges both with a USB-C cable and wirelessly.
Soundcore app and key features
For people who don’t wear smartwatches, the Soundcore Liberty 4’s built-in heart rate monitor would be an exciting change. We imagined it would always be on or take a quick sample every so often to provide useful analytics about your heart activity. Interestingly though, this is not how the current iteration works.
Instead, you’ve got to open the app, tap through a couple of menus, and wait for calibration before the monitoring feature starts working. This takes about a minute. Your heart rate will be consistently tracked until you put the buds back into their charging case.
You can look at your heart rate history, but only on the scale of a full day; you can’t zoom in to see it by minute unless you use the Soundcore app to record an exercise. We found the heart rate tracking to be primarily accurate compared to a chest strap — It’s not as responsive, but when it’s incorrect, it’s usually obvious to spot.
One last bummer with this feature is that the iOS doesn’t recognize it as a heart rate monitor that you can use with the Health app or other apps.
Another unique and potentially handy feature is the earphone’s posture detection. After a quick calibration, the Soundcore Liberty 4 will detect your head’s tilt forwards/backward and side-to-side. It uses this feature to measure neck strain, posture, and stress levels and will alert you when you strain your neck for too long.
Like heart rate monitoring, the implementation of the feature is subpar. We found that unless you’re cool with opening the Soundcore app and calibrating it every time you use your headphones, it doesn’t work. We’re hoping this will be improved with firmware and future app updates.
Active Noise Cancellation
Active noise canceling is effective and well-implemented. Passive noise cancellation is reasonably good when you use well-fitting ear tips. The ANC is natural and clean, making your surroundings noticeably quieter.
Walking on the treadmill, I go from hearing minimal noise to virtually none, especially with music at an average volume. This also lets you listen to music at lower volumes which is a good thing for your ears.
Soundcore allows you to choose ANC strength or leave it in automatic “adaptive” mode. We found the adaptive mode does an excellent job of adjusting ANC strength. The Liberty 4 may not be the most powerful ANC in-ears, but we are thrilled with how well they work. They’re fabulous headphones to keep ANC on consistently.
While the wellness features could be better integrated, we give Soundcore much credit for a robust and capable app. You get complete control over the buds and can configure single, double, and triple presses of each bud along with the sensitivity of the press.
Do the Soundcore Liberty 4 earbuds have a Spatial audio feature?
The app offers multiple listening settings, from various audio profiles, to a custom equalizer, to a personalized “HearID” setting that profiles your ear. It even has spatial audio features similar to Apple’s AirPods. We love the optionality.
Sound quality
Soundcore loaded the Liberty 4 with many features and tech, making the resulting sound quality excellent. It’s all around very clear, with good bass and solid mids. The earphones are punchy and lively, and the in-app equalizer helps you make them sound exactly how you want them to.
We had a lot of fun listening to them and found the default audio profile fantastic. Active noise cancellation also helps you appreciate your music at average volumes.
Microphone and call quality
The quality of the microphone is also pretty darn good. It eliminates most background noise and can zero in on your voice clearly and loudly. We noticed just a touch of distortion in voices. The six microphones that the Soundcore Liberty 4 is fitted with achieve this. Overall, we found the sound quality more than okay for all kinds of calls.
Is Soundcore better than Apple?
Yes, the Soundcore Liberty 4 earbuds are better than Apple AirPods because they offer sound quality that rivals the AirPods 3, while offering even more features at a lower price point than what you get from Apple.
Soundcore Liberty 4 review: verdict
We love the Soundcore Liberty 4 as everyday headphones. They have it all and then some, especially for the price. They excel in all the important categories and even come with extra surprises like an illuminated charging case, heart rate monitoring, posture detection, and spatial audio. We were bummed that the heart rate and posture features weren’t so well implemented.
We wouldn’t buy the headphones for these features but consider them a bonus since they work when you need them. Soundcore nailed the basics and exceeded expectations on the nice-to-haves. They look, sound, and feel great. The battery and charging are as good as it gets.
The sound profile is entirely customizable, as are the control buttons. The controls aren’t our favorite, but they work when you get used to them.
Availability and pricing
The Soundcore Liberty 4 true wireless earbuds retail for $129.99, which we think is a very fair price. We’ve seen them sell for as low as $109.99, which we believe is a steal.
Soundcore's Liberty 4 headphones are affordable, feature-rich, and the perfect alternative to Apple's AirPods.