The LG Tone Free Wireless Earbuds have outstanding features and specifications, including active noise cancellation, standardization by British audiophile company Meridian Audio, and one feature that makes them stand out in the true wireless category: an actinic ray self-cleaning mechanism for the earpieces.
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On paper, all of this makes the LG Tone Free HBS-FN7 look pretty amazing, but how practical is this receiver in actual use? check in my evaluation.
LG Tone Free Wireless Earbuds: HBS-FN7
When it comes to truly wireless earphones, there are plenty of options, and even the luxury market is becoming more and more competitive thanks to well-known companies like Apple, Sony, Sennheiser, and Samsung. While some of these products are designed to work best with smartphones and tablets as a whole, others are offered on the basis of technological brilliance or value for money.
The newest set of LG true wireless earphones pulls some pretty unique techniques out of the hat to make itself apart in this context.
The LG Tone Free Wireless Earbuds HBS-FN7 use ultraviolet light to clean its own earpieces
The LG tone free wireless earbuds will be firmly positioned in the premium segment, among the Sony WF-1000XM3 and recently released Samsung Galaxy Buds professional, while not being among the most expensive top-spec options currently available in the true wireless section. The stems of the earpieces are neither too large nor too small, and they have a glossy end. The telephone receiver is available in black and white and seems to be well-built overall.
The telephone receiver is controlled by a single touch-sensitive zone on each electro-acoustic transducer, which is a raised bit at the top of the stem. Many of these features, such as the motions to answer or end calls and switch between the ANC and near sound modes, are fixed and cannot be changed. The earpieces’ sensors also change wear detection, which pauses or resumes music when they are turned on or off repeatedly.
The LG tone free wireless earbuds, which are available for iOS and Android, have personalized playback and volume controls. Single, double, or triple faucets can be used to control playback and loudness. The app also gives you the option to change the equalization settings and select notifications.
The charging case is compact and very comfortable to carry. It has both USB Type-C fast charging and chi wireless charging capabilities, a pairing button on the side, and indicator lights for the battery level and UVnano cleaning level in the front.
Although the case appears to be pretty simple on the exterior, the UVnano LEDs and Meridian Audio branding give the interior a little extra character. The charging contact points are located on the inside of the stems of the earpieces, which magnetically snap into the case.
Two ultraviolet LED lights, one for each electro-acoustic transducer, are located on the bottom of the charging case. When the charging case’s lid is opened, they begin to work for a short period of time before continuing to function continuously.
This is frequently predicted to kill 99.9 pc of bacteria were found on the speaker meshes of the earpieces after 10 minutes of use. Here, it’s important to note that LG has only evaluated the technology for its ability to combat bacteria; as a result, don’t anticipate any protection against viruses or other types of contaminants.
The FN7 provides accurate in-canal work, but I often found it difficult to achieve the ideal level of effective noise isolation and ANC. Despite the ear tips I used, it did need some work to get the earphones firmly in place with a proper seal every time I put them on, even though I did not experience any comfort issues.
The LG Tone-Free HBS-FN7 earphones nearly mirror the HBS-FN6 in terms of aesthetics. The FN7’s active noise cancelling capability, which is its core feature, is essentially what makes it stand out in terms of value. Every electro-acoustic transducer in this system uses three microphones, as opposed to the FN6 model’s two microphones. The majority of other features, including UVnano self-cleaning and codec support, are comparable across the 2 models.
The 6mm dynamic drivers of the LG Tone Free HBS-FN7 are used. It supports the SBC and AAC Bluetooth codecs and utilizes Bluetooth 5 for property. The earpieces are IPX4 approved for water resistance and support Google Quick Try on compatible mechanical man devices.
With an extra two charges from the case, I was able to utilize the HBS-FN7 earpieces for just under six hours per charge, giving me a total of almost eighteen hours of battery life per charging cycle. Given the price and available alternatives, this is frequently adequate and fairly comparable to the options provided by rival companies in this price range.
The LG Tone Free HBS-sound FN7’s quality is decent but not pleasant
Consumer brands now frequently work with well-known high-end audio companies, and to LG’s credit, it has a long-standing partnership with British loudspeaker system manufacturer Meridian Audio.
But this naturally led Maine to want to compare the LG Tone Free HBS-FN7 to the recently released Oppo Enco X, which was built in collaboration with Dynaudio and is a rival of Meridian Audio in the loudspeaker system market.
Naturally, the LG Tone Free HBS-FN7 competes with options like the Sony WF-1000XM3 and Apple AirPods professional, but takes a very different approach to sound quality. Although the LG FN7 will sound tight, Maine took some time to get used to its heat and very punchy audio signature.
The LG Tone Free HBS-FN7 does not support any sophisticated Bluetooth codecs, so high-resolution audio streaming did not improve sound quality. The HBS-FN7, like numerous other options in this section, is primarily designed to be used with streaming services like Spotify and YouTube Music, and it does fairly well if you like warm sound.
When listening to Todd Terje’s live performance of Strandbar on YouTube Music, the emphasis was firmly on the various types of drums and, as a result, the obtrusive bass components inside the synthesizers. This effectively conveyed the track’s mood while maintaining an accurate soundstage and a roomy sound quality.
Considering that most choices in this price range go with something a little more natural, it is an unusual sound signature, but with the right kind of music, I was ultimately able to grasp it. Nevertheless, the sound has a little bit of coarseness and a lack of flexibility that weren’t always enjoyable. Competitor options do have a tendency to offer a more complete, comfortable sonic performance.
Changing to a lot Punchier
The LG tone free wireless earbuds HBS-expansive FN7’s soundstage was more obvious when using Passion Pit’s far more aggressive song. The lows were still strong and dramatic, but there was a distinct sense of division between the various elements that make up this dubstep track. Beats, computer-generated rumbling, and vocals all successfully fight with one another within the immersive virtual soundstage, which is greatly aided by active noise cancellation that blocks out a lot of the noise outside.
Even now, it was simple to choose subtle nuances in songs, particularly in the sample-based music of the Australian electronic music collective The Avalanches.
In many tracks from the album Since I Left You, every individual sample was distinct and well-kept. Sometimes the fuzzy warmth in the sound enhanced the texture of the music, while other times the lack of balance in the sonic signature tended to make certain genres and tracks seem odd.
Active noise cancellation with the LG tone HBS-FN7 free wireless earbuds
The LG tone free wireless earbuds HBS-FN7 have effective active noise cancellation that is close to matching those of the Sony WF-1000XM3 and Apple AirPods professional. Although there was a noticeable reduction in noise both inside and outside, I found the ANC performance to only be marginally better than the Oppo Enco X, which is far more affordable than the FN7.
The close sound setting appeared to overamplify domestic noises even in a very relatively quiet environment because there was a slight sense of roughness in the outside sound that did funnel through when using ANC. However, when listening to music, especially in busy environments, the ANC did help to improve the perceptibility, the attack inside the lows, and thus the entire soundstage. Throughout my time with the earbuds, I had no issues with the LG Tone Free HBS-performance FN7’s during calls.
Thoughts in Conclusion
The LG tone free wireless earbuds stand out for one major reason: UVnano medical help. The market is crowded with solutions that offer, for the most part, consistent sets of options. Although I wasn’t there to see the outcomes or even any immediate consequences, the theoretical usefulness of this feature will be a welcome addition in a drastically altered environment that is paying more attention to personal hygiene. Apart from that, the LG HBS-FN7 doesn’t provide anything unique. This is a clever attempt at real wireless earphones, but that is about it.
The LG tone free wireless earbuds are worth considering if the UVnano self-cleaning system grabs your attention. The rest of the feature set and sound quality won’t let you down either. There are other options worth considering, like as the Sony WF-1000XM3, which also provides the best ANC at this price point, if you’re seeking for what objectively sounds the best among true wireless earphones at under $280.
In contrast, the Oppo Enco X is nearly as good and, in some ways, even more valuable. There is also the LG HBS-FN6 to think about, which, on paper, is very similar to the FN7 with the exception of active noise cancellation, if you’ll do without it.
