Audio = Ground Zero

Setting the standard in 2022: LG Tone Free FP9 earbuds

It is 2022 and cords are widely perceived to be a nuisance no matter the reference when it comes to enjoying the emissions of portable audio devices, resulting in earbuds  mushrooming in all forms and shapes.

While I do not necessarily mind cord at home, for exercise and while travelling I prefer earbuds , so attributes like being pocketable, lightweight and the ability to not only actively cancel noises at different ambient  levels  but reproducing musical nuances rank high on my agenda. While the aforementioned tick the boxes of basic features, additional features that not only come in handy for daily use but ones that reinvigorate older gear are more than welcome.

Enter LG’s Tone Free FP9 earbuds.

With a charging case  that offers the capability to become a Bluetooth transmitter making non-wireless devices Bluetooth compatible, e.g. your old radio, turntable, iPod or in-flight entertainment, simply by connecting the included USB-C to 3.5mm headphone jack cable into the earbud’s case and plug the 3.5mm end into the headphone jack of the device you want to use as a sound source. The result comes remarkably close to a true Bluetooth connection and proves to be reliably stable.

However, what makes the charging case truly remarkable is the fact that this compact smooth plastic little number has a sanitising UV-C light built in it so when the earbuds are charging, they are bathed with UV that aims to render them bacteria-free.

Size-wise, the LGs Tone Free FP9’s short stem size nestles perfectly in my ears with their medical grade silicone and ear tips aiding to further customize the fit, so they do not pop out even during more strenuous runs.

Via the complementary free Tone Free FP9 feature-packed companion app, the finer nuances of the LG’s robust multi-faceted soundstages and audio profiles, of which the widely open immersive setting is my preferred one, can be tweaked and saved in two settings to further elevate the audio experience via through the customization of EQ levels and other more granular details.

With a solid battery life of ten hours, a fast charge feature and a back-up of an additional twenty-four if using the case for recharging, the new LG Tone Free FP9 earbuds got me seamlessly door to door from terra australis to my German destination and with its
active noise-cancelling, which can easily switched to transparency mode, it made travelling a breeze – especially given the fact that due to the comfortable fit was able to sleep well with them still in my ears.

Mic-wise, there is a tad room for improvement when it comes to background noises, which is only a trivial criticism and a niggle that only stands out because the FP9’s perform so well in every other regard. 

I do dig their smart whisper and text-to-speech voice-alert modes, which offer the opportunity to give your conversations a bid of a stealth dimension – a feature that will hopefully be used on the regular by those prone of making calls on public transport.

Summa summarum, the stable yet comfortable easy-to-pair LG Tone Free FP9 earbuds in their totality are much more than the mere sum of their individual intuitive features might suggest and set the standard for 2022, thereby making them an easy recommendation for anyone who commutes / travels a lot and is concerned with more than mere sound quality.

If you are interested in a set, outline in twenty-five words how you’d put the FP9s functionality to best use and send to [email protected].