- Honor Choice Earbuds Clip 2 launches globally
- Open ear clip-on headphones with practical function
- Sound leaks can be a thing of the past
Since I started testing the best open-back headphones several years ago, the form factor has advanced in leaps and bounds. These noise-cancelling headphones no longer have issues with poor sound transmission, unreliable fits, or huge carrying cases. But some problems remain.
Because each earbud sits outside the ear canal, this type of earbud has natural sound leakage, so people around you can hear your music if it’s quiet, like in an office. But Honor’s new headphones promise a solution to the problem.
The Honor Choice Earbuds Clip 2 Pro were announced in late 2025 in China, but finally received a global launch in April 2026. They are priced equivalent to around $125 / £100 / AU$200, but we’re waiting for availability and pricing worldwide.
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Beyond that name essay, they come with some specs that make them look competitive as open clip-style headphones. Its 12mm driver is larger than many we see in this style of headphones, and the 10-hour battery life is again competitive.
The case charges wirelessly, the arc is designed to resist bends, and the earbuds automatically detect which ear they’re in, so you don’t have to think about it. All very useful functions.
But beyond that list of useful but familiar specs, there’s one tool that stands out.
Goodbye, sound leak.
As I mentioned, there is a natural sound leak with the headphones open, so people around you can easily hear what you are listening to. The pair I’m currently testing are easy to distinguish if you’re several feet away from the listener. It’s pretty embarrassing that everyone at Parkrun can hear all the Backstreet Boys that I’m listening to.
We saw that the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Pro came with a controller designed to mitigate this issue, but they were hook-style open buttons, not clip-style like the Honor. Oh, and as my 3-star review (linked above) attests, they weren’t particularly good.
The Earbuds Clip 2 Pro, however, have a driver on the back of the bud, which emits sound to cancel out the music you’re listening to, basically working the opposite of how noise-cancelling headphones work.
In theory, these solve the main remaining problem with open-back headphones, and I’m very curious to try them out and see how well they work (or, more accurately, let my partner find out how well they work, since I won’t bother her with my music anymore… in theory).
Clip-on headphones are quickly proving to be more popular than hook-on headphones, at least judging by the number of new pairs being released, and I’ve previously been impressed with the company’s offerings, like the Honor Earbuds Open.
So I’m hopeful that if this problem solver works as well as I think it does, the Clip 2 Pro could be the best open-back headset yet, at least for those who share a workspace.
The best open-back headphones for every budget
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