Kiwi Ears Spark Review – Open Wearable Stereo (OWS) Bluetooth Earphones
Kiwi Ears is a leading audio brand dedicated to crafting innovative, high-quality audio solutions for audiophiles, music enthusiasts, and professionals. From IEMs to headphones, Kiwi Ears combines cutting-edge technology with a passion for sound to create products that inspire and delight.
Kiwi Ears Spark is the second-generation Open Wearable Stereo (OWS) Bluetooth earphones, featuring a fully upgraded design for better comfort, sound, and connectivity. Kiwi Ears Spark is crafted for active lifestyles with an open, wearable design that offers a secure and comfortable fit for everyday exercise.
Engineered with a unique OWS structure, these earphones stay stable during vigorous activities while maintaining breathability. This design ensures a snug fit so you can enjoy music and calls without distraction.
With A2DP support, Spark delivers a dynamic listening experience that captures every detail of your favorite tracks. Whether working out or commuting, enjoy rich, clear sound that elevates your everyday music listening.
Equipped with single-microphone ENC technology, Spark minimizes background noise, ensuring that your conversations remain crisp and focused, even in busy environments. This makes managing calls on the move effortless.
The charging case features a three-color LED display to easily check battery levels, while the durable design shields against dust, moisture, and sweat. This combination ensures efficient battery life and reliable performance for your active lifestyle.
The Kiwi Ears Spark is built for those constantly on the move. It combines high-quality audio, stable Bluetooth connectivity, and a sport-oriented, open-wearable design. Spark offers all-day comfort, situational awareness, and clear stereo sound with enhanced durability, whether you’re working out, commuting, or simply enjoying everyday listening.
With A2DP support, these earphones deliver balanced audio with deep bass, making them ideal for music lovers. AAC and SBC decoding ensure compatibility with various devices while maintaining sound clarity. For calls, ENC noise cancellation reduces background noise, allowing for clear communication even in busy environments.
The intuitive voice control and Siri integration offer seamless hands-free operation, while the charging case with an LED battery display keeps you informed of power levels. With an IP45 rating, Kiwi Ears Spark is resistant to dust, moisture, and sweat, ensuring durability for everyday use.
General Specifications:
- Chipset: QCC3040
- Bluetooth Version: V5.2
- Supported Audio Codecs: SBC, AAC, APTX-HD
- Charging Case Dimensions: 82.58 × 65.49 × 26.3 mm
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Earbud Dimensions: 46.05 × 38.63 × 17.29 mm
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Earbud Weight: 8.7 g
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Charging Case Weight: 85 g
- Transmission Range: 12 m
- Music Playback Time: Approx. 7 hours (at 70% volume)
- Talk Time: Approx. 5 hours (at max volume)
- Standby Time (Earbuds): Approx. 240 hours
- Earbud Battery Capacity: 60 mAh
- Charging Case Battery Capacity: 1000 mAh
Microphone Specifications:
- Microphone Type: 2718 Silicon Microphone
- Directivity: Omnidirectional
- Sensitivity (0dB = 1V/Pa at 1kHz): -38 ± 1 dB
- T.H.D. (94 dB SPL @ 1kHz, VDD = 2.2V): ≤0.15%
- Frequency Range: 100 Hz – 10 kHz
- Operating Voltage: 1.6 – 3.6 V
- Current Consumption: ≤100 µA
- Signal-to-Noise Ratio (S/N): 62 dB
Sound
The Spark isn’t hard to drive: the amplifier and DSP are directly built-in, so all you have to do is connect your source and click play. There is no hiss whatsoever, even when no music is playing.
There is simple physics at work here: since the earbud floats just outside your ear and doesn’t seal or even touch your ear canal, you can’t expect to achieve the same level of finesse and sound pressure as you would with its “regular” counterparts.
Bass is mostly absent, highs are a bit too forward, and the mids are the only ones getting real love here. Don’t expect hard-hitting subs, but what you miss in bass depth, you win in spaciousness, and the new earbud surprised me here with some hollow and pan effects rendering. Sure, a true earbud like the FF3 will output deeper bass, thanks to its narrower distance from the ear, but the sensation is quite cool most of the time.
Would I get it over an IEM? Not in a million years, but after a few hours of listening, I can understand the appeal behind it. The unobtrusive design gives you a completely different experience from your usual IEM, and in a silent environment, I was even able to discern a few nuances that I didn’t expect the Kiwi Ears Spark to be able to render.
You can even feel the power and width of the driver on massive techno tracks, but marred by the tiny cm separating you from the holy grail. So close, yet so far! Thankfully, medium-wise, the Kiwi Ears Spark is almost toe-to-toe with its bigger brother, with acute, low distortion and clean transients.
It’s a great all-rounder, one that can be used daily, when conditions are met. I tried them once outdoors, and a small wind alone managed to completely blow everything above 5 kHz and under 200 Hz, leaving just the mids. So yeah, use them indoors or in a secluded environment only.
Lows are meh. There’s no turnaround here – lows aren’t the Kiwi Ears Spark forte. You could get some bass if you raise the volume to unsafe levels, but I would not recommend that. I did try to put the ears in the best possible conditions (silent room, techno), but it never clicked with me, whatever I tried.
Mids are spacious with clean vocals. Clearly, Kiwi Ears is showing off in this area. The DSP always tries to put the voices upfront, but that’s not necessary, as the driver feels underwhelmed in this configuration. There’s no real bump, but the more you listen to them, the more you’ll discern those slight magnifications.
Highs have good extension, lost in the gap. The open-back design can lead you to push the volume a little higher than usual, but if you’re able to refrain, it’s quite good in that regard. Pan effects with the right recordings are usually great and sometimes amazing, but that’s if you’re in a silent room.
Sum-Up
Combining performance, convenience, and durability, Kiwi Ears Spark is the perfect companion for those who need a reliable audio solution on the go. If your goal is to get an earbud that completely blends music with your environment, the Kiwi Ears Spark is the gear you need to check. It is also one of the few open-style earbuds that support the aptX-HD Bluetooth codec.