Open-ear earbuds have become one of the fastest-growing categories in personal audio. They offer a comfortable fit and let users stay aware of their surroundings, making them ideal for commuting, exercising, or working in shared spaces. The trade-off has usually been sound quality. Without creating a seal inside the ear, open-ear designs typically struggle to deliver the bass and immersion many listeners expect from traditional earbuds.
Sennheiser says the Accentum Clip is designed to address that challenge. These clip-style earbuds are advertised to deliver stronger bass, clear vocals, and balanced treble.
Sennheiser
Sennheiser is focusing on audio features
To support those claims, the Accentum Clip uses a 12mm dynamic driver, which Sennheiser claims to have tuned for clarity, punchy bass, and smooth treble that remains enjoyable during extended listening sessions. They also support SBC and AAC codecs, along with LDAC, which allows for high-bitrate audio transmission.
The earbuds also include a Dynamic EQ feature that adjusts sound output at different volume levels to maintain a more consistent listening experience. As the volume increases, the system gradually reduces its EQ adjustments to help keep the sound balanced and minimize distortion.
SennheiserSennheiser
The usual open-ear advantages are still here
Beyond audio, the Accentum Clip retains the characteristics that have helped make open-ear earbuds popular. Because the earbuds sit outside the ear canal, users can continue hearing surrounding sounds while listening to music, podcasts, or taking calls. Obviously, there is no noise cancellation onboard.
Each earbud weighs 6.8 grams and uses a flexible silicone bridge that wraps around the ear. The earbuds carry an IP54 rating for dust and sweat resistance, making them suitable for outdoor activities and workouts.
Sennheiser
Other features include Bluetooth 6.0, multipoint connectivity, Google Fast Pair support, and dual microphones with AI-assisted noise reduction for calls. Battery life is rated at up to nine hours on a single charge and up to 36 hours when used with the charging case. A 10-minute charge can provide up to two hours of playback.
The Accentum Clip will be available in Black and Cream starting July 23 in Canada for CAD $269.95. Sennheiser will first launch the earbuds in Canada, China, and countries in Central and South America. The company says they will later be available in the UK and Europe, but it has not shared plans for other regions, including the U.S.
When Encanto was released, it was something of a cultural phenomenon. You couldn’t escape the song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno,” and the soundtrack went to the top of the charts. If you loved Encanto, there’s another overlooked Lin-Manuel Miranda animated musical on Netflix that’s better in many ways.
Vivo is another Lin-Manuel Miranda musical
He’s also the voice of the lead character
Credit: Sony Pictures Animation
Vivo is a 2021 animated musical comedy from Sony Pictures Animation, the same studio behind smash-hit movies such as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and KPop Demon Hunters. Directed by Kirk DeMicco, who co-wrote it with Quiara Alegría Hudes, it features original songs written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, the musical genius who shot to superstardom on the back of Hamilton.
Miranda also plays the title character of Vivo, a kinkajou (a small, nocturnal mammal) whose days are spent earning money by playing music in the plaza with his aging owner, Andrés. When Andrés dies, Vivo makes it his mission to deliver a song that Andrés wrote to his old friend Marta Sandoval, a famous singer played by Gloria Estefan. The song reveals Andrés’ true feelings for Marta, but he could never bring himself to give it to her.
Vivo is helped on his quest by Gabi, a young misfit and the daughter of Andrés’ niece. The movie follows their journey through the Florida Everglades to reach Miami and deliver the song.
Why Vivo flew under the radar
The big theatrical release never happened
Credit: Sony Pictures Animation
Vivo is an animated musical from a major animation studio, with a cast of big names including Miranda, Gloria Estefan, and Zoe Saldaña. It features music from one of the most in-demand songwriters in the world, who also stars in it. Why isn’t it more well-known?
Perhaps the biggest reason is that Vivo never got its expected theatrical release. After the global pandemic disrupted Sony’s plans for a wide theatrical release, the rights were sold to Netflix. Instead of a major theatrical run, it joined the huge catalog of Netflix, where shows and movies all too often get buried by the churn of new content.
It meant that, unlike Encanto, Vivo never really got the chance to enter the zeitgeist or become a TikTok staple. Its fairly quiet release on a streaming service meant that it never got the attention that it deserved.
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Vivo’s music hits different
Gloria Estefan still has it
When Encanto came out, people raved about the music. The song “We Don’t Talk About Bruno” went viral, with an endless stream of TikTok videos. To my mind, however, the music in Vivo is just so much better.
I never really got the hype about “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.” It’s not bad, but it’s not even the best song in Encanto. While the music in Encanto is good, none of the songs really stand out as being classics. I listen to a lot of Disney movie soundtracks with my kids, and Encanto very rarely makes the playlist, while Moana, which also includes songs written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, gets played far more often.
I’m sorry, Toy Story, but a new winner has entered the chat
What gets played a lot is the Vivo soundtrack because it’s genuinely brilliant. There’s something for everyone, too; there are four of us in the family, and each of us has a different favorite song from the soundtrack. That’s how good it is.
“One of a Kind” is the song that introduces us to Vivo and Andrés, and it’s a great mix of classic Cuban mambo and clave rhythms combined with Lin-Manuel Miranda’s trademark hip-hop flow. “My Own Drum” is an absolute banger sung by Gabi featuring possibly the greatest recorder solo of all time. My personal favorite, “Keep The Beat,” is a gorgeous song about keeping going when things start to change.
The most beautiful song in the movie is “Inside Your Heart,” performed by the legendary Gloria Estefan. This is the song that Andrés wrote for Marta, expressing his feelings for her. It’s a stunning song, and Estefan’s voice still sounds incredible. For me, it lands far harder than anything in Encanto.
What Vivo offers that Encanto doesn’t
There’s more than just the awesome music
Credit: Sony Pictures Animation
While both movies have music written by Lin-Manuel Miranda, only one of them features the songwriter in the main cast. Some of the fast-paced rhymes in Vivo are so distinctive that you can’t imagine anyone else doing them justice, as Dwayne Johnson proved in Moana.
Vivo also has a more dynamic story, with the action involving a race from Cuba to Miami rather than being set entirely within one location like Encanto. It also includes some interesting stylized 2D sequences that mix up the look of the movie. The emotional stakes are also much higher in Vivo, with a story that touches on death, regret, lost love, and finding your place in the world.
That’s not to say it’s a perfect movie. The plot does dip a little in the middle, but the stunning music and bittersweet ending make up for the flaws.
Are you a parent tired of watching awful kids’ shows? Give yourself a break with these Netflix series that will entertain both you and your children.
Check out Vivo if you haven’t already
If you loved Encanto and you haven’t watched Vivo, you should definitely check it out. It’s a movie that really deserves more attention than it gets. I guarantee it will be the best kinkajou-based animated musical you’ll ever see.
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