The Creative Outlier Free Pro is a bone-conduction headphone designed for those who want to be in tune with the world around them while listening to their favorite podcasts or Spotify playlists

Unlike the Outlier Free, the Pro offers built-in storage for loading audio files and a design that means if you need some extra motivation while swimming, you can take them into the pool with you

Outlier Free promises up to 10 hours of battery life, Bluetooth 53 for a stable connection to audio playback devices, and multipoint sharing, a pair that you don't have to use to stay in shape

The Creative Outlier Free Pro launched for $129, but has since dropped to $99, which is quite close to the price of the Outlier Free ($7999) It has also become a cheaper alternative to waterproof bone-conduction headphones like the Shokz OpenSwim and Naenka Runner Diver

They are available directly from the Creative store, as well as on Amazon for $99 and Walmart

The Outlier Free Pro has an attractive midnight blue neckband-style frame and is made of silicone and titanium; at 111 ounces, it is just a bit heavier than the Outlier Free, but it is a light-wearing headphone with no uncomfortable pressure for long periods of use

There are three physical buttons on the right side of the headphones, all easily accessible, but they are very closely placed, so you may occasionally reach for the wrong button

Just above these buttons is a notification light that lets you know that the headphones have been successfully paired, and when flashing red, it indicates that the battery is low The multi-mode button can also be used to switch between Bluetooth mode and music player mode, and to activate the multipoint sharing mode

Inside the side of the headphones is a charging point, where a proprietary charging cable is used This USB-A magnetic charging cable is also used to transfer music to the headphones

Creative also includes silicone ear plugs that can be used while swimming to enhance sound insulation

For swimming, the headphones have an IPX8 waterproof rating, meaning they are safe to submerge in up to 15 meters of water for 40 minutes, but are not suitable for use in saltwater and should be used in a pool

In bone-conduction headphone terms, the Creative Outlier Free Pro is a headphone that tries to push a rounded and versatile sound, but it doesn't quite achieve it If you're expecting the best bone-conduction sound, you won't get it with these headphones, but the sound is good enough for many listening situations

Whether you use them in Bluetooth streaming mode or go to the trouble of connecting them to your computer and dragging and dropping MP3, FLAC, WAV, and APE files into the 8GB of onboard memory, the sound profile feels almost identical The clarity and livelier high-frequency performance that I get from more expensive bone-conduction headphones is not matched, and the overall sound is muddy when I try to produce a louder bass range

On the more bass-heavy drum & bass and dance podcasts I synced up for swimming, the sound is not as clear or balanced as the Shokz OpenSwim or Naenka Runner Diver The power is there, but there is definitely a slight hollowness and muddiness to the overall sound output Earplugs do not dramatically improve this However, if I wanted the best swimming headphones, I would choose the Shokz OpenSwim

Back on land, using the Spotify playlist "Songs To Test Headphones" (or Tom's Guide playlist "Headphone Demo"), I want these headphones to sound better than they are capable of, but they don't quite achieve that I have a real sense that this is not the case

On Goldfrapp's "Strict Machine," the bass is muddy, the mids are a bit boxy, and the treble is a bit grainy Listening at high volume, a noticeable, though not unpleasant, vibration is transmitted here as well Listening to Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain," one is surprised by the detail in the midrange

Calling and working with Siri and Google Assistant are similar With only one microphone, the call quality is not very clear, and there is some sound leakage, as occurs with most bone-conduction headphones I took calls at my desk indoors and battled more noise outdoors, but the performance is certainly more comfortable indoors

As for connectivity, the Creative uses Bluetooth 53, and when paired and used with an iPhone 14, Google Pixel 6a, MacBook Air, or Garmin Epix Pro sports watch, there were no connectivity issues and There were no interruptions

Creative offers a seamless multipoint mode that allows you to connect to two devices simultaneously, a process that requires connecting to the first device, then disconnecting and connecting to the other device It also offers access to a low-latency mode by pressing the multifunction button four times, which is designed to provide smoother audio and video playback, although there is not a significant difference between this low-latency mode and the standard listening mode

Creative speaks good numbers in terms of the kind of battery life you can expect here Up to 10 hours, which puts it in line with other top-end bone-conduction headphones like Shokz, Haylou, and Naenka

This battery life is a promise for listening at moderate volume, so if you listen at max volume, it will be much shorter; after 1-2 hours a day in Bluetooth streaming mode for a week, I was 2-3 hours short of 10 hours When used with music player streaming, it was similarly short, especially when listening at high volume, just half of the 10 hours

A full charge takes two hours, but there is a convenient fast-charge mode that allows for two hours of playback on a 10-minute charge However, to use the full two hours, one must listen at a moderate volume

The Creative Outlier Free Pro headphones are an affordable route to bone-conduction design They are comfortable to wear for long periods of time and can be used for multiple purposes, such as Bluetooth streaming on dry land or storage playback while swimming in a pool However, sacrifices have been made when it comes to sound quality, and if you want best-in-class sound with the same level of versatility, you'll have to shell out a bit more