It seems like in today’s true wireless earbuds market, more companies are offering something unique to stand out. Trek, more commonly known for making thumbdrives, has launched their own true wireless earbuds called Trek Re-YTHM that has both ANC and transparency mode. And it just retails for S$59.90.
Unboxing
Here’s what you’ll find in the box:
- Trek Re-YTHM True Wireless Earbuds
- Charging case
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- User manual
- Ear tips x4 (XS, S, M, L)
Build quality and features
Trek Re-YTHM is built mainly from plastic with a design that reminds me of the Jabra Elite 65t due to the little stem popping out. Both the earbuds and charging case feature a smooth but matte plastic that is nice to the touch. The earbuds are also IPX5 resistant so it can definitely take some hit in the rain.
Trek Re-YTHM offers two unique features which are – (1) Drop Alert, and (2) Proximity Alert. Drop Alert will notify you via sound alert together with the dropped earbud showing a flashing LED. Proximity Alert will notify you via sound alert on your earbuds if it is too far away from your phone.
Initially, I thought that the earbud would continuously flash its LED so that it makes it easy to spot it while finding. However, the dropped earbud seem to only flash its LED once. When the earbud is dropped, you will also get a notification on your phone. I found the Drop Alert to be a bit inconsistent at times as I get alerts even when I’m wearing them. There seems to be no way in the app to disable this feature too.
When it comes to Proximity Alert, this feature works more consistently. You hear an alert on the earbuds before you reach a distance where the Bluetooth connections drops. You will also get a notification on you phone but I’m guessing you wouldn’t really see it since the phone is away from you to begin with.
While the two unique features on the Trek Re-YTHM generally work, I don’t see much extra benefit from them. For Proximity Alert, you will likely hear your audio being choppy thereby giving you a signal that you are too far from your phone. For Drop Alert, I think this has potential if the LED can flash for a longer duration.
Trek Re-YTHM app
Trek Re-YTHM has a companion app to provide a little more features. The app is also called Trek Re-YTHM. The app has a rather skeletal design and user interface. In the app, you can check the battery of your earbuds, switch between ANC/Transparency modes, and tweak the EQ.
Sound quality
Trek Re-YTHM has a warm and bass focused sound, but what strikes me most is that the lack of clarity in the overall audio. It is as though the audio being blocked by some filter, unlike cases where bass drowns out other frequencies.
Bass continues to offer deep thumps and surrounding reverb to the audio, but the overall sound with mids and highs coming in still feels a little too recessed and subdued for my liking. Though there is EQ options on the app, there isn’t a preset that is customisable to bring out to clean out the sound.
ANC and Transparency mode
ANC performs to that standard of what I expected of ANC at this price range – it is effective at reducing constant ambient noise such as engine rumble, but can only slightly reduce the volume of high frequencies noises. Transparency mode on the other hand, lets external surroundings sounds into the earbuds, so you are aware of what is going on. Trek Re-YTHM‘s transparency mode is decent. Voices still feel slightly distant and seems to have a focus on wind noises.
Fit and comfort
With the plastic build, the Trek Re-YTHM is really lightweight at just 6g each. However, the size of the Trek Re-YTHM is slightly on the thick side, so if you have small ears then the earbuds may stick out of your ears. As the top portion of the earbuds (where the charging pins are) is not as aggressively contoured as other similar designed earbuds, Trek Re-YTHM does not sit as snugly as I would like it to.
Most of the fit will then be done by the ear tips to hold the earbuds in place. Thankfully, Trek includes a total of 4 ear tips so finding one size that fits shouldn’t be too hard. For me, I needed the largest size ear tip.
Battery life
Trek Re-YTHM can last up to 8 hours of playtime on a single charge and has another 20 hours in the charging case. the number of hours is likely to be lower if you’re always listening with ANC turned on. Trek Re-YTHM can be charged wirelessly or via USB-C.
Microphone quality
Microphone on the Trek Re-YTHM is decent. Voice pickup is clear and accurate, but with slight echoey reverb being heard. In noisy environments, the microphone starts to struggle in cancelling out the noise so my voice ends up being mixed between it.
Conclusion
At S$59.90, the Trek Re-YTHM is probably one of the more affordable pair of true wireless earbuds that comes with ANC and transparency mode that work decently for its price point, and a long battery life. Though its audio quality isn’t the best, the two unique features of Drop Alert and Proximity Alert might be a unique selling point for others.