How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-09-26 · 6 min read · Independent comparison
• HJX 3rd — biggest strength: an open-ear clip-on shape at just 5 g per bud, so nothing plugs your ear canal and you keep hearing traffic, gym announcements or a colleague walking up behind you.
• HJX 3rd — biggest trade-off: because it sits outside the ear, it won't seal off the world the way an in-ear bud does. You buy it for awareness, not for isolation.
• MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro — biggest strength: real active noise cancellation plus a 13 mm dynamic driver in a sealed in-ear fit, which is the combination that gives you bass and quiet.
• MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro — biggest trade-off: in-ear means in-ear. It blocks sound by design, and the fit depends on you picking the right ear tip from the S/M/L set in the box.
• Pick HJX 3rd if you wear glasses, run outdoors, or want earbuds you can forget about during a 10-hour workday.
• Pick MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro if you commute on noisy trains, fly, or simply want your music to hit harder.
The HJX 3rd is built around one idea: get sound into your ears without blocking them. Each bud weighs 5 g and uses a flexible C-shaped clip that hooks over the ear rather than pushing into the canal. That's the whole reason this thing exists. If you wear glasses, the clip and the temple arm have to coexist — and the design is explicitly aimed at that, along with earrings and small ears. No pinching, no pressure point building up behind hour three.
The spec sheet backs up the "wear it all day" pitch. You get 5 hours per charge and up to 50 hours total with the case, and the case itself charges in about 1.5 hours. Bluetooth 6.0 handles the connection, and the range is listed at 40 meters — generous, and it means you can leave your phone on a bench and keep moving around a gym floor. The 14 mm dynamic driver handles the audio, tuned for clear vocals and balanced treble rather than a bass-heavy thump.
Who should skip it? Anyone who wants to disappear into their music on a plane. Open-ear buds leak the outside world in, and that's the entire point of the design — but it's the wrong tool for noise. If you want thumping bass and silence, keep reading.
MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro: Who It's For
The MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro takes the opposite route. These are conventional in-ear buds, and the headline feature is Active Noise Cancellation. The system reduces ambient noise and switches between Noise Cancellation Mode and Transparency Mode depending on what's going on around you — so you can shut the world out on a commute and then let it back in when you order coffee. That flexibility is genuinely useful, and it's something an open-ear design simply can't offer.
Calls get a 4-mic ENC setup, which isolates your voice and pushes background noise down. On paper that's a step up in microphone count compared to the HJX, and it's aimed squarely at people who take calls in loud places.
For sound, you're looking at a 13 mm dynamic driver paired with an AI audio enhancer that reshapes the tuning. In-ear seals plus a large driver is the classic recipe for bass and a wide-feeling stereo image, and the spec sheet leans into that with "3D stereo" language. Latency is listed at 60 milliseconds, which is low enough that watching video or gaming won't feel obviously out of sync.
Battery: 6 hours on a single charge, up to 45 hours with the case, and the case charges fully in about an hour via Type-C. That's a shorter single-charge window than the HJX, though both land in the same ballpark overall. Bluetooth 5.3 gives you a 50-foot range, and the buds auto-reconnect when you open the case.
Water resistance is IPX5 — it handles sweat, dust and light water, which covers workouts and rain, but it's a step below the HJX's IPX7. Touch controls cover play/pause, volume, calls and your voice assistant, and the box includes ear tips in S/M/L plus a hanging rope. Who should skip it? Anyone who hates the plugged-up feeling of in-ear buds, or who needs to stay aware of traffic and surroundings while running.
• Best for staying aware of your surroundings → HJX 3rd. Open-ear means traffic, cyclists and gym noise stay audible.
• Best for blocking out noise → MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro. Active Noise Cancellation is the deciding feature here, and the HJX has none.
• Best for heavy sweat and rain → HJX 3rd. IPX7 beats IPX5 on paper for water exposure.
• Best for bass-forward music and movies → MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro. A sealed in-ear fit plus a 13 mm driver is the better foundation.
• Best for glasses wearers and small ears → HJX 3rd. The C-clip is designed around glasses, earrings and pressure-free wear.
• Best for long single sessions → MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro at 6 hours per charge versus 5 hours, though both total roughly the same with their cases.
• Best for quick top-ups → MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro. Its case charges in about 1 hour versus roughly 1.5 hours.
• Best for the latest Bluetooth spec and range → HJX 3rd. Bluetooth 6.0 with a 40-meter range versus Bluetooth 5.3 at 50 feet.
In my opinion, the HJX 3rd is the more interesting product of the two, and it's the one I'd buy. The 5 g open-ear clip, IPX7 rating and 50-hour total playtime solve a specific, real problem: earbuds you can wear all day without your ears complaining, while still hearing the world. If your priority is silence and bass, though, I'd point you to the MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro — its active noise cancellation and sealed 13 mm driver are built for exactly that, and no open-ear design can match it. Decide which of those two problems you actually have, check the current price on Amazon, and buy accordingly.
The MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro. It has Active Noise Cancellation with a switching Transparency Mode. The HJX 3rd has no ANC — it uses an open-ear design and sound isolation, so it lets outside noise in on purpose.
It's rated IPX7, which is the stronger water-resistance rating of the two and covers sweat, rain and splashes. The MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro is rated IPX5, which handles sweat and light water but sits a step lower.
They ship with ear tips in S/M/L, so you can size them to your ear. The HJX 3rd takes the opposite approach with a flexible C-clip that doesn't enter the ear canal at all, which the spec sheet positions as better for small ears, glasses and earrings.
The HJX 3rd gives 5 hours per charge and up to 50 hours with the case. The MOLDPOLD Earbuds Pro gives 6 hours per charge and up to 45 hours with the case, and its case charges in about an hour versus roughly 1.5 hours for the HJX.
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
When you buy through links on this page, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon or its affiliates. This site is an independent third-party review and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Amazon or the product brands mentioned.
See also: Wensdo Kids Headphones 2 vs XOSDA Classroom Headphones 2, myFirst CareBuds Kids Earbuds vs Micool Ear, SGPRO SG-40B vs MELONARE in-Ear Monitor System, Donner EM1 vs Sony IER-M500