How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a pair you can actually swim with and that keeps music playing with no phone nearby, choose MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming; if you need a wearable camera and live AI translation on your head, choose Generic E12.
• MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming — biggest strength: IP68 waterproofing plus 32 GB of built-in MP3 storage, so it works underwater with no Bluetooth signal needed.
• MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming — biggest trade-off: no noise control at all, and it's a single-purpose audio device with no camera or AI tricks.
• Generic E12 — biggest strength: an 8 MP camera with EIS stabilization, 1080P/30fps POV recording, 8 GB storage and OpenAI-powered translation built into the earhooks.
• Generic E12 — biggest trade-off: IP65 only (dust, sweat and splashes — not swimming), and it's a heavier, more complicated device.
• Who each is for: pick MARLALL if you swim or want a stripped-down, lightweight bone conduction set; pick Generic E12 if you film your rides and want translation on the move.
This is bone conduction done the classic way. Sound is created by vibrations and travels through your cheekbones to your inner ear, so nothing goes inside your ear canal. That open-ear layout means you keep hearing traffic, footsteps and voices around you — which is exactly what you want when you're biking or running near cars. The silicone enclosure in turquoise and the over-ear, open-ear fit are built around long sessions rather than short bursts.
The real headline here is the swimming angle. Bluetooth signals don't travel underwater, so MARLALL gives you a 32 GB MP3 mode you switch to before you get in the pool — enough room in the spec sheet's own terms for thousands of songs. Add IP68, the highest water-and-dust rating of the two, and you've got a headset that survives being submerged, not just rained on. Bluetooth 5.4 handles the dry stuff: a stable connection with strong interference resistance out to 10 meters (33 feet), plus hands-free calling on iOS and Android.
It's also the lighter of the two at 22.68 g (listed as 29 g in the product copy), and the adjustable straps are there to keep it from slipping. Audio is a bone conduction driver running 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz, and charging is magnetic.
Who should buy it: swimmers, triathletes, pool-lap regulars and anyone who wants a featherweight open-ear set for running and cycling without extra gadgetry. Who should skip it: if you want active noise cancellation, this has none — the whole point is hearing your surroundings. And if you want a camera on your head, this isn't that product.
Generic E12 is a different animal entirely: a bone conduction headset that also happens to be a wearable action camera and a pocket translator. The 8 MP camera with EIS stabilization records 1080P footage at 30fps, with 8 GB of built-in memory to store clips — aimed squarely at cyclists and creators who want POV footage without holding a phone. The AI side leans on OpenAI for bilingual voice translation, real-time interpretation, meeting summaries and on-the-fly object recognition. If you travel or work across languages, that's a genuinely unusual combination.
Audio-wise it uses 16 mm Hi-Fi drivers and dual ENC microphones, so calls should come through clearly, and the open-ear design keeps you aware of your surroundings the same way MARLALL does. Bluetooth 5.4 gives you the same 10-meter range, and it supports dual-device connection so you can hop between a laptop and a phone. The frame is titanium alloy to resist deformation, wrapped in soft silicone, with an ergonomic wraparound fit that's meant to stay put during workouts. Battery is a 220 mAh cell rated for 10 hours of music or calls.
Who should buy it: cyclists, vloggers, travelers and language learners who want recording and translation baked into their headphones. Who should skip it: swimmers — it's rated IP65, which covers dust, sweat and light splashes, not submersion. If your main use is laps in a pool, this is the wrong pick. It's also heavier at 38.4 g, and more features mean more to manage.
• Best for swimming → MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming. IP68 plus 32 GB MP3 mode beats IP65 every time for water.
• Best for POV video → Generic E12. 8 MP camera, EIS stabilization, 1080P at 30fps, 8 GB storage.
• Best for travel and language barriers → Generic E12. OpenAI-powered translation, interpretation and object recognition.
• Best for long, light wear → MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming. 22.68 g versus 38.4 g is a real difference over hours.
• Best for calls → Generic E12. Dual ENC microphones are purpose-built for voice pickup; MARLALL lists no noise control.
• Best for pairing flexibility → Generic E12. Dual-device connection lets you switch between laptop and phone.
• Best for simple, focused listening → MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming. Bluetooth 5.4, magnetic charging, 20 Hz–20,000 Hz, nothing extra to learn.
• Best for durability against deformation → Generic E12. The titanium alloy frame is the more rigid structure of the two.
In my opinion, most people reading a comparison built around bone conduction earphones should buy MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming. It does the one thing the other can't — real underwater use with IP68 and on-board music — and it does it at roughly half the weight. Generic E12 is the more interesting device, and I'd recommend it without hesitation to a cyclist or frequent traveler who wants a camera and translation on their head. But if I'm picking one for the widest range of buyers, the simpler, lighter, genuinely swim-proof pair wins.
how to bone conduction earphones work
A bone conduction driver turns audio into vibrations instead of pushing sound through the air into your ear canal. Those vibrations travel through your cheekbones to your inner ear, which is why both of these headsets sit outside your ears rather than inside them. MARLALL's driver covers 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz; Generic E12 uses 16 mm Hi-Fi drivers.
how to wear bone conduction earphones
You hook them over your ears and rest the transducers against your cheekbones, just in front of your ears — not over the ear canal. MARLALL adds adjustable straps to keep the fit from slipping; Generic E12 uses an ergonomic wraparound design with a titanium alloy frame for a bounce-free fit. Both are over-ear, open-ear designs.
how to use bone conduction earphones
Pair over Bluetooth 5.4 — both support it, with a 10-meter range — then play audio as normal. For swimming, MARLALL must be switched to its 32 GB MP3 mode, because Bluetooth can't transmit underwater. Generic E12 works over Bluetooth and connects to two devices at once, and its camera and AI features run through its companion app.
how are bone conduction earphones different from regular earbuds
They leave your ear canal completely open, so ambient sound stays audible — useful for running, cycling and commuting. Neither of these has active noise cancellation, which is deliberate rather than a shortcoming. The trade-off is that you give up the isolation and bass seal of in-ear buds in exchange for awareness and, on MARLALL, IP68 water protection.
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See also: Aiwa Bone Conducting vs MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming, MARLALL Liquid Silicone Swimming vs PSIER Bone Conduction Headphones, RELAXYO Bone Conduction Swimming vs Generic Headphones