TechRadar Verdict
There are some things Urbanista could have done better, but there are also several things it’s done right. The Urbanista Lisbon earbuds win in fit, mic, battery life, and portability. Plus, they look good enough to eat.
Long battery life
Impressive mic and call quality
Snug fit
Small and comes in adorable colors
Volume issues, wonky controls
No bass
No waterproofing or ANC
Recessed mid-range
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Urbanista Lisbon: One-minute review
The Urbanista Lisbon offer active users another affordable option to see to their listening needs during workouts (or when they’re navigating a busy subway station during rush hour). At under $50 / £50, thesetrue wireless earbudsare certainly an appealing choice, especially in this time of rising inflation.
They’re also a somewhat unique one. While many popularwireless earbudsare competing for the best audio Grammy or the best ANC Oscar, theserunning headphoneshone other (dare we say, equally important) aspects ofworkout headphones– namely, battery life, fit, and call quality. Yes, call quality – anybody who’s ever attended a Zoom meeting while on a treadmill or on a hike will agree. They then wrap all those up in a great-for-small-ears package that comes in vibrant colors, because it’s 2022, people: modern minimalist and neutral colors are out, and big bold colors are in.
They might not take home the best in sound award – or have ANC and waterproofing, for that matter. But, the Urbanista Lisbon, in other aspects, still win.
Urbanista Lisbon: Price and availability
Connectivity:Bluetooth 5.2Battery life:9 hours (27 hours with case)Noise-cancellation?NoWater-resistance?NoWeight (earbuds):4g each
Good,cheap headphonesaren’t impossible to find, but in a sea of sub-par brands onAmazon, they’re certainly rarer. Luckily, the Urbanista Lisbon make them less so with a $49 (£49, AU$89) price tag.
To be fair, there are also excellent options that are cheaper – although those are rarer still. TheJlab Go Air Sportwill set you back even less at $30 (£29, AU$69), and it boasts a better sound and some waterproofing, albeit in a bigger package and with a slightly muffled mic. There’s also the cheaper-stillJlab Go Air Pop, a non-workout option that costs only $20 (£20, AU$49) and punches well above its weight.
The Urbanista Lisbon come in different colors, three of which are bright and a nice break from all the neutral options out there: mint green, blush pink, and coral peach. And, they’re now readily available in the US, Australia, and the UK.
Urbanista Lisbon: Design
Small and lightweight, each Urbanista Lisbon earbud is under an inch in size, which does make putting them on a bit tricky at first. You quickly get used to it, however, especially if you have the removable silicone wings attached as the wings can serve as handles.
The best part about these earbuds being tiny is that they fit users with smaller ears better. This reviewer has always had an issue with earbuds being just a little too big, but that hasn’t been an issue here. In fact, these earbuds fit our ears perfectly, with the wings sitting comfortably inside the concha part of our ears to keep them in place without putting undue pressure on the cartilage.
The Urbanista Lisbon, therefore, fit snugly and are comfortable to wear for long periods. That’s one of the things that make them great for working out.
If only Urbanista bothered to hone their touch controls. While having them is a nice, well, touch, they’re neither the most responsive nor the most intuitive.
For example, although we appreciate the fact these earbuds come with volume control (and, having launched in September 2021, they certainly got there way beforeApple), adjusting the volume up or down takes a bit of patience. You have to tap once on the right earbud to turn the volume up a level and tap once on the left earbud to turn it down a notch. Unfortunately, to play or pause, you have to tap on either earbud twice, which means that if you’re adjusting the volume too fast, you’ll likely end up pausing instead.
In addition, there’s no option to go back to the previous track, so if you want to play a song all over again, you would have to use your smartwatch or phone.
There’s no sound isolation, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Folks who work out at the gym might prefer having ANC or even passive noise cancelation, but if you prefer to run outdoors, go on hikes, or cycle, not having sound isolation is certainly safer as you’ll hear what’s happening around you.
The one feature active users will miss is waterproofing. Unfortunately, the Urbanista Lisbon don’t come with even the lowest IP rating so definitely do not run in the rain with them on. It is worth mentioning, however, that we’ve worked out with and profusely sweat on these while training outdoors on excruciatingly hot Southern California mid-summer days, and they haven’t crapped out on us yet.
Urbanista Lisbon: Performance
In terms of performance, there are two big things we demand from our workout headphones, and those are great sound and great phone call clarity. Some headphones and earbuds focus on the former and not so much the other. In fact, even the likes of theAirPods Proand theBeats Fit Proaren’t that impressive when it comes to call quality.
For some reason, the Urbanista Lisbon did the opposite. During our tests, we found that we came out loud and clear during phone calls, and not in the least bit muffled unlike pricier earbuds. In fact, the people on the other end of our calls couldn’t really tell much difference between these and the iPhone in terms of voice clarity and quality.
Unfortunately, in terms of sound quality, there’s a lot of room for improvement. Our biggest gripe is the volume. You’ll find that there’s a big drop in volume when it’s set below 75% – enough that you’ll actually struggle to hear some older songs like Bowie’sLife on Marsand Queen’sUnder Pressure. At 25%, you can hardly hear anything. The volume at 75% is certainly the sweet spot here. Above 75%, there’s also a big jump in volume and some fatiguing distortion.
The audio itself isn’t too shabby. There’s some decent sound imaging, the high end is pretty good, and the upper mids are well represented so higher-pitched voices come out clear and strong. However, the low end is pulled back so there’s not a lot of bass response. Urbanista makes up for that by pushing the upper edge of the bass forward. The mid-range is also recessed so it’s quieter. Finally, the overall audio sounds a little crowded so you might miss out on some instruments and deeper immersion.
Taylor Swift’sAugustsounds as it should on the Urbanista Lisbon, if maybe just slightly thinner.Exilesounds fine as well. Meanwhile, both Guns N’ Roses’Sweet Child O’ Mineand Kate Bush’sRunning Up That Hillhave enough clarity and good bass presence. However,Hounds of Lovesounds thinner than usual andBegin Againfrom the Sayonara Wild Hearts soundtrack is missing a lot of bass.
The good news, though, is that if you’re not as discerning about sound quality, the Urbanista Lisbon should be more than enough to see to your audio listening needs.
While much pricier workout earbuds are struggling to even reach that five-hour battery life mark, the Urbanista Lisbon delivers up to nine hours of playtime per full charge – beating Jlab Go Air Sport’s impressive 8+ hours longevity. The charging case only offers a total of 27 hours, but that’s still higher than the Beats Fit Pro’s 24-hour rating.
Should I buy the Urbanista Lisbon?
Buy it if…
You have small earsThe Urbanista Lisbon are small and lightweight, making them perfect and comfortable for users with smaller ears. That’s even with their removable wingtips on.
You’re constantly on a callThe mic quality and voice clarity on these are surprisingly impressive – so impressive people might not be able to tell the difference between them and your smartphone.
You need a long battery lifeEach earbud has up to nine hours of battery life per full charge, which is much longer than some of the pricier models out there.
Don’t buy it if…
You want great sound with a lot of bassThere’s not a lot of bass response here and the mid-range is recessed so it’s quieter and doesn’t have a lot of oomph.
You sweat a lotWe’ve used these for months now, wearing them during grueling workouts, and they haven’t failed us yet. Still, you should know that they don’t come with an IP rating for waterproofing.
Also consider
Jlab Go Air SportThe Jlab Go Air Sport punch above their $30/£29 weight and give rivals three or four times the price a hard run for their money. These workout headphones are definitely making some of the greats sweat.
Read our fullJlab Go Air Sport review
Beats Fit ProOne of the best Beats headphones, it boasts great, lively audio, good ANC, and a terrific, secure fit. It’s a little more expensive if you prefer a pricier pair for your workouts.
Read the fullBeats Fit Pro review
Shokz OpenRun ProIf you prefer something you can run AND swim with, a pair of bone conduction headphones might serve you better. And, you don’t need to make compromises on audio quality.
Read the fullShokz OpenRun Pro review
Urbanista Lisbon: Report card
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Michelle Rae Uy is the former Computing Reviews and Buying Guides Editor at TechRadar. She’s a Los Angeles-based tech, travel and lifestyle writer covering a wide range of topics, from computing to the latest in green commutes to the best hiking trails. She’s an ambivert who enjoys communing with nature and traveling for months at a time just as much as watching movies and playing sim games at home. That also means that she has a lot more avenues to explore in terms of understanding how tech can improve the different aspects of our lives.
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