iClever BTH12 Review

$36.99, iClever BTH12 Bluetooth Children’s headphones Deliver balanced audio with punchy lows, sport stylish LED panels and are available in a variety of colors. They also have great battery life and several volume-limiting modes. We wish they didn’t include a potentially harmful 94dB listening mode and that their controls were easier to use, but the headphones still do enough to justify their price. The Earfan K2 Kids The headphones remain our Editors’ Choice award winners, as they offer a sleek design and comparable audio quality for just $24.99.

Design: Lots of color options, but poor controls

The BTH12 headphones are available in black, blue, green, pink and various shades of purple and yellow. Even if the building materials are a bit cheaper, at least one color should be attractive to your child. The headphones’ circumaural (over-ear) earcups, which are suitable for children aged three and up, sport a horizontal strip of LEDs that light up when the headphones are on.

The earpads and the bottom of the headband feature generous cushioning with memory foam and a faux leather cover. Internally, 40mm dynamic drivers in each earcup provide a frequency range of 20Hz to 20kHz.

The BTH12 phone supports Bluetooth 5.2 and AAC and SBC codecs. Google Fast Pair or multipoint pairing are not available, though I wouldn’t expect those features at this price

The right earcup houses a power/pairing switch, along with a narrow bank of controls for volume, playback, and LEDs. The volume buttons also handle track navigation—I’m never a fan of combining these functions because it makes misfires all too common. A further problem is that the buttons feel plasticky and small, even for kids. I like the controls of competitors like the $34.99 Skullcandy Grom Wireless; Their full outer earcup panels function as push-button controls.

A USB-C port for the included USB-A-to-USB-C charging cable sits between the power switch and dedicated controls, along with a 3.5mm input for the included audio cable. The latter enables passive, wired listening. (The headphones automatically turn off when you plug this cable in.)

I’ve yet to test any children’s headphones that make it really difficult to switch between their volume-limiting modes; Almost all of them use hidden buttons or require some combination of presses that are trivial for a curious child to discover. In the case of the iClever, you switch between 74dB (toddler), 85dB (study) and 94dB (travel) modes by pressing the plus and minus buttons simultaneously. A voice prompt tells you the current mode.

I came up with the easy-to-change mode because the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) states that listening to 94dB for more than an hour at a time can damage a child’s hearing. These headphones provide no visual indicator of current mode, making it difficult for parents to ensure a safe listening experience.

iClever estimates that the BTH12 headphones can last 55 hours per charge in 85dB listening mode with the LED on, or 85 hours off. The company adds that a full recharge takes 2.5 hours and 10 minutes of charging will give you four hours of playback. For comparison, the EarFun K2 Kids headphones can last up to 40 hours.

Like most kids’ headphones, the BTH12 doesn’t connect to a companion app. This means you can’t tweak the sound with the EQ or customize the controls.

LEDs: Several basic effects

The LEDs look quieter overall, fading across the rainbow of colors on their own rather than syncing with the beat of the music playing. Pressing the LED button on the side panel lets you cycle through different color modes, including a strobe and another that slowly changes between solid colors. Parents will love that they can turn the lights off completely if they get distracted.

Sound Quality: Balanced, with decent sub-bass

I use the same set of tracks for all headphone evaluations (including those for teenagers) so that I can accurately assess the capabilities of their drivers. Your child probably doesn’t listen to any of these test songs, but the analysis holds for music or movie soundtracks they enjoy. I’m sticking with the 85dB (study) mode for reference, since I expect most kids will use it often.

On tracks with intense sub-bass content, like The Knife’s “Silent Shout,” the iClever headphones deliver full-bodied low-frequency response. At maximum volume (for 85dB mode), the drivers do not distort. At more moderate settings, the lows sound strong without overwhelming the rest of the mix.

Drivers have no problem reproducing the sub-bass at the 34-second mark of the Kendrick Lamar track. Different vocals have a crisp presence and don’t compete with deep (slightly extended) lows for space.

The drums on Bill Callahan’s “Drover” sound natural with a pleasant high, a track with much less deep bass. Callahan’s baritone vocals are both rich in the low-mids and crisp in the high-mids, though the acoustic strum and high-register percussive hits could use a bit more brightness.

On orchestral tracks, like the opening scene of John Adams Another is the Gospel according to MaryI hear a nice balance between slightly emphasized lower-register instruments and higher-register brass, strings and vocals.

The voice mic array works decently and is sufficient for basic communication and voice assistant commands. I could understand every sound from a test recording on my iPhone for strong mic levels, though it sounded a bit less crisp than adults are used to hearing from headphones. (Their mic array accentuates vocal frequencies.)

Verdict: Quality sound and runtime, with few flaws

The iClever BTH12 headphones offer a natural sound signature with plenty of bass depth, exceptional battery life and moderately cool LED lighting effects at a reasonable price. We also like the variety of color options, though the build quality and on-ear controls could use improvement. Finally, we highly recommend the Editors’ Choice-winning EarFun K2 Kids headphones because they offer similar audio and a more sophisticated look for $12 less. Meanwhile, the Skullcandy Grom wireless headphones have better control, beefier bass response and a heightened sense of style. However, neither can match the iClever BTH12’s battery life.