Review: Fitnexa Somnipods 3 – the earbuds that will give you a quiet night

Whoever said we spend a third of our lives sleeping probably hasn’t spent a night in Israel recently. When silence becomes a rare commodity, the Indian company Fitnexa tries to sell us a dream (literally) with its new sleep earbuds, the Somnipods 3. The earbuds are not sold in Israel, but they fit well into the global wellness trend and mark a significant step in the niche of sleep-focused earbuds.

The first thing that stands out about the Somnipods 3 is their size. They are very small, very light, and designed to allow side sleeping without creating pressure or discomfort in the ear. Inside the package you will find a variety of silicone tips in sizes ranging from XS to XL, in two different styles: One slightly softer and lighter on the ear, and another more rounded and slightly firmer, allowing better isolation from ambient noise. In practice, I did not notice a significant difference between the two types. The box also includes three pairs of “wing” attachments to improve fit and secure the earbuds in place, even when sleeping on your side. After some trial and error, I managed to find the combination that suited me out of the 40 possible combinations.

The Somnipods 3 are currently available only in an off-white color, and the case, which is relatively large, comes in a pleasant finish that also gives a slight sense of calm. The tiny earbuds feel somewhat disproportionate compared to the size of the case, and they sit inside a rather spacious velvet-like plastic shell.

The main selling point of the Somnipods 3, beyond the earbuds themselves, is the Fitnexa app, which functions as an AI-based health coach. The app uses motion sensors and microphones on the earbuds to monitor sleep quality and health habits, and suggests ways to improve overall well-being.

It is important to note that the app is not available for download from the Google Play Store in Israel, and most features are available only to premium users, who pay an annual subscription of $50. The earbuds include a 3-month trial period.

The app combines an earbuds control center, a data map, and a language model that you can directly chat with about the data collected and the recommendations based on it. I would have liked the app to also use data from my health apps, such as heart rate and sleep tracking from a smartwatch, but for now it stands on its own.

The app allows playback of ambient sounds and white noise to help falling asleep, and automatically stops them when the earbuds detect sleep. The automatic detection also turns off noise cancellation at a set time once sleep is detected. This feature worked quite well for me, except once when the music stopped before I had actually fallen asleep, and another time when I woke up abruptly to loud Spotify music, likely due to an accidental double tap (a single tap does nothing, to prevent accidental activation during sleep).

I did not expect exceptional sound quality from sleep-focused earbuds, but here I was surprised. The Somnipods 3 are equipped with 4.6 mm dynamic drivers and support LDAC, aptX Lossless, LC3, AAC, and SBC for high-quality wireless audio. You can choose the preferred codec through the app, which of course affects battery life.

The sound is very dynamic and highly detailed, with clear and non-harsh highs and bass that does not overpower the rest of the frequencies. The emphasis is mainly on the midrange, where guitars, keyboards, and vocals sound strong and clear. In fact, the first time I adjusted the equalizer to my liking, I enjoyed the sound so much that I could not fall asleep.

In the song “Roots” by Alice Merton, for example, you can hear strong bass that does not drown out the vocals, although the string instruments are slightly weaker compared to the drums. In “Be’ashmatech” by Noam Kleinstein, the cymbals are heard with impressive clarity, while the singer’s voice feels very close to the ear, which may even be slightly intense for misophonia sufferers. In “20 Minutes” by Ori Coltov, there is good separation between the different string instruments.

The active noise cancellation of the Somnipods 3 does a pretty good job, mainly at blocking low-frequency and constant sounds such as snoring, engines, and white noise. As sleep earbuds, they manage to block most of the frequencies that can interfere with falling asleep. However, in higher frequencies they are less effective. Sounds such as flushing toilets, whistles, and street sirens can still be heard quite clearly. That said, when playing music or white noise through the app, external sounds become much harder to notice. Alarm sirens, however, are still clearly audible, just in case.

Battery performance is a bit more complex. On paper, the company promises 6 to 12 hours of playback from the earbuds themselves, and up to 48 hours including the case, depending on noise cancellation settings. In practice, the result is not far off, but it depends heavily on usage and selected codecs. Listening in Lossless mode significantly reduces battery life, to the point where switching modes caused the remaining battery estimate to drop from 10 hours to 3.5 hours under the same conditions. In any case, thanks to the smart mode that automatically turns off noise cancellation and playback, a full night’s sleep is not a problem for the Somnipods 3.

The Somnipods 3 are earbuds that do a bit more than they originally set out to do. With a tiny, flat design, impressive sound quality, and an advanced sleep-tracking app, it seems that Fitnexa has thought of (almost) everything. The Somnipods 3 are not yet aimed at the Israeli market, but they set a new standard and join a growing list of earbuds that aim to do more than just play music.