I’ve been attempting to find a pair of open-ear headphones. I’ve tried two bone-conduction headphones from Suunto. They have been beautiful, however the bass left me wanting. I attempted the Shokz unfoldFit Air. The bass was higher, however the match wasn’t nice once I wore my glasses. I’d resigned myself to without end utilizing my Ray-Ban Meta sensible glasses for runs — nice sound however just a little heavy and gross when sweaty — after which Shokz stated it had a brand-spanking-new pair of bone conduction headphones for me to attempt. The $179.95 OpenRun Pro 2.
And after about two weeks of carrying these for each run, stroll, and health club session, I believe I could also be a full-on convert — at the very least, for my exercises.
The factor that finally offered me was the bass. Unlike the unique OpenRun Pro (which at the moment are discounted to $159.95), these don’t depend on bone conduction alone. Bone conduction drivers often sit by your temples and depend on vibration to transmit sound into your cranium. Traditionally, they’re respectable for top and mid tones, however bass typically sounds muddy. With the OpenRun Pro 2, there’s now a devoted, 18mm by 11mm air conduction speaker particularly for bass. The earlier OpenRun Pro had bass enhancers, however this replace is supposed to pack extra of a punch. Another plus: fewer vibrations. One difficulty I’ve had with bone conduction is while you crank up the amount to catch any bass, it typically means the bone conduction drivers will buzz like livid bees.
I used to be skeptical going into testing. I’ve heard many guarantees of nice bass from open-ear buds solely to be sorely disillusioned. But to my shock, it was fairly good! I nonetheless need to crank up the amount a bit, it’s no match for a loud freeway, and it’s nonetheless inferior to in-ear buds. But to be truthful, no open-ear bud will ever be freed from these compromises. I used to be nonetheless capable of groove to the thumpy intro to “Start a Riot” by Duckwrth and Shaboozey with out lacking an excessive amount of. I hearken to audiobooks on my each day walks, and people additionally sounded clearer than I anticipated — supplied the development crew down the block wasn’t making a racket.
But a fair larger shock was match. It’s nice. When I first tried Shokz headphones, again when the corporate was nonetheless FollowingShokz, I hated the wraparound neckband. It felt too massive and too tight across the temples, and the ear hooks have been uncomfortable if I wore glasses. But on this case, the mixture of ultrathin and flexible ear hooks connected to the neckband made these headphones really feel safe. Shokz additionally says it’s tweaked the design so there’s 16 % much less clamping power on the temples — and really, that wasn’t a difficulty for me this time round. I nonetheless don’t love the neckband. It’s a bit annoying when I’ve to tie up my hair and might get in the best way if I’m doing flooring workouts like a useless bug or chest presses, however these are quibbles.
Claimed battery life has additionally improved to 12 hours on the Pro 2. That aligned with my testing. These days, I work out about 9–10 hours per week and go on a number of walks. So far, I’ve needed to cost about as soon as per week. The good factor right here is the Pro 2 now use USB-C as a substitute of a proprietary charger. Huzzah! As a wearables reviewer, I’ve too many proprietary chargers, so it’s at all times an enormous plus to see firms go for a common charging commonplace.
The solely factor I wasn’t offered on was the mic high quality. Shokz claims there’s a brand new AI noise discount algorithm and higher, wind-resistant microphones. However, at any time when I referred to as up mates whereas on walks, they stated I appeared like crap and begged me to change to AirPods. Granted, I hardly ever name folks on walks, and I positively don’t need to speak to anybody whereas exercising, but it surely’s one thing to think about in the event you do like chatting whereas on the go.
For me, utilizing the OpenRun Pro 2 was like the celebrities lastly aligning. I’m not making an enormous compromise on bass, the match is safe and cozy, and I can keep conscious of my environment. I’ll in all probability change again to the Beats Fit Pro for health club classes, however till I discover higher bass on an open-ear headphone? These are those I’ll be reaching for.
Photography by Victoria Song / The Verge
