The Shokz OpenFit Air would’ve been perfect if not for my glasses

Two years ago, I thought my quest for the champion moving earbuds was over. The Beats Fit Pro were simply cleanable successful each way. Then I moved to the suburbs. The Beats’ ambient mode was nary lucifer for North Jersey drivers’ blatant disregard for velocity limits. Open-ear headphones seemed similar the evident answer. But which ones? For a fewer weeks, I dabbled with immoderate bone conduction headphones, but I missed my bass drops excessively much. That, successful turn, led maine to effort the $119.95 Shokz OpenFit Air.

While Shokz is champion known for its bony conduction tech, the OpenFit Air uses accepted aerial conduction similar immoderate different wireless buds. The talker sits supra your receptor canal, portion receptor hooks clasp them securely successful place. I usually don’t similar receptor hooks — comfortableness tends to beryllium deed oregon miss. But I’ll springiness thing a spell if it means I get to person situational consciousness without giving up my bass.

The bully news: the bass is better. The atrocious quality is, it’s not by much. Truthfully, nary open-ear headphones are great astatine bass, but these are astatine slightest little muddy than bony conduction. If I’m moving adjacent to a engaged street, I really tin perceive the rumbly “five-star Michelin” verse successful “God’s Menu” by Stray Kids. It’s not crystal wide — but I tin perceive it alternatively of sighing and wishing I had my Beats Fit Pro. (All bets are disconnected if you’re adjacent a highway, though.)

Aside from bass, the talker presumption means you tin perceive your contented beauteous well, but open-ear buds ever person limitations. I wore these connected respective commutes to the office. A quiescent NJ Transit autobus oregon train? No problem. A noisy New York City subway drowned retired my audiobooks to the constituent wherever I gave up listening to thing astatine all. I ne'er got immoderate complaints astir dependable leakage, but I ideate that’s due to the fact that the NYC subway is excessively large for anyone to perceive anything.

As workout buds, these are a large option. They person astir six hours connected a azygous charge, and a 10-minute complaint gets you 2 hours of use, which isn’t excessively shabby unless you’re an ultramarathoner. With IP55, you tin enactment up a bully sweat oregon grip a spot of rain, though I’d beryllium wary of a full-on downpour. They’re comfy and beauteous unafraid — that is, until you enactment immoderate glasses on.

While the hooks are pliable and comparatively thin, they took up a batch of abstraction down my ears. On days erstwhile I didn’t deterioration contacts, the apical of my ears felt crowded and weighed down. That dense sensation made maine paranoid that the Air would autumn off, and I’d spell to readjust them. Often, that ended up with maine accidentally triggering the interaction controls. Even erstwhile I didn’t deterioration glasses, I unintentionally dislodged the Air whenever I brushed my bangs down my ears. I don’t emotion that, arsenic idiosyncratic who’s been traumatized 1 excessively galore times by chasing aft a bud that fell retired of my receptor mid-run. To beryllium fair, you whitethorn not person these issues. Some of this is apt down to the signifier of my ears and the information my glasses person chunkier arms. But if you truly privation a unafraid fit, a wraparound plan is simply a amended choice.

To my surprise, I ended up preferring the Air for mundane wear. Maybe it’s conscionable me, but bony conduction headphones shriek fittingness successful a mode that feels a small weird erstwhile I’m moving errands. These punctual maine much of the sleeker, much discreet Bose Ultra Open Earbuds. My favourite mode to deterioration these was erstwhile I was cooking oregon cleaning. I could easy perceive to my audiobooks oregon podcasts, support an receptor retired for beeping appliances, and support the naughty feline from trying to devour my meal consecutive from the pan.

If I had amended vision, these might’ve ended my quest for a Beats Fit Pro alternative. They’re beauteous affordable astatine $120, bass is decent for a brace of open-ear buds, and they’re comfy. I privation thing conscionable a smidge much unafraid for days erstwhile I don’t consciousness similar popping lenses in. Alas, the hunt continues.