The $179.99 Shokz OpenRun Professional 2 bone conduction headphones take a brand new strategy to enhancing audio high quality whereas nonetheless offering the open listening expertise that athletes want when exercising open air. They mix conventional bone conduction tech with a standard speaker that directs sound to your ears as a way to enhance the audio response. The result’s a pair of exercise headphones that sound nice and are protected to make use of when situational consciousness is essential. They do not work for swimming like another Shokz fashions do, however different athletes will respect the numerous enchancment in sound, stable battery life, and comfy match, all of which make them our Editors’ Alternative winner (to not point out a Readers’ Alternative) for bone conduction headphones. Design: Snug Match, Premium FinishThe Open Run Professional 2s look very like different Shokz bone conduction headphones. They’ve an ear hook design with a pod that rests in opposition to your temple on both sides. Not like different bone conduction fashions, nonetheless, in addition they have a speaker on every finish, constructed to ship low-end frequencies alongside the bone conduction drivers. Collectively, they make up what Shokz calls its DualPitch expertise.
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(Credit score: Christian de Looper)
The OpenRun Professional 2 headphones hook over your ears and join across the again of your head like wi-fi headphones from 10 years in the past. On the left facet, there’s a multifunction button subsequent to the principle speaker unit, whereas on the appropriate, there are energy and quantity controls and a rubber hatch that hides the USB-C port on the module that rests behind your ear.Collectively, these buttons make for a stable set of controls. The devoted quantity and energy buttons solely serve one function, however the multifunction button performs varied duties. Click on it as soon as to play or pause your audio, to reply an incoming name, or to hold up on an current name. Double-click it to skip to the subsequent monitor, or triple-click it to skip to the earlier one. These controls aren’t customizable, however they’re intuitive and complete.
The headphones can be found in two sizes, weigh 1.02 ounces, and provide a snug match. They’re not tremendous cosy, and it’s simple to maneuver them if you wish to, however due to their weight distribution and ear hooks, they continue to be firmly in place whereas operating. I discovered them to really feel extra premium than competing fashions.They’re accessible in black, orange, white, or a two-tone white and orange. They’ve an IP55 water resistance score, which implies they match the earlier OpenRun Professional by way of sturdiness however not the IP68-rated OpenSwim Professional ($179.95). The Professional 2s usually are not constructed for underwater use, however they need to simply survive sweat and rain.The OpenRun Professional 2 headphones connect with gadgets utilizing Bluetooth 5.3. Nevertheless, they solely assist the SBC Bluetooth codec. Bone conduction headphones aren’t identified for high-fidelity audio. They don’t assist Google Quick Pair, however do assist Bluetooth multipoint for connecting to as much as two gadgets at a time. Shokz claims a battery lifetime of as much as 12 hours of steady listening. The headphones cost by means of the aforementioned USB-C port. This can be a change for Shokz, which beforehand used a non-standard pogo pin charger for its headphones. I respect this modification, because it means you need to use different cables you have got readily available if you happen to lose the one provided with the headphones. Shokz says the headphones can totally cost in round 60 minutes, whereas a 5-minute cost will give them 2.5 hours of battery life.
(Credit score: Christian de Looper)
Shokz provides a solidly constructed onerous case to retailer the headphones and a USB-A-to-USB-C charging cable.Shokz App: Core Capabilities and a Customizable EQThe Shokz app is properly designed and gives entry to all the settings you want. After pairing the headphones, the app’s dwelling display screen reveals data just like the battery degree and the chosen EQ mode, together with a multi-point button and primary media controls.There are 4 EQ presets within the app, together with Normal, Vocal, Bass Increase, and Treble Increase. You may also create a customized curve utilizing the five-band equalizer. It’s a bit primary, however it does the trick. Total, the app works properly, and I respect its easy, minimalistic design. It places the controls you want entrance and heart and avoids the necessity for menu diving.Sound: Shockingly GoodShokz’s DualPitch expertise combines bone conduction drivers with 18-by-11-millimeter low-frequency audio system for higher bass. These secondary drivers have a rated frequency response of 20Hz to 20kHz.Bone conduction headphones do not push air to create sound. As an alternative, they vibrate your cranium in such a means as to maneuver the bones of your interior ear. The advantage of this design is which you could hear music whereas nonetheless remaining conscious of your environment as a result of the earphones aren’t blocking your ear canals. One downside, nonetheless, is that bone conduction headphones can’t produce bass frequencies in addition to conventional headphones. Shokz’s DualPitch expertise helps clear up this limitation by combining bone conduction tech with a standard air-driven speaker for low frequencies. Offloading decrease frequencies to a normal speaker serves two functions: It improves the low-end frequency response and reduces the stronger, bass-focused vibrations typical of bone conduction headphones. Put extra merely—the OpenRun Professional 2s don’t rattle your cranium as a lot as different bone conduction headphones, which is a welcome change.
(Credit score: Christian de Looper)
Regardless of this merged driver tech, the headphones nonetheless don’t fairly ship nice bass. On a monitor like “Loyalty.” by Kendrick Lamar, the sub-bass frequencies that often give the monitor its depth are hardly audible. On the identical time, the kick drums lack physique and depth. Fortunately, the remainder of the monitor sounds good, together with each Lamar and Rihanna’s vocals, and I discover that the percussion gives sufficient punch.The bass does not attain fairly as low in “Silent Shout” by The Knife, that means there’s nonetheless a good quantity of physique from the bass synth and punch from the kick drums. The crispness of the percussion doesn’t fairly come by means of on this monitor, making it really feel barely muted.The OpenRun Professional 2 headphones carry out higher when enjoying Invoice Callahan’s “Drover.” On this monitor, the driving kick drum comes by means of with sufficient physique, whereas the string noise from the guitar is current sufficient to present the guitar some chew. The cymbals aren’t fairly as crisp as they may be on different headphones, however this doesn’t detract an excessive amount of from the listening expertise.
(Credit score: Christian de Looper)
The opening scene from John Adams’ The Gospel Based on the Different Mary is one other monitor that is not dominated by sub-bass. The low strings lose a few of their physique, however they nonetheless present some depth. The upper strings aren’t fairly as piercing however nonetheless shine by means of. Extra importantly, the vocals stay entrance and heart with loads of physique. I used to be capable of fill within the bass to a level utilizing the EQ.Unsurprisingly, audio leakage is current, which implies these round you possibly can hear what you are listening to, particularly in quieter environments. After all, this implies you possibly can hear what is going on on round you as properly, which is among the main causes to purchase bone conduction headphones. Shokz’s older fashions do not leak audio and provide a extra personal listening expertise.Although the OpenRun Professional 2s do not ship the bass you’d get from conventional in-ear headphones and even different open fashions just like the $179 Apple AirPods 4 With Energetic Noise Cancellation or the $299 Bose Extremely Open Earbuds, I am unable to overstate how significantly better they’re than different bone conduction headphones. That there is any bass response in any respect is a large improve, contemplating the restricted set of frequencies which might be capable of go by means of your cranium successfully. No different bone conduction headphones I’ve examined sound this good.
(Credit score: Christian de Looper)
The microphone sounds higher than I anticipated from a pair of bone conduction headphones as properly. When on a name, your caller can hear you clearly and vice versa. Shokz claims this is because of a brand new algorithm that reduces background noise, reminiscent of wind noise.Verdict: The Finest Bone Conduction Headphones If You Do not SwimThe Shokz OpenRun Professional 2 bone conduction headphones push the bounds of the caliber of sound that bone conduction headphones can produce. They achieve this by pairing bone conduction expertise with conventional audio system, ensuing within the best-sounding bone conduction headphones for runners, cyclists, and different outside athletes who require situational consciousness. We additionally like their comfy match, easy controls, good battery life, and well-designed app. They could not work for swimmers, however the Shokz OpenRun Professional 2 headphones must be your go-to decide for sturdy exercise headphones that present an open listening expertise, incomes them our Editors’ Alternative award.
The Backside Line
The Shokz OpenRun Professional 2 bone conduction headphones are finest in school for runners and cyclists who want to stay conscious of their environment whereas understanding.
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About Christian de Looper
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Christian de Looper is a shopper tech reporter based mostly in sunny Santa Cruz, California. Christian has reported on tech for over 10 years, with bylines in most of the largest tech publications. Christian has a Bachelor’s Diploma in Music Know-how, and lives at dwelling along with his spouse, daughter, and cat. Regardless of being an Australian who now lives in Santa Cruz, Christian has solely surfed as soon as—and it didn’t go properly.
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