The Shokz Openfit 2 Is An Almost Perfect Update To The Originals

I wanted to emotion Shokz’s OpenFit 2, nan company’s latest open-ear wireless earbuds debuting coming astatine CES 2025. While Shokz made respective improvements to nan wide creation and function, nan sound tin still beryllium a tad hollow.

I tried nan OpenFit Air a less months back, and they ticked disconnected almost everything I was looking for successful a brace of open-ear moving buds. While not perfect, bass was decent. Volume could too beryllium alternatively challenging successful definite environments — again, point understandable for open-ear design. The problem was nan receptor hook creation didn’t caller bully if I wore my eyeglasses. (That, and nan touch controls were finicky to use.)

Shokz sent maine a brace of nan $179.95 OpenFit 2 up of CES. Based connected nan updates, I was very hopeful. For starters, Shokz added an different speaker to each bud for a afloat of two: 1 dedicated to bass, nan different for mids and highs. It’s an onslaught that worked fantastically bully pinch nan OpenRun Pro 2 bony conduction headphones that spot an aerial conduction speaker to amended nan bass. (My workfellow David Pierce and I are diehard OpenRun Pro 2 converts.) Volume has been somewhat improved. The receptor hook creation has too been tweaked truthful nan curved accusation complete nan apical of nan receptor is thinner. Physical buttons were added to each bud for simpler controls. Battery life too improved to 11 hours, up from nan 7 hours connected nan original OpenFit and nan OpenFit Air’s six hours. There are too 4 EQ presets!

And successful my testing, I instantly noticed galore of these improvements. It’s still not ideal, but nan thinner receptor hook is easier to usage pinch my glasses connected days erstwhile I don’t want to deterioration relationship lenses. Loud highways and ace noisy environments were still challenging but outperformed nan OpenFit Air. While getting these hands-on pics, nan bustle of nan Vegas Strip didn’t drown retired my euphony aliases forestall maine from proceeding my workfellow Antonio G. Di Benedetto’s photograph cues. I sewage astir 10–11 hours connected a azygous charge. When I wanted to region aliases skip tracks, nan beingness buttons were easier to usage (though my butterfingers still occasionally struggled, peculiarly erstwhile wearing press-on nails.)

Unfortunately, I too couldn’t thief but announcement nan sound quality. While amended than nan Air, it wasn’t alternatively arsenic bully arsenic I’d hoped. On “Unfair” by Stray Kids, what should beryllium rumbly baritone vocals sound muddy. Vocals, successful general, tin sometimes sound distant moreover pinch nan vocal EQ. At higher volumes, bass-heavy songs occasionally sounded distorted. My issues were astir evident erstwhile I was moving outdoors. However, if you’re listening to a podcast aliases successful a comparatively quiet room astatine a small volume, it’s overmuch small noticeable.

All of this is somewhat expected from open-ear buds. It’s overmuch that nan effect of having dedicated speakers for bass versus treble and mids wasn’t arsenic awesome arsenic nan OpenRun Pro 2. When I first tried nan latter, my jaw dropped and I said, “Oh.” With these, it’s overmuch of an appreciative nod. This mightiness beryllium because nan OpenFit 2 are accepted headphones utilizing aerial conduction. The OpenRun Pro 2 usage aerial conduction for bass and bony conduction for treble and mids.

Whether nan sound worth is simply a deal-breaker depends connected really you intend to usage these buds. I mostly usage open-ear buds for moving and recovered myself wanting to scope for nan OpenRun Pro 2 instead. But while puttering astir nan location aliases spot training, nan deficiency of a wraparound neckband makes these infinitely overmuch comfortable, peculiarly for exercises for illustration thorax presses aliases leaning backmost successful my chair.

The OpenFit 2 are disposable starting coming for $179.95 successful achromatic and beige.