Shokz OpenRun

I’ve always enjoyed running with music, one song can change my entire mindset during a difficult patch (which for me is normally 90% of the run), I don’t enjoy taking one ear out when I’m on the roads, although I know it’s important for safety it throws me off my stride.

The OpenRun are the latest bone-conduction headphones from Shokz (formally AfterShokz) and have been designed around the bestselling Aeropex. The most noticeable change for me was the neckband was smaller, giving it a better fit and lower profile, they have updated the charging to a quick charge system this gives you 1.5hours of playback for a 10-minute charge, so you don’t have to wait around pre run.

With a full charge you get eight hours of battery life and charge up via a magnetic charging cable, this design means they can have an IP67 waterproof and sweatproof casing (not suitable for swimming). These headphones are comfortably lightweight at just 26g, they rest just over the ear like a pair of glasses…but backwards, the bone conductive units sit just in front of the ear, the transducers send vibrations through the cheekbones and deliver sound directly to the inner ear, bypassing the eardrum. This design leaves the ears free to stay tuned to the sounds around you, allowing you to remain aware of the traffic and people around you at all times without interrupting your tunes.

Whilst running they remain comfortably in place, I even tried them out during a rather vigorous warm up and cool down that involved some downward dog stretches and they didn’t budge. There is a button on the left side that lets you skip tracks and activate your voice assistant, on the right side there is the on/off button and the volume, the buttons are very small so those with larger fingers might accidently hit the wrong button from time to time. The PremiumPitch 2.0+ sound quality is really impressive with lots of detail and layers, the bass is thick enough to get your teeth into, they make good work of most genres which is impressive for this style of audio. When the OpenRun are up to their top volume I could feel the vibrations on my skin, this wasn’t unpleasant but after a while it made my ears feel kind of itchy, turning it down just a little however stopped this. If you already have the Aeropex it might be worth having a play before deciding if you need an upgrade, the difference in the sound is marginal but I certainly found these more comfortable. RRP £129.95

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