When it comes to earbuds, I usually prefer to block out the world rather than let the ambient noise filter in. That means active noise cancelling is a must and the buds need to have swappable silicone tips.
But the Shokz OpenFit 2 don’t fit any of those requirements. As the name suggests, the buds are open fit, sitting outside your ear rather than plugging your ear canal.
There are times though when you need to hear what is going around you. When you are out walking, for example, it is useful to stay aware of your surroundings so you can hear people approach or be aware of cars around you.
But at the same time, you don’t want to sacrifice audio quality. Over the years I’ve reviewed some open-fit buds that promise a lot but really only deliver tinny, weak audio that is drowned out by the background audio.
Shokz OpenFit 2 review: Comfort and good sound quality without ambient noise intrusion
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I had higher hopes for the OpenFit 2. Shokz is known for perfecting open-fit earbuds, from the bone conduction technology it helped bring to the mainstream audio sector to the open-fit earbuds it is now pitching at runners and other audio fans.
The Shokz OpenFit 2 are new to the Irish market. The buds have an ear hook design, with a flexible silicon hook that sits comfortably over your ear and position the speaker so you can hear the audio without blocking out the outside world completely.
Out of the box, you might need instructions to tell you how to actually position them correctly on your ears, particularly if you have been using in-earbuds for the past few years. The Shokz app will help you get the most out of the buds – luckily, because I realised I was wearing them out of place.
The app will also let you change EQ settings, with preset options that include vocal, bass booster and treble boost. There is also a custom setting so you could create your own personalised audio and save it for future use.
Shokz has done some work on the audio side for the OpenFit 2. Its bass algorithm has been upgraded, with precisely directed bass tones that still maintain clarity in the higher frequency ranges.
The end result was surprising. I expected that with the open fit nature of the buds, the ambient noise would be intrusive, particularly if the buds were being used near busy streets. But it wasn’t an issue – I could still hear a podcast playing even with traffic close by.
It was the same for music, with powerful bass without the rest of the audio feeling muddy.
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The Shokz have built-in microphones so you can use them for phone calls, video calls and accessing the voice assistant on whatever device they are connected to. Again, the sound quality here was good. On the other end of the call, I came through loud and clear. That is down to a couple of things: the two microphones built into each earbud, and the AI technology that Shokz has included to boost the audio.
Sound leak was a concern. With open fit, you are likely to get a little leakage, but for the OpenFit 2, it was only audible at higher volumes. Still, I would be more wary of discussing anything too confidential in public, which incidentally should hold true regardless of what you are using to make or take your calls.
The Shokz buds have another distinguishing feature: physical buttons. While many earbuds have opted solely for touch controls, the OpenFit 2 come with small physical buttons. The single click can play or pause tracks. The double and triple click are used for skipping or replaying tracks, while the long press can control volume.
Those buttons can be customised, but there is a limit to how much you can do so. The single click, for example, can only be set to the default of play and pause, or disabled. The options for the double and triple click include having the left earbud control skipping to the next track, while the other goes back one track, or some mix of that. The long press can be changed to activate the voice assistant. That is it, however.
Touch controls are limited to a single option – a long press – which is disabled by default. The only feature you can assign to it is the voice assistant for your phone. It’s no real loss though if you decide to leave it doing nothing; the touch control is more awkward to activate correctly than the physical button.
The buds also support multipoint pairing, which means you can pair two devices to them and switch seamlessly between the two, for example your smartphone and a laptop.
Best of all, the OpenFit 2 didn’t budge, even during the most strenuous workouts. If you’ve ever had to chase down an errant earbud, you’ll appreciate the certainty that brings.
Good
Comfortable to wear for long periods of time. The buds are so lightweight and fit perfectly over your ear that you almost forget you are wearing them. They are particularly good if you find in-earbuds too uncomfortable to wear.
Battery life is decent too. You get 11 hours of listening, with up to 48 hours when the backup battery on the case is taken into account.
Bad
The ear-hook design may not work for some people, particularly if they wear glasses – or sunglasses. However, the hook itself is quite thin, so it may still work for most wearers.
The design of the buds means the case is a bit larger than some earbuds out there.
Sound leak is definitely less of an issues than with other open-fit devices, but is still there.
Everything else
The buds are rated as IP55, which means they will withstand dust, light rain and sweat.
Verdict
Comfortable earbuds with great sound quality that won’t budge during exercise.
