Instead of resting inside your ears, the SHOKZ OpenRun Pro Bone Conduction Headphones are positioned directly in front of your ears. This allows sound to travel from your cheekbones straight into your ear, improving your listening without blocking what’s going on around you. That’s important when running on the road, riding a bike, or working out in a setting where you need to hear other people’s footsteps, cars passing by, etc. They’re also lightweight and feature a wraparound titanium frame that encircles the back of the head, which holds the headphones securely in place while you exercise.
Open-ear bone conduction headphones with bombastic sound
Bone conduction headphones have a reputation for thin, tinny sound, and the OpenRun Pro is SHOKZ’s answer to that complaint. These headphones run on the company’s 9th-generation bone conduction tech and feature TurboPitch, which adds two transducers to produce real low-end. The bass is noticeably stronger than older bone conduction models. It will not match a sealed pair of in-ear monitors, but for an open-ear design, the OpenRun Pro punches well above its weight.
Comfort is the other thing SHOKZ tends to get right. The OpenRun Pro’s titanium frame weighs almost nothing. You also don’t have to worry about silicone tips pushed into your ear canal. People who hate the plugged-up feeling of regular earbuds usually find this style much easier to wear for hours. The OpenRun Pro also comes with a fabric headband in the box. It helps keep the headphones steady if you wear a hat or a helmet on top.
The OpenRun Pro’s battery life is rated at 10 hours of music or calls per full charge. That covers most weekly workout schedules without a top-up between sessions. A five-minute quick charge gets you about an hour and a half of playback if you forgot to plug them in the night before a long run. The proprietary magnetic charging cable means you cannot just grab a USB-C cord, which is the one annoyance worth noting.
Call audio is handled by a built-in mic, and the headset has an IP55 rating for both sweat and light rain. It’s not waterproof, though, and should not be used while swimming. Bluetooth pairing is available for pairing with phones, tablets, and computers. The multi-function button on the left earcup can control music playback and answer incoming calls.
The SHOKZ OpenRun Pro Bone Conduction Headphones are priced at $125 right now, down from the usual $180, which is one of the better prices these have hit. SHOKZ tuning, fit, and battery life put the OpenRun Pro at the top of the bone conduction category, which make them a great deal for anyone who wants to try out the tech.