Shokz OpenFit Air &
OpenSwim Pro Headphones

The Bone Conduction Technology found in the OpenSwim Pro utilizes vibrations which are sent through your cheekbones to deliver sound directly to your inner ear—bypassing the eardrum and allowing for situational awareness of your surroundings. DirectPitch Technology which is used in the new OpenFit Air is an air-conduction open-ear acoustic technology that utilizes reverse sound waves to alter the sound field near your ears. This allows you to hear the sound without the headphones being in your ear and reduces sound leakage ensuring privacy while allowing you to also hear your surroundings.

OpenFit Air’s Open-ear design uses an ultra-fine 0.75mm flexible Ni-Ti memory alloy wire ear hook to help keep the earbuds snugly in place and enhance comfort. Their new teardrop-shaped cross-section minimizes pressure and makes them easy to wear for hours on end while the pliable ear hook with its cutout design provides a snug and stable fit around the curves of every ear shape and size. By using a design angle of 25.5° Shokz was able to place the centre of gravity of the OpenFit Air Earbuds closer to your ear making them feel even lighter than they are. With up to 28 hours of playback time when you include the charging capacity of the carrying case, the OpenFit Air headphones will last longer than you will on the trail. If you need more juice a quick 10-minute charge will provide you with an additional 2 hours of playback. The built-in touch controls are customizable so you can ensure you have the functionality you need on the go to enjoy DirectPitch and OpenBass technology for premium sound quality in an open-ear design. And, if you want to fine-tune your listening experience the Shokz Phone App provides four preset EQ modes to choose from, but you can also customize the settings as well.

• A pliable cut-out ear hook design adaptable for more ear shapes.
• The battery is no longer contained in the ear hook but it is now found in the main body of the earbud.
• Dual-Bevel Design with the earbuds being bent inward at the centre for better fit, comfort and sound quality.
• 0.4 grams heavier per earbud.
• Battery life is now 6 hours instead of 7.
• A 10-minute charge provides 2 hours of listening time, versus the previous 5-minute charge for 1 hour of listening time.
• Savings of $60CAN / US over the previous OpenFit version.

• Earbuds - Plastic, Silicone, Stainless steel (steel mesh)
• Charging Case - Plastic

• IP54 water and sweat resistance
• Speaker type:  Air conduction transducer
• Frequency response: 50Hz-16kHz
• Speaker sensitivity: 95.5 dB±2.5dB
• Microphone sensitivity: -38 dB ±1dB
• Shokz Phone App
• Bluetooth 5.2 with 10m / 33ft range
• MultiPoint Pairing: Simultaneously syncs with two devices like laptops, smartphones, and tablets, on Android, iOS, or Windows
• Intuitive Touch Controls
• DirectPitchTM Technology
• Shokz OpenBass™ Air: A proprietary low-frequency enhancement for deep bass and detailed richness
• Standby time up to 30 days
• Warranty of 2 years

Below you can see the new Shokz OpenFit Air on the left and the previous Shokz OpenFit Headphones on the right. Notice in the second photo how different the earpieces are, the Shokz OpenFit Air on the left is much more contoured and the ear hook no longer contains the battery so they fit better and are more comfortable to wear.

The Shokz OpenSwim Pro are a new version of their popular OpenSwim bone conduction headphones which are designed for use while in wet conditions, including swimming. Now with 32GB of storage capacity and a Bluetooth mode for streaming music from your phone, the OpenSwim Pro Headphones are ideal for use on land as well as in the water.

• 32GB of MP3 storage instead of the previous 4GB.
• Bluetooth version 5.4 mode for streaming audio from your phone.
• Dual Noise Cancelling Mics.
• 2 grams lighter.
• A 10-minute quick charge provides 3 hours of listening time.
• 1.5 hour charge time down from the previous 2 hours.
• Able to now connect with the Shokz App.
• 4 pins magnetic charging cable which is more compact than the previous generation.
• Data transmission speed of up to 15MB/s where it was previously only 2.5MB/s.
• Savings of $50CAN / $30US over the previous Open Swim version.

• Silicone, plastic, nickel-titanium alloy

• IP68 waterproof
• Submerge in water up to 2 meters for 2 hours
• Dual functionality of Bluetooth and MP3 audio modes
• Open-ear Design maintains your situational awareness for added safety
• 32GB of MP3 storage stores up to 8,000 songs
• Transfer up to 225 songs in just 1 minute
• PremiumPitch™ 2.0+ Technology for a clearer sound and rich bass with less vibration
• Sports-optimized physical buttons
• Warranty of 2 years

Shokz continues to push the boundaries of innovative audio products as is evident by their two new releases, the Shokz OpenFit Air & OpenSwim Pro Wireless Headphones. I’ve been a big fan of Shokz since their original bone conduction headphones and now their OpenFit Air Earbuds thanks to their versatile open ear design. Being an avid cyclist and trail runner, hearing my surroundings is essential—whether it is the oncoming traffic or wildlife (aka bears) in the woods. The OpenFit Air Earbuds not only provide situational awareness but they are extremely comfortable to wear. Since the OpenFit Air Earbuds don’t go inside your ear canals like traditional earbuds you won’t experience ear fatigue or have to put up with external noses reverberating inside your head such as your feet hitting the trail as you run. The Audio quality is amazingly crisp and the bass provides just enough oomph so that you can enjoy your music like you want. With the volume turned up louder, the OpenFit Air Earbuds can drown out most ambient noise but I prefer to have them on a mid-range volume so I can still hear what is going on around me. Aside from innovative technology, impressive sound quality and a comfortable snug fit, the Shokz OpenFit Air is easy to use on the go thanks to its intuitive touch controls. I appreciated the ability to customize the controls to my preferred functions so that I can easily play/pause/skip/answer calls/ adjust volume quickly and easily. They are also IP54 sweat and water-resistant so they are ideal sports earbuds for your active adventures no matter the weather.

Because I am not much of a swimmer, the OpenSwim Pro Headphones don't really fill a need in my life, however, now that they can hold 32GB or 8,000 songs they are a great alternative to having to workout or go cycling/running with my phone. It’s nice to leave the phone at home and simply enjoy all the music that is downloaded to the OpenSwim Pro Headphones, but they also now support Bluetooth so I can also use them paired with my phone to access online music, podcasts or my full music library should I choose. This versatility is ideal for those involved in multiple sports which may or may not include swimming or other water sports.

If you are looking for other earbud/headphone options then consider reading our Best Wireless Headphones review over here.