Finding the perfect headphones for running is a tough task. I’ve had my ups and downs with headphones—my Apple AirPods have a worsened battery quality after several years and audio issues during calls. Other brands, like Denon Perl, don’t have the sound quality that I desire during long runs. When I came across the Shokz OpenFit Headphones, I was curious if they could deliver on all my needs during even the longest training runs. The Shokz OpenFit 2 Headphones have ear hooks and work through the brand’s quintessential bone-conduction, open-ear concept. I spoke with marathoner Dakotah Popehn, who competed in the 2024 Summer Olympics and placed 12th with a time of 2:26:44. Before partnering with the brand, she had been running with Shokz for years. I asked her what differentiates the brand and why she continues training with OpenFit.
Pros
The Shokz OpenFit 2 Headphones have fantastic audio quality, particularly for bone-conduction headphones. While you obviously cannot get the fully immersive audio experience that you can with in-ear buds, the sound is clear enough that you can enjoy music while staying aware of your surroundings.
“It’s one thing to run in my safe neighborhood, but it’s a whole other thing to be in Central Park in New York or in a city I’ve never been. I just love the safety aspect of being able to hear my surroundings. In Minneapolis, we have a great bike and pedestrian trail system, but the bikers can be a bit aggressive, so being able to hear them is really important to me,” said Popehn.
One other benefit is that you can listen to music or any audio while remaining social. I found this useful for runs with others where I wanted to simultaneously chat and listen to music. The music is loud enough that it is audible to the wearer but not so loud that others can hear it, unless in a particularly quiet space.
The headphones are IP55 rated against dust, sweat and light rain, and come in beige and black. They were surprisingly secure on my ears in non-windy weather, even though, at first, it took a little getting used to the around-the-ear feel. Popehn agreed.
“Outside of the safety aspect, I love that they don’t fall out,” She said. “We’ve all used those in-ear headphones where you’re constantly pressing them in or worrying about sweat. Comfort is huge for me.”
Phone calls were also surprisingly clear from both ends. I often receive complaints from friends and family about the audio quality when I call them on my AirPods, but I receive no complaints with the OpenFit 2 Headphones. I was also happy about the battery life, which was around 48 hours for the charging case and 11 hours for the earbuds.
Cons
For those who want an immersive audio experience, OpenFit will not fit the bill. However, that is more of a feature than a flaw. In addition, on the windiest days, the fit may not be the most secure. I found myself worried the headphones would fall out of my ear (and that I wouldn’t notice, due to the nature of the audio). The buttons were also not the most intuitive or easy to use, so I found the headphones best just for one task (music or calls) rather than switching between them. Second, while the IP54 rating will protect against dust and some water splashing, it may not be enough to make it through a rain storm. However, I did not have the opportunity to put them to the test with a rainstorm, so they may be able to make it through a full washing and dryer cycle like my AirPods did (unintentionally) a few years ago.
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised by how much I loved the Shokz OpenFit 2 Headphones and found myself continuously grabbing for them, even amidst so many other options. While I did miss immersive music for some of my runs, the convenience, the audio experience and the call quality were enough to make them my new favorite headphones.
