The SHOKZ OpenRun Pro is more headphone than earbud, with a lightweight titanium band connecting the two ear pieces and wrapping around the back of your head. It does an excellent job of keeping everything in place, which is important because the buds need to be positioned precisely. Instead of the traditional method of sending sound vibrations to your eardrums, the OpenRun Pro uses bone conduction technology to send vibrations through your cheekbones directly to your inner ear. As such, the headphones are actually placed in front of your ear instead of on your ear. The biggest advantage is that you can fully hear your surroundings; if you like running on the street, for example, you'll be aware of everything that's going on around you and still be able to hear your music perfectly well.
The OpenRun Pros offer more bass than the standard OpenRuns. They're IP5 rated to withstand sweat, dust, and grime. You'll get up to ten hours of continuous playback on a single charge. They also feature multipoint Bluetooth pairing, which means that you can pair it with up to two different devices simultaneously.
I have a pair of AirPods Pro that I use regularly, but I always set them aside for the OpenRun Pros when I run. I can hear my surroundings better than the "Transparency" mode on the AirPods Pro. They also stay in place well even when I develop a good sweat and the sound quality and bass response is quite good.
The updated Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 is also on sale
Best Buy has also dropped the price of the newer Shokz OpenRun Pro 2 to $129.99. The OpenRun Pro 2 features some notable upgrades over its predecessor. The biggest QoL update is the switch from a proprietary magnetic charging cable to the USB Type-C standard. The second big update is improved bass. The new OpenRun Pro 2 utilizes Shok's DualPitch technology to virtually eliminate vibrations so that bass response is cleaner. Smaller changes include slightly increased battery life and improved noise cancelation for the microphone.
Eric Song is the IGN commerce manager in charge of finding the best gaming and tech deals every day. When Eric isn't hunting for deals for other people at work, he's hunting for deals for himself during his free time.
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