Shokz’s bone conduction headphones have received rave reviews, and as a solo runner, I found it easy to see why
As a runner who hates working out without music, I’ve tested my fair share of tech over the years. For indoor workouts, I love noise-cancelling earphones, but when I’m outdoors it’s important I can hear my surroundings. So I’m not sure why it took me so long to try bone-conduction headphones, which leave your ears unobstructed, but now I’ve found the Shokz Open Run Pro 2, I’m never going back.
Available from Amazon, Cotswold outdoor and John Lewis for £169, they’re certainly an investment, but a worthy one in my eyes. Instead of covering your ears, the headphones loop over the top of your ears and around the back of your head, which delivers a secure fit, and helps you stay connected to your surroundings. They’re incredibly comfy too. Most of the time I completely forget I’m wearing them, thanks both to the design and the sound quality.
To get technical for a second, the headphones use DualPitch technology, with both a bone conduction and air conduction speaker to cover mids, highs, and subterranean bass. You can also adjust the modes (standard, vocal, bass boost, or treble boost) or create a custom mode using the app.
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Or as I’d tell my friends, it sounds just like listening to music via speakers. You don’t get that muffled sensation that comes with earphones — it’s much easier to hear traffic and people around you — but you do get well-rounded sound that’s plenty loud, even if you start singing along mid-song. Take it from someone who enjoys an impromptu karaoke sesh on her walk home.
The battery is decent. You get around 12 hours of listening time from an hour’s charge and 2.5 hours of playback from a 5-minute charge, and I can pair the headphones with my phone or my Garmin watch — a must for most runners.
That said, I’m not so keen on the fiddly multifunction button. You click it once to pause music, twice to skip a song and three times to go back a track. So you’ll want a no-skip playlist at the ready, otherwise you spend your whole run clicking away.
But all in all, I love my headphones, and I found lots of online reviewers who agreed. One tester shared: “These headphones are what I have been waiting for for a long time since I wear hearing aids and I do not have to remove them when wearing the headphone. If I could make one suggestion it would be to incorporate a facility to balance or adjust the volume between the left and Right ear piece.”
Meanwhile, a shopper who swapped from the first model said: “Wow! I actually can’t believe how good these sound! I am so glad I decided to go for the upgrade, they are 100% worth it! I will see if any of my family want the originals but these new pro 2 are staying with me! Shame there’s no kind of trade in program.”
Oh, and in case you’re interested, they’ve got the backing of Shokz Ambassador Eliud Kipchoge, regarded as the greatest marathoner of all time. It’s a fun fact I’d drop into conversation if I were buying a pair for any of the runners in my life (though I can’t, as they already use Shokz). Shokz is also the only sports headphones brand recognised by England Athletics, which is worth knowing if you’re signing up for any road races.
But, of course, there are various bone-conduction headphones with differing price points you might wish to check out too. Hanmer’s Bone Conduction Headphones are available for £35.99 from Amazon; meanwhile, Kiprun offers Bone Conduction Headphones with technology designed by Shokz for £79.99 from Decathlon.
