When I last reviewed the Shokz OpenFit in October 2023, I was bowled over by how much better the sound was when compared to the traditional bone conduction headset. Bearing in mind that the OpenFit was a TWS or True Wireless Sound headset that is made into an Open-Ear concept. If you haven't read about the OpenFit, you can click here
Rewind to about 1 month ago, where Shokz Malaysia had a big launch for the new addition to the TWS series - the OpenFit Air. Having known of this since April/May 2024 via insiders, I was looking forward to seeing it - lighter and cheaper. Two things that matters for a Triathlete on Budget.
The bonus point? I be given an unit for my keeping. I am very grateful for that gesture as I loved the OpenFit sound, and I am sure I will love the OpenFit Air as much as I love the OpenRun Pro I have.
Summary
- RM599 makes it a very affordable TWS with 2 years Shokz Malaysia Warranty.
- Touch gesture/function can be fully disabled.
- 3-Colors with Hot Pink being the "limited edition".
A Quick Rewind of What is OpenFit?
Let's start with the most basic... Shokz OpenFit Air is not the usual Shokz Bone Conduction earphone. It is an air-conduction and what Shokz call as DirectPitch™ technology. The technology optimize the distance and angle between the sound source to the ear in such way that it minimize sound loses to your surrounding while maximizing your listening.
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| DirectPitch™ explained at Shokz Website |
Now, to call it air-conduction is not exactly mind-blowing as all speakers works on displacing air through the drive unit. The displaced wave is what gives you sound. You can actually consider the OpenFit Air as a "mini speaker" but that would not do justice.
Like the OpenFit, the OpenFit Air comes with the same 18mmx11mm driver made from composite (read: Carbon fiber) with polymer surround. Both the carbon fiber diaphragm and polymer surround creates the clear, crisp, strong sound with deep bass notes.
But unlike the OpenFit, the OpenFit Air has a renewed fit that is ergonomically enhanced.
Fitting
The unit hook over your ears exactly like the OpenFit, it clasps lightly over the top of your ear with the driver unit sitting somewhere on your upper part of the ear where it is near the Tragus, which shield your ear canal - it's also the place where some of you pierce your ears.
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| Tragus and where it is (that red circle). Image from AnatomyStuff |
Here is how it look like with the OpenFit Air, Take note how it "wrap around" my ear and it sort of fits pretty well.
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| Position of OpenFit relative to my right ear |
OpenFit Air vs OpenFit
If you came this far, here is another summary if you need a quick decision to decide between the two very similar products.
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| Thought I make a table and make my Excel skill to good use |
Similarities:
- Open-ear hook style design using air conduction technology
- Comfortable fit, no issues with glasses or sunnies
- IP54 dust and water-resistant
- Touch controls with double tap and press-and-hold gestures
- App support for Android and iOS
- Multipoint connectivity
- USB-C charging
- Quick charge feature (2 hours of listening with 10-minute charge)
- Similar battery life (around 7 hours in real-world testing)
- 28 hours total battery life with the charging case
Differences:
- Price: OpenFit Air (RM599) vs OpenFit (RM899)
- Colors: OpenFit Air available in more colors (including pink and white)
- Design: OpenFit is slightly smaller; Air has a larger earpiece
- Materials: OpenFit has smoother plastic case; Air has matte silicone finish
- Battery placement: OpenFit has battery in ear hook; Air has it in the earpiece
- Sound profile: OpenFit has more bass; Air has more treble emphasis
- EQ settings: OpenFit offers custom 5-band EQ; Air only has EQ presets
- Touch surface: OpenFit has silicone finish; Air has matte plastic finish
Unboxing Let's Go!
Here is a very simple unboxing I did to show you what is inside the OpenFit Air packaging.
Items you get in this box consist of
- The OpenFit Air Left and Right,
- Charging Case
- Charging cable USB-C
- Manual and warranty card
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| All together now |
Some visual differences between OpenFit Air and OpenFit
Comparing my wife's OpenFit (in biege) and my OpenFit Air (in pink)
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| Casing size very similar from top |
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| OpenFit Air is more rounded on edges |
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| Similar profile in the case |
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| OpenFit opens wider |
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| OpenFit has battery on the ear hook vs OpenFit Air on the earbud making it look bigger |
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| Stainless Steel earbud n driver side with metal mesh vs plastic on OpenFit Air |
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| OpenFit Air and OpenFit laid flat |
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| similar placement of air-vent for bass production |
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| Similar placement of microphone (small dot) |
Now for the review
Having spoilt with the OpenRun Pro for my daily run and conference calls on both phone and laptop, enjoying the freedom of not having the ear canal stuffed or the ear covered for my training; or even having the head constantly being clamped on headset for work - the OpenFit brought new freedom similar to OpenRun Pro.
All these with a total pass-through of surrounding sound even at volume as the ear canal is not blocked.
As this unit is a loaner, i been maximing the use for all my activities. I hear my footsteps, and continue to not feel guilty of using headphone for a workout in a trafficked public area. Similarly, I can have a conversation with music playing in the background like white noise while running or talking with friends.
And may i add again - the music streamed is like having an in-ear monitor or a proper headphone over your ears. Even as I am typing this, I have Eric Clapton Tears' In Heaven playing in the background, with each strum of the strings and the bass kicking in to be reminding me of my regret number 2.
Getting to know the device (parts)
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| Red circle is microphone. Yellow circle is the touch control |
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| Red is the driver outlet. Yellow is the Quick Charge point that links to the charging case. Blue is where the battery resides, unlike OpenFit where the battery sits at the tail of the ear hook |
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| Red is mics. Yellow is top air vent for bass production. Blue is the touch sensor |
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| Bottom air vent |
The Charging Case is small and pretty nifty. Very similar to the OpenFit but more rounded edges.
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| not as angular as OpenFit |
Connectivity
The OpenFit Air comes with Bluetooth V5.2 and allow Multipoint pairing. I have the unit paired to my Garmin FR965, Fenix7ProSolar, iPhone12, iPhone13 Pro and my work laptop. It requires activation of Multipoint connection on the App.
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| All I need daily |
I personally prefer it to be done on the Shokz App for the OpenFit Air as the touch-button doesn't support on device multipairing. Very straight forward with the app.
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| Take note that OpenFit Air only has 4-preset EQ vs OpenFit with customisable EQ |
Using it with Multipoint meant I have the freedom to switch between two devices without needing to disconnect from other devices. At work, I switch between phone (for Spotify) and laptop (for meeting/calls). you are limited by the 7 hours battery life. If you are a heavy user, do keep your device charged in the Charging Case when you are not using. As an example, my 10 hours usage today for run, music, phone calls and standby time has set the Charging Case battery to 50%. Doing a quick maths to see it all add up - both OpenFit Air at 100% (7hours), Charging case at 50% (10.5hours), usage as of today 8 hours = 7+10.5+10 = 27.5 Hours. The unit is rated at 28hours which meant it is pretty accurate.
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| Perfect color |
As usual, on the laptop, the connection requires some understanding of the limitation of each function between using it as a headset and headphone.
- Headset - allow full usage for both voice (usage of the mic on Shokz) and music/playback (anything streamed from the laptop)
- Headphone - only music/playback
The separation meant the playback as headset is biased to vocal. This meant the music streaming will be subpar and sound really bad. However on Headphone, the quality is as good as streaming from the phone.
The Bluetooth 5.2 has a faster switching between devices between multipoint pairing.
The OpenFit Air EQ is limited to only 4-preset. Unlike the OpenFit where you can create your own
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| OpenFit EQ menu |
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| OpenFit Air EQ menu |
Bear in mind that this mode of EQ is only available through phone source streaming and not on any other devices as they are controlled solely from the Shokz App. So it makes no differences to the sound quality aka default to "standard" when you playback outside of your phone app.
Touch Disable- able
If there is one experience using the OpenFit is the sensitivity of the touch sensor. Very similar exoerience using the OpenFit Air as it is a hit and miss when using it while running or cycling. If the unit/sensor is covered in sweat, it can "activate" automatically - which is irritating. Lucky for the OpenFit Air, Shokz has made the touch sensor being able to be disabled. A gift to humankind using these. I do not change music or adjust volume when I use the earbuds for workout as they are mostly for instruction feddback and voice note/voice over of my pace/hr/km. So having them switched off is great as it also meant less distraction.
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| None. None. None. and None. |
Fitting - using it while cycling and running
A month of usage since recieving the unit and making it my main headset/earbud for workout has affirmed that this unit is as secured as it's older sibling the OpenFit. Short of one occasion where I literally ran into a low hanging (small) branches with leaves, the unit got tangled in the low hanging shrubs and I had to run back to locate it. I was worried that I will lose it after using it just 3 times...
And as I started to use it for more runs and cycling, I need to be aware of any movement that may peel off the unit - such as when i remove my running tops or helmet. There is however a small hole on the end of the earhook - which makes me believe there should be an accessory that may allow it to be secured and hung over the neck... maybe.
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| This hole here |
Sound - Output and Input
As expected the sound produced from the OpenFit Air sound as good as the OpenFit. As they both share the same DirectPitch technology with the same composite driver and air vents. Only noticable differences is on heavier bass sound where the OpenFit with it's metal casing perform better. Simplay said, OpenFit Air is great for vocals and treble sound, but perform below par on any hip-hop or heavier bass notes. For that, the Direct Bass function (in EQ) will bump it up without muddling it to be overly bassy just for the sake of being bassy.
Still with no ANC as the unit is open-ear concept, so there is no encapsulating or isolation potential for the earbuds to properly drive any ANC. However, the clarity and isolation is sufficient for both indoor and outdoor condition.
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| Perfect for commuting in open area |
The dual-microphones is situated at the top and bottom portion of the driver unit. With Noise-Cancelling feature (vs OpenFit AI Noise-cancelling), it works sufficiently well for phone calls and my everyday conference call/meetings. The counterparties I speak to has no issue hearing me clearly except when i stand infront of a fan and talk - but even that, the best noise-cancelling microphone will fail unless you put some buffer between it and the wind noise. Overall, satisfactory and no complains.
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| My companion for outdoor conference call |
The Shokz OpenFit Air is compatible with profiles such as A2DP (high quality audio signals profile), AVRCP (remote control profile for sending command such as play, skip, pause etc), HSP (Headset profile aka to be used for communication) and HFP (handsfree profile).
Being TWS earphone meant that you can have the option to just use ONE side at any time and still carry on your daily work. Not too bad if you are planning to extend the battery life by another 7 hours by using one side at a time.
About IP54 Protection
The IP protection of OpenFit is lesser than the Pro version. The OpenRun Pro is IP55 and the OpenFit Air, very much like the OpenFit is IP54.
IP stands for International Protection (rating). It comes with two numbers and an optional letter. It defines the degree of protection against solid contact and water in electrical enclosures.
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| Rain is not an issue, whatmore sweat |
The first digit defines the level of protection the enclosure provide against access to hazardous parts such as electrical contacts, moving parts, and ingress of solid objects (like dust, sand, finger)
The second digit refers to liquid protection against well, water or liquid, generally.
The bigger the number, the better the protection. Naturally the IP55 would meant better protection versus IP54.
- IP55 protection against limited dust ingress and protected from low-pressure water jets from all direction
- IP54 protection against limited dust ingress and protected from water splashes (read: sweat and well, rinsing or just water splashes)
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| Great companion - works in all weather like me |
For the purpose of testing, yes, I have taken the OpenFit Air to shower after my run. Trickling water over the unit causes no significant issue except the touch function goes haywire and the air-vents on the top and bottom gets saturated with water and render the sound to be limited to just vocal/midrange. With the touch control disabled, there is zero issue listening to music in shower if you don't mind the muffled sound due to the vents being blocked by water. However, do not do this on purpose other than to just wash it after exercise (aka rinse) and not immerse in water. You been warned ;-)
Looking at it, IP54 is sufficient protection taking into account splashes of water from heavy rain or sweat on typical exercise. Should not have issue and do not submerge the unit in water and make sure to empty your pocket if you are the type to keep your earphones/wireless buds in your pocket (remember i say above the unit is hard to keep outside the charging case without risk of losing it?)
Long Term Review
I have been using this unit for slightly longer than a month since I received it thanks to Shokz Malaysia (Nove Marketing). I've charged it maybe like 3 times (casing) and it lives up to the 28hours usage which translate to roughly 8 days of mix usage for run/cycle and conference call before the casing battery goes to 20%. A quick charge often gives me enough of juice for another run, and always make sure the connecting Quick Charge is dry before you place it in the unit.
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| Yes, that is the OpenSwim Pro... Guess which one I review next ;-) |
TL:DR
Pros:
- Significant better sound reproduction than bone conduction
- Open ear concept allow you can hear your surroundings and still able to have a conversation while running or cycling or in the gym. Beyond sports-usage, the ability to hear your water boiling, fire alarm and other surrounding noises.
- Less potential for in-ear infection or impacted ear-wax as it does not go into the ear. The OpenFit sit outside the external ear and it gives impression it is an in-ear, but it isn't. No sweat or heating/hot issue as the unit doesn't sit in the ear canal or has the earpad covering like the traditional headphones.
- Comfortable fit super light.
- Touch function able to be disabled (woohoo!)
Cons:
- Some chances of losing the unit as it hooks over your ear that can get caught in your hood, cap or even your hair as you flip/adjust
- Sound leakage if you bump the sound too high. It is a mini-speaker after all. If you are in a quiet environment or taking a confidential call/privacy matters, it is best to lower the volume or find a more secure place.
- Lack of customizable EQ
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| Thank you Shokz Malaysia |
This unit of Shokz OpenFit is provided to me as part of being their Brand Ambassador of Shokz Malaysia and Nove Marketing. The unit retail for RM599.00 and comes with 2-years warranty. To purchase, please click this link.
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| Special promotion with RM50 worth of Fitsy class voucher for every purchase |
Discount for other Shokz items
If you are looking for a pair of Shokz Open-Ear headphone or earbuds, use my code TRISTUPE15 on check out to get 15% off from normal pricing. This offer is valid for all items except newly launched OpenFit Air and OpenSwim Pro. Make sure you get your Shokz from Authorised distributor and reseller that comes with two years warranty. Avoid deals that sound too good to be true - and if in doubt, check with NoveMarketing. Don't be a victim of scam!
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| 15% offer using TRISTUPE15 code at NoveMarketing site! |
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