OpenFit 2 Review: Does Shokz offer the Best Open-Ear Headphones?

Shokz OpenFit 2 Price and Availability

Shokz introduced the OpenFit 2 at an RRP of $179.95, where you can choose between white and black color variants. When we reviewed this open-ear earbud in early April, the worldwide availability of the OpenFit 2 was still not widespread.

The OpenFit 2 comes in two colors

After much experimentation, one design seems to have stood the test of time when it comes to open-ear earbuds — the Shokz OpenFit 2 are worn over the ear with a headband. We are already familiar with the design from Xiaomi or Huawei, as well as from previous Shokz models. With a weight of 7.1 g, the new OpenFit earbuds are nice, light, and comfortable. After using them for over two hours, I often forgot I was wearing them.

With this design, the sound generator floats at a slight angle above the ear canal and only touches it a little. One advantage of this design is that the earbuds are less noticeable on the ear, especially if you are used to feeling some pressure around the temple from wearing glasses or sunglasses. The disadvantage, however, is that placement in front of the ear is not optimal for every ear shape. Anker, therefore, lets you adjust the angle of the earbud on the AeroFit 2 (review). This is not possible with Shokz, but it did not pose a problem to my ears.

During sports, such as cycling or jogging, the grip is good enough that the earbuds neither bounce nor threaten to fall off the ear. Thanks to the new IP55 certification, this shouldn't be a problem even when worn in heavy rain.

What I also really liked about the latest Shokz earbuds in this review was the physical button on both earbuds. The previous model only had touch-sensitive surfaces, which, according to reviews, often led to accidental input. These are deactivated by default on the OpenFit 2 and can be enabled in the Shokz app. However, accidental input due to sweat or rain can be reliably prevented this way. It is a shame, however, that you can only activate voice assistants using touch.

A few words about the charging case: it measures 6.4 × 6.4 × 2.5 cm, which means it is not exactly compact, but it is one of the smaller charging cases for open-ear earbuds that I have reviewed to date. This is because the earbuds in the case overlap a little. The cream-colored version that Shokz loaned us for this review got dirty rather quickly, even when it is carried around in a trouser pocket. However, minor scratches or discolorations can be easily wiped off. Overall, the charging case impressed us in the review!

We tried the Shokz app out

As a rule of thumb, open-ear earbuds do not offer too many functions — the OpenFit 2's technical specifications look relatively threadbare at first glance. The earbuds don't come with wear detection, they don't have an integrated voice assistant, and we also searched in vain for 3D audio or spatial audio. What Shokz does have to offer, however, is an equalizer and excellent multipoint Bluetooth connectivity.

Screenshots from the Shokz app show that the sound of the OpenFit 2 can be adjusted using a 5-band equalizer. We can save our own presets and access preset sound settings. We can use the equalizer to make the sound of the earbuds livelier and squeeze a little more bass out of the split drivers. This is definitely a plus point!

Another big plus point is the excellent multipoint Bluetooth connectivity. Like most existing earbuds, we can connect several devices to the OpenFit 2. The earbuds then switch intelligently when one of the connected devices plays music. This not only works reliably, but also seamlessly and without any delays. If I were to switch Spotify off on my smartphone and click on a YouTube video on my laptop, the OpenFit 2 recognizes the switch immediately. In my experience, many available alternatives out there, even Apple's AirPods, are sluggish in this aspect.

Overall, the Shokz app impressed me in the review with its modern design and clear menu navigation. In addition to controlling the equalizer, multipoint pairing, and button settings, Shokz also integrated audio control and a user manual into the app. The function for finding the earbuds was less impressive. This is because they have to be connected via Bluetooth, which means you can only search for the individual earbuds and not the charging case itself.

How good do the Shokz OpenFit 2 sound?

The biggest innovation in the OpenFit 2: Shokz splits the drivers in the earbuds and thus offers 2-way audio known as "DualBoost". With 17.3 mm drivers, the manufacturer wants to enable better bass performance. This compensates for the disadvantage of open-ear earbuds, which was repeatedly mentioned in my reviews. In my opinion, the open earbuds with the best bass performance so far were the Nothing OpenWear, which had 17.3 mm drivers.

Out of the box, I initially didn't like the sound of the OpenFit 2 as much. However, after a slight bass boost in the equalizer and an increase in the mids for more clarity, the OpenFit 2 surprised me in terms of sound quality. With bass-heavy faults, there is still a lack of pressure in the bass and the sound was simply a little "thinner" or "more distant" than with in-ear earbuds due to the design. However, it is definitely positive how Shokz maintained the same sound quality even at high to very high volumes. This is where the Nothing Ear (open) (review), which delivered even more pressure in the bass at medium volumes, disappointed. However, if you only like music when it is loud, you will be confronted with poor sound quality with Nothing.

This does not happen with the Shokz OpenAir 2. The earbuds sounded consistent at low, medium, and very high volumes. The 17.3 mm drivers, with smaller tweeters in front of them, achieve an immense overall volume. Thanks to the DirektPitch 2.0 technology, there is also less audio bleeding. This means your fellow passengers on buses and trains are exposed to less sound pollution.

Overall, the OpenFit 2 delivered very good sound quality, but again, only in relation to other open earbuds. In-ear models are still superior in terms of sound quality and have passive noise shielding due to their design. This generates more pressure and is now supported by Active Noise Cancellation on most models. It is also annoying that Shokz only integrated SBC and AAC codecs.

Once more, due to the design of the OpenFit 2, these are naturally missing, so you sometimes have to listen to music and podcasts at a very high volume when you're on the move. This can be exhausting and even harmful to your health in the long run. Among the models we reviewed, the Xiaomi OpenWear Studio (review) was the only one to feature experimental ANC. Such a function was completely absent from the Shokz.

Last but not least, noise reduction can be found when talking on the phone with the OpenAir 2. My conversation partners attested to very good audio quality during the review duration. As I could hear myself talking, phone calls also felt particularly natural. This made the Shokz my favorite hands-free solution during the review duration.

Battery: OpenFit 2 lasts up to 11 hours

The larger design of the open-ear earbuds offers more space for batteries, which means this model shines in terms of battery life. Nevertheless, the Shokz Open Fit 2 stood out here with a playback time of up to 11 hours. The charging case extended independence from power sockets to 48 hours, and the manufacturer also thought of quick charging.

This allows us to play music for two hours on a 10-minute charge. USB-C is used to obtain this quick fix. However, we will have to make do without wireless charging with the open-ear Shokz earbuds.

Overall, however, the battery life of the earbuds proved to be more than satisfactory. I didn't even manage to get the earbuds down to zero battery during my review duration. Although I listen to a lot of music, I simply didn't manage to achieve 11 hours of continuous wearing time.