STACK #264 October 2026

TECH FEATURE

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GETTING OUT & ABOUT

HEADPHONES

WITH THE RIGHT

Shokz OpenRun Air 2 Open-Ear Headphones

THE OUTDOOR SOUNDTRACK

How does bone conduction sound work? Here’s the clever bit. Conventional headphones send sound waves through the air and into your ear canal. Bone conduction takes another route. The OpenRun Air 2 sit against the area in front of your ears and create tiny vibrations that travel through the bones of your skull to the inner ear. Your ears stay open while you still hear the audio. Shokz’s PremiumPitch 3.0 technology uses an upgraded bone conduction driver to improve bass, vocals, and high-frequency detail. There are also four preset and two custom EQ modes in the Shokz App when you want to tweak the sound.

The headphones The Shokz OpenRun Air 2 Open-Ear Headphones are made for getting moving without completely tuning out the world around you. Instead of sitting in or over your ears, they use bone conduction technology to deliver your playlists, podcasts, and calls. That makes them a natural fit for a morning run, weekend walk, or hike, where situational awareness can be just as important as hearing what’s playing. They’re built to move, too. At just 26.4g, the OpenRun Air 2 are light enough to almost forget about, while a redesigned ear hook and wraparound frame help keep them securely in place when the pace picks up. They’re also more than 9% smaller than the original OpenRun. An IP67 rating takes care of sweat and rain – you can even rinse them off after a particularly enthusiastic session - although they’re not designed for swimming. Battery life reaches up to ten hours, and forgetting to charge them needn’t derail the morning run – five minutes plugged in provides up to two hours of listening. Physical controls let you easily change tracks, take calls, and adjust volume without reaching for your phone, while Bluetooth Multipoint Pairing can keep two devices connected.

Open ears, more aware The big difference with open-ear headphones is right there in the name: nothing is blocking your ears. On a run or walk, you can enjoy your playlist while remaining more aware of people, announcements, and other sounds around you. And with nothing sitting inside your ears, there’s less of that plugged-up feeling during long or sweaty sessions. There is a trade-off: open-ear listening doesn’t isolate you from outside noise like sealed earbuds or noise-cancelling headphones. But outdoors, that can be exactly the point.

Made to keep moving The secure wraparound fit helps minimise bouncing, while the open design lets your ears breathe. And the battery should comfortably outlast most walks and hikes – and probably your legs! If someone calls while you’re out and about, dual microphones and AI-powered noise reduction can reduce wind and background noise, so your caller hears more of you and less of the weather. Light, secure, weather-ready, and still connected to what’s happening around you – it's a combination that’s perfect for the great outdoors.

Who is it for? Runners, walkers, hikers, and active listeners who want to soundtrack their exercise without plugging their ears. The Shokz OpenRun Air 2 are the way to go if comfort and awareness matter more than shutting out distractions. They’re not headphones for disappearing into your own little bubble – they’re for adding a soundtrack to whatever’s happening outside it.

32 OCTOBER 2026

jbhifi.com.au