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Open earbuds are here to stay, and I couldn’t be happier
Initially, I was skeptical of open earbuds. After all, nine out of 10 dentists agree that open earbuds offer poor sound quality and comfort compared to standard (closed) earbuds. Over the years, open-fit earbuds have matured quite a bit. Today, they appeal to an excited group of listeners who favor practicality and safety above all.
Thanks to the niche’s enthusiasm, unsealed earbuds are here for the long haul. After all, a boutique company like Nothing, with few products in its catalog, wouldn’t create open-type earbuds unless people cared about them.
Why should you buy open earbuds?
Open buds keep your ear canals open to your environment, making them functionally similar to bone conduction headphones. You get the best of both worlds with open buds. You can hear your surroundings and music at once. Listeners who walk or bike around busy areas are usually the first in line to buy these kind of buds. I find that open-type earbuds work better for cycling than bone conduction headphones. My helmet doesn’t dislodge open earbuds as it does with bone conduction headphones.
Runners and other outdoor athletes also prefer the unsealed fit for the same reason. While I love bone conduction headphones for their durability and safety features, I prefer options like the Sony Linkbuds Open for their greater comfort and more stable fit.
Open earbuds usually offer a better experience than enabling transparency mode (aka audio passthrough) on closed earbuds. Transparency mode relies on software and your buds’ microphones to filter external noise through your closed earbuds. Many people feel that transparency mode sounds too digital or unpleasant to use. While the AirPods Pro 2 Transparency Mode is good, I rarely enable it. Instead, I opt to use one earbud to hear my surroundings and music. If you must be aware of what’s going around you a majority of the time, open buds will serve you well.
Further, there are health benefits — or at least fewer health risks — to open earbuds. Open buds don’t suction to your ear canals. If you’re like me and sensitive to pressure changes, you’ll know that some earbuds create too strong of a seal. This can make things uncomfortable and even make removing such earbuds painful. You’ll never run into this kind of discomfort with unsealed earbuds.
Unfortunately, some of us are more prone to ear infections than others. No matter how often you clean your earbuds, you may just develop a middle ear infection. This is far less likely to occur with open-fit earbuds, thanks to the constant airflow from the outside world to your ears.
What are the disadvantages of open earbuds?
On the whole, open earbuds aren’t as comfortable as closed earbuds. Take the Anker Soundcore Aerofit. These buds fit but are cumbersome and uncomfortable compared to the Soundcore Sport X20. Many open-fit earbuds share a similar shape to the Aerofit, leaving you with a bulbous, heavy battery sitting behind your ear.
As is the case with earbuds that lack isolation properties, open buds have pretty poor sound quality. This open-type fit especially degrades bass reproduction. In other words, you will not experience skull-shaking bass from any earbuds that don’t seal off your ear canals. This is the price we pay for constant awareness!
The main benefit of unsealed earbuds is also responsible for one of their main drawbacks: poor bass reproduction.
Even with worse sound quality and comfort, open earbuds are fairly expensive. The Aerofit from Anker, a company known for its affordable, high-quality products, debuted at $129. Meanwhile, the aforementioned Sport X20 from the same company debuted for $59.
According to Canalys, open earbuds accounted for 2.9% of the smart personal audio market in Q4 of 2023. The current demand isn’t huge. However, the market is growing with a 68.2% quarter-on-quarter growth according to the same study. There’s room for growth. That said, until we see greater demand, the prices will remain high compared to their closed-earbud counterparts.
Should you keep multiple sets of earbuds around?
Open earbuds aren’t for everyone, nor are they meant to be. Instead, they may prove a worthy backup pair of buds for you. It’s always good to have a Philips and flathead screwdriver on hand because you never know what a situation will call for. That’s the direction earbuds are going.
I’m not suggesting you ditch your beloved noise canceling earbuds for something like the Bose Open Ultra ($299 at Amazon) or Nothing Ear (Open) ($149 at Amazon). If you find yourself using transparency mode often enough though, it might be worthwhile to have another tool in your tool belt.
Skeptics, you’re not alone. I was unsure for a long time, especially since the first AirPods fit me about as well as a size 13 shoe. I only ask that you keep an open (pun intended) mind when it comes to open earbuds. Yes, another $100-$150 is a lot of money to drop on a secondary set of buds, but being aware of your surroundings is a necessity for any outdoor runner or city slicker.
Frequently asked questions about open earbuds
Open earbuds are great for people who want to hear their surroundings and music at the same time. Since these buds keep your ear canals wide open, the effect is natural compared to some earbuds’ transparency (i.e., audio passthrough) modes.
If you crank up the volume and someone is standing next to you, yes, they would be able to hear a bit of what you’re listening to.
These earbuds sit on your outer ear without sealing your ear canals. On the other hand, bone conduction headphones don’t interact with your outer ear at all. Instead, they rest on your cheekbones and send vibrations to your inner ears.
Bone conduction headphones, like any kind of headphones or earbuds, do pose a threat to hearing health. If you blast the volume for extended periods of time, this can still damage the little hairs in your ears, reducing hearing sensitivity.
Yes, in the sense that you’re less likely to develop an ear infection with open-fit earbuds compared to earbuds that seal your canals off from the rest of the world. You get more airflow with unsealed earbuds than with standard buds and headphones. This means there’s less opportunity for bacteria to grow.
Apple’s standard AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation are unsealed earbuds, though they don’t leave your ears completely open. Neither set of buds seals your ear canals off from the world.