Open-ear headphones have become extremely popular in recent times, with many folks turning to them to allow them to continue to consume their content while also being fully aware of their surroundings and environment.

Shokz has been one of the best in this category for a long time and they continue to innovate in this space, now with the OpenFit Pro. Earlier today they announced the new OpenFit Pro with an innovative noise reduction technology.

The OpenFit Pro gives the user the choice between the more traditional open ear, fully environmentally aware, and an option somewhere between this and complete noise cancellation. The new ‘noise reduction’ from Shokz still allows the user to remain aware of their surroundings when required, while at other times offering a more immersive listening experience.

The new open-ear noise reduction technology from Shokz uses “advanced acoustic modelling” in combination with a “triple microphone system” and “Shokz’s ear adaptive algorithm” to “predict in-ear noise levels and reduce background noise.”

I’ve had them on our review desk for a few weeks now and after putting them through their paces, I can say that they are definitely innovative and a big upgrade over their previously-released siblings.

What’s new?

Not only does the new OpenFit Pro feature the new noise-reduction technology, but it also arrives with an ultra-large 11 x 20mm driver to deliver “rich detail, smooth highs, and deep lows.”  Shokz has also included its OpenBass 2.0 to enhance the bass and DirectPitch 3.0 to reduce sound leakage.

We were sent the new OpenFit Pro from Shokz to check out for a few weeks prior to release, and I was very impressed with them, giving users the option for a fully aware experience or a more immersive experience.  

Build quality and design

I reviewed the Shokz OpenFit 2+ in the middle of last year and was impressed with them – I thought they did what they intended to do, but at the same time lacked some of the sound quality the folks expect from their headphones in 2025 (and now 2026).  

They allow the athlete using them to be fully aware of their surroundings, which is excellent when the surroundings include bikes, cars, trucks, other runners, etc., but not so much when it is annoying people, music and more in a more enclosed environment.

The new OpenFit Pro are designed to provide “a balance of awareness and focus” and it does so with great hardware and software innovation.  As you would expect, this innovative hardware needs more room to fit into and as such, each earbud or headphone is larger and more sturdy than those from the OpenFit 2+.

The OpenFit 2+ have a more flexible design to them which some may consider flimsy while the open fit Pro a much sturdier and solid and also larger.

The difference in size is due to the larger drivers and the hardware required for the new noise-reduction technology.  

As with the OpenFit 2+, the OpenFit Pro also sits outside the ear canal and then loops over the back of your ear.  The way these earbuds fit is possibly the most comfortable I have ever experienced.  They don’t wedge into the ear canal like some; they don’t squash the head or the ears like others; they just comfortably fit around the ear and sit there.  What that does mean, though, is that they may not be as secure as some of these other earbuds and headphones.  

For the more aggressive athlete, Shokz makes open ear headphones that wrap around the back of the neck for those with excessive head movement, which may dislodge an earbud that loops over the top of an ear.  At this stage, the behind-the-neck headphones, though, do not include the new noise-reduction opening.

The OpenFit Pro include a physical button on the outside that is more pronounced than the button on the OpenFit 2+ earbuds.  This customisable button is used to effortlessly and quickly switch between noise-control settings and to control your media playback. 

The options for this button are extensive, including click, double-click, triple-click, press-and-hold, single-click, and long-press operations.  The customisable button is on each earbud, and the controls on the right earbud can be configured to be completely different from those on the left, offering even more customisation.

For me, though, I was able to wear the OpenFit Pro during all the exercise I was doing at the time – including sprinting on a treadmill, biking at speed, and standard weight training.  Not only that, they did not fall off or even become dislodged at any time.

Sound quality

The difference in sound quality between the OpenFit 2+ and the OpenFit Pro is night and day.  Even with both at their maximum environmental noise levels, the bass is deeper and the entire soundstage is broader on the Pro version.  The Pro version makes the 2+ version sound ‘tinny’.  

Across all music genres, the OpenFit Pro sounds so much better than the OpenFit 2+, and it’s not even close.  Now, that’s all well and good but how does it compare to in-ear earbuds?  They are good, but not that good.  For an equivalently priced set of fitness/workout earbuds, though, the sound isn’t up to par.

But that is not the point of these headphones.  The idea behind the OpenFit Pro is to be aware of your surroundings to varying degrees, but always to some extent.  They allow you to hear all noises in your vicinity that may pose a danger to you, while also reducing environmental noise to provide better-quality, more immersive sound.  They are for the athlete who exercises a lot outdoors but also wants to use the same headphones indoors.

Final thoughts

We’ve used a lot of open-ear fitness-oriented headphones in the past and while they have been a great idea for the road and busy places where you need to be aware of your surrounds, when you want to block out your envirnoment they have always been lacking. Even when in perfectly quiet environments, the sound quality was sub-par when you compare it to over the ear/head or in-ear earbuds.

The OpenFit Pro change all that. They are capable of blocking out a lot of your environmental noise if you wish and also provide for a much better quality sound than we have heard on open-ear headphones. Conversely, if you are exercising outside and need to be aware of your surroundings, then these headphones can also provide for that.

Now, don’t go expecting audiophile-quality sound from the OpenFit Pro but they are a massive improvement over previous generations and offer something not seen before in open-ear headphones.

If you need a new set of open ear headphones for outdoor running, cycling, etc, then you should be getting these because they also offer the flexibility to be used indoors in busy, noisy environments. The Shokz OpenFit Pro earbuds will be available from the 22nd of January through Shokz.com.au, Amazon, and JB Hi-Fi for $399.