Editor’s note: This review was written by me, Kevin. It also incorporates my guinea pig’s point of view — where running and physical exertion are required, that’s when my delegation hat goes on.
I’ve spent a lot of time with Shokz’s OpenDots. The original OpenDots One became my go-to earbuds for about twelve months. Then the OpenDots 2 arrived and promptly dethroned them, taking an already excellent formula and improving the sound, comfort, call quality and a bunch of smaller details. And at the same time, there’s the Shokz OpenDots Air.
This time Shokz isn’t trying to make its best clip-on earbuds better, it’s trying to make them cheaper.
That sounds simple enough. Take the OpenDots formula, strip away some of the premium bits, hit a lower price point and call it a day.
Except after spending time with the OpenDots Air, things aren’t quite that straightforward.
Because while they look cheaper, feel cheaper and definitely sound cheaper than the OpenDots One and OpenDots 2, there’s one thing they arguably do better than either of them.
Shokz OpenDots Air look and feel cheaper
Coming directly from the OpenDots 2, the difference in presentation is immediately apparent.
Everything about the Air feels less premium but that’s not necessarily a criticism.
They’re not called the OpenDots 2 Lite. Shokz has established the OpenDots 2 as its premium clip-on offering, and some differentiation is inevitable.
But it isn’t subtle.
The original OpenDots One made a hell of a first impression when I reviewed them last year. The case looked premium. The two-tone finish looked premium. The earbuds themselves felt like a step above the increasingly crowded field of clip-on earbuds I’d been testing.
The OpenDots 2 didn’t mess with that formula unnecessarily, Shokz found details to refine.
The Air feel like they’ve gone in the opposite direction. They’re lighter in presentation, less substantial and noticeably less premium in the hand.
On the ear, however, that matters a whole lot less.
That’s an important distinction because these aren’t things you’re supposed to spend your day fondling appreciatively. They’re supposed clip onto your ears and you forget you are wearing them. Once there, the OpenDots Air start clawing back some points.
OpenDots Air setup is quick and painless
Connecting the OpenDots Air to an iPhone was straightforward. They paired quickly, the Shokz app picked them up without any drama and I was up and running in next to no time.
Multipoint pairing is here as well, which continues to be one of those features I always assume is available, until I use a pair of earbuds without it.
There’s very little about the day to day experience that screams budget model.
Things got interesting when we got to the controls.
Shokz, put these controls on the OpenDots 2
I have a complicated relationship with OpenDots controls.
With the original OpenDots One, I found tapping the battery surface could be hit and miss. Pinching generally worked better, although positioning could still occasionally trip me up.
Shokz clearly knew there was room for improvement because the OpenDots 2 introduced revised tap and squeeze controls with substantially more customisation.
They were better, mostly.
The pinch gestures on my OpenDots 2 work quite consistently once my fingers find the right spot. Tapping is another story. I’ve found it inconsistent enough that tapping harder can end up shifting the earbud on my ear instead of triggering the action I wanted.
Which brings me to the cheaper OpenDots Air.
They support pinching. They support tapping. And both have worked flawlessly for me. Every. Single. Time.
It’s slightly ridiculous that one of my favourite things about the cheapest member of the OpenDots family is something I wish Shokz would transplant straight back into its flagship.
A control is only useful if it responds when you use it, and on the OpenDots Air, it does.
I would have been unimpressed if I paid top dollar for the OpenDots 2, only to discover the budget model was more responsive to my fingers.
But before we declare the Air some kind of giant killer, there’s the small matter of sound.
OpenDots Air sound quality reveals the compromise
The OpenDots 2 are the most premium-sounding open-ear clip-on earbuds I’ve tested.
The original OpenDots One were already excellent for this form factor. With the OpenDots 2, Shokz brought in Bassphere 2.0, updated the acoustic chamber around its 11.8mm drivers and gave them stronger bass and a wider soundstage.
The difference wasn’t revolutionary. It was refinement of an already very good listening experience.
Going from the OpenDots 2 to the OpenDots Air is something else entirely, and the difference is very obvious.
For the avoidance of doubt, I’m not saying the OpenDots Air sound terrible. But when you’re switching between the two during testing, it’s a night-and-day difference and there’s no mistaking where each model sits in the hierarchy.
The OpenDots 2 have the richer, fuller and more expansive presentation. Even the OpenDots One are operating at another level. The Air sound like the poor stepsister in comparison.
The bigger question is whether that actually matters.
OpenDots Air make much more sense for running
I took the OpenDots Air out for a run.
Traffic noise. Wind. Cars. People. The usual soundtrack when you’re exercising outdoors rather than sitting in a quiet room trying to pick apart a recording.
In this scenario, the difference in sound quality mattered a whole lot less and the OpenDots Air were more than adequate.
This is where the entire premise of the open-ear concept makes sense. I don’t want isolation when I’m running around traffic. I want to hear my music, but I also want to hear what’s happening around me so I don’t get run over by a bus.
The Air delivered on the brief.
They were comfortable, unobtrusive and gave me enough music to enjoy the run without cutting me off from my surroundings.
Was I missing the superior soundstage of the OpenDots 2?
Sure.
Did I particularly care while running alongside traffic?
Not really.
Which brings me to the biggest problem I have with the OpenDots Air.
The OpenDots Air paradox
The scenario where the OpenDots Air make the most sense is also where I find their value proposition hardest to reconcile.
For a pair of earbuds specifically for running, I’d happily pick these. The sound is more than good enough in that environment. Open-ear awareness is exactly what I want. They’re comfortable. And those controls are excellent when I’m moving and don’t want to muck around trying to get a gesture to register.
But would I spend this sort of money on earbuds primarily for running, then reach for my OpenDots 2 whenever I wanted to properly listen to music?
That’s a harder sell because the OpenDots 2 have become exactly that kind of all-purpose earbud for me.
I wear them while writing. Editing photos. Making coffee. Answering the front door. Dealing with the kids. Travelling. And I can use them for music without feeling like I’m making a significant compromise simply because I want an open-ear design.
That’s the standard the Air have to contend with.
If all you need is something for exercise, there are cheaper open-ear options.
If you want a pair of clip-on earbuds to become your everyday headphones, the OpenDots 2 make a much stronger argument for spending more.
The Air get squeezed somewhere in between.
We are family, I got all my OpenDots with me
Perhaps that’s the better way to look at the OpenDots Air.
The OpenDots One introduced me to what Shokz could do with this form factor. They were premium, comfortable and sounded far better than I expected from clip-on open-ear earbuds.
The OpenDots 2 matured the concept. Better sound. Better calls. Better water resistance. Better charging. More refined comfort. Bluetooth 6.1. Low Latency Mode.
None of those things transformed the experience individually, but together they made the OpenDots 2 the best clip-on earbuds I’ve tested, and that’s why I’m using them daily.
The Air aren’t trying to beat them. They’re trying to bring the same basic concept further down the range.
Viewed through that lens, some of the compromises make perfect sense.
Less premium materials? Fine.
Lower audio quality? Expected.
What I wasn’t expecting was for the cheaper model to turn around and teach its more expensive siblings a lesson in controls.
And just like the OpenDots 2, the OpenDots Air come with a bit of launch-exclusive bling. Does it make them sound better? No. Do I need it? Also no. Does that mean I’m not going to mention and photograph it? Of course not.
OpenDots Air price changes everything
On paper, the OpenDots family is pretty easy to understand.
The Shokz OpenDots Air have an RRP of A$219. Step up to the OpenDots 2 and you’re looking at A$339.
A$120 is a decent chunk of change and, at those prices, I can see a clear argument for the Air. You give up the premium build and considerably better sound of the OpenDots 2, but you keep the core OpenDots experience, get those excellent controls and save enough money to matter.
But here’s where things get interesting.
At the time of writing, the original OpenDots One have dropped from their A$339 RRP to A$239 at JB Hi-Fi whilst stocks last. That’s just 20 dollars more than the OpenDots Air.
And for 20 buckeroos, I’d take the considerably better sound and more premium build of the OpenDots One without thinking too hard about it. Yes, the Air have better controls, but that’s a difficult trade-off to justify when the price difference is basically a steak sandwich from my favourite place.
More importantly for anyone worried about buying the older model, Shokz has committed to providing security updates for the OpenDots One until 20 March 2029.
The downside?
The OpenDots One don’t come with the bling option.
Shokz OpenDots Air: final thoughts
The Shokz OpenDots Air are an interesting addition to the family.
They’re unmistakably the budget sibling. Put them next to the OpenDots One or OpenDots 2 and they don’t look or feel as premium. Put some music on and the difference becomes even more obvious.
But the OpenDots Air are ridiculously easy to live with.
Setup is painless. Multipoint is useful. They’re lightweight and comfortable. They make perfect sense for running and outdoor exercise.
The controls just work.
That last point sounds trivial until you’ve tapped an OpenDots One or OpenDots 2 repeatedly, only to move the earbud instead of pausing your music.
For me, that leaves the OpenDots range in a slightly peculiar place.
If I want the best OpenDots experience and is prepared to pay for it, I’m reaching for the OpenDots 2.
If I’m heading out for a run? I might actually grab the Air.
But if I’m standing at the checkout with A$219 for the OpenDots Air in one hand and the OpenDots One sitting there for A$239?
I’m buying the OpenDots One and sacrificing the steak sandwich.
That’s ultimately the problem for the OpenDots Air right now. They’re not a bad pair of earbuds. Far from it. They do exactly what Shokz set out to do: bring the OpenDots concept to a lower price point while making sensible compromises along the way.
Unfortunately, the heavily discounted OpenDots One make those compromises much harder to swallow for just A$20 less. I can’t even say it’ll hurt less if you forget you’re wearing them and lose one.
The Air still have their advantages. They’re lighter, they’re excellent for exercise and, somewhat embarrassingly for their more expensive siblings, they have the best controls of the lot.
They feel cheaper.
They sound cheaper.
They are cheaper.
Just not quite cheap enough.
DRN would like to thank Shokz for providing the review unit.
