Has anyone here tried bone conduction headphones?

I have a pair of Shokz Open Run Pro. I'm generally quite happy with them. I use them exclusively when running to listen to music and podcasts. I find them to be loud enough (at 80-90% volume) and tested them with my wife indoors and she couldn't really hear what I was listening to unless she got really close.

I mainly got them as my regular earpods always fell out when I was running and I wanted to be able to hear my surroundings. The proprietary charger is a bit annoying, but they usually charge pretty fast and last me ~5-6 10km runs before they report the battery as low. (~4.5-5.5 hrs). They'd probably last longer indoors as you wouldn't need to turn them up as much.

I'd say the only real negative for me is that I should have gotten the smaller size, the normal ones are slightly too big for me so I occasionally need to push them back.

To clarify, I definitely prefer other headphones for sound quality when sitting at a desk etc. I've only used them a few times for non-running situations. I'd say give it a shot, you can always return them?

I have the aftershokz something or another. They do what they say on the tin, but ultimately I don't use them very often anymore.

The sound is mid. It's fairly tinny, and not much base (probably for the best - base through your cheekbone isn't the best idea). Fine for podcasts, OK for music.

The main two reasons I stopped using them very much is 1) they aren't very loud, and of course your ear is completely open. That means that even if I'm just jogging next to a road, it can be hard to hear what I'm playing. If I put them on max volume, they actually kinda physically hurt due to the strength of vibration.

Two is that they had a unusual port - they're waterproof, so use magnetic induction charging - which was slightly annoying when pretty much everything else I have is USB-C at the time. I still use them for long hikes.

Overall, they're useful when you want to have your ears completely open and still have some audio playing, or have an extreme dislike for traditional ear plugs.

I used to have some, of what brand I do not remember. I and my wife found them irritating to be around as you can generally hear what people are listening to, and I don’t think we have super hearing. I haven’t found that to be the case with AirPod pros for comparison. The sound quality as a user was fine though.

Audio quality is low, no bass. Great transparency and much easier to pull the headphones down for a conversation. No ear pressure like in ears and generally feel more grounded to what’s happening around me. Fine for going out and being around people. Terrible if you’re looking for noise cancellation or good sound quality. I prefer them for phone calls.

I think they’re fine for their intended use. Obviously bad for things like airplanes. You can wear ear plugs and they’ll still work if you really want to stretch your dollar.

If you're looking for an earbud-style headphone that lets you hear the world around you and doesn't actually stick in your ear, I would take a look at the Cleer ARCs! I have the ARC Sport IIs, specifically. They have much better sound quality than bone conduction headphones, and they don't "leak" sound as much, either.

I have a pair of bone conduction headphones for swimming. They're functional enough for listening to audiobooks or podcasts, but they don't actually sound very nice. I would be sad to actually listen to music with them regularly.

My wife stumbled upon some open ear headphones called "Baseus Bowie MC1 Pro" that are surprisingly great. Not what you asked for, but they don't bleed noise and you can hear around you. I got my own pair after trying hers and realized I don't sweat with them like I do other ear buds. Sound quality isn't perfect but pretty good, but absolutely useless on a plane due to the noise. Use them for every workout now.

I'm also a one-earbud-er. I tried one of the bone conduction headphones for a while and they generally were fine audio-wise but the problem I ran into is that most of them aren't adjustable at all. I guess I have a big head as the ones I got barely fit me. If I looked up/down I'd get one of them covering my ear or pulling free, then eventually the things snapped. Granted, I got a cheap one as I wasn't sure about the bone conduction thing, but even looking at expensive ones I had trouble finding ones that are adjustable.

I was in the same boat as you—very intrigued by the concept. The idea of having my ears completely open to my surroundings while still listening to music or a podcast. I bought a pair of Aftershokz (now called Shokz) headphones to try them out.

• Situational Awareness: This is the main selling point, and it absolutely delivers. It's not like transparency mode on other earbuds, which can sometimes sound artificial.

• No Ear Fatigue: There's nothing in your ear canal, so there's none of that pressure or discomfort that can come from in-ear buds after a while. They just rest on your cheekbones in front of your ears.

• Comfort (Long-Term): While they were fine for a 30-minute walk, I found that after an hour or so, the constant pressure from the pads on my cheekbones and the subtle vibration started to give me a unique kind of tension headache. It wasn't a sharp pain, but a dull, persistent ache that would linger even after I took them off. This is obviously a very personal thing—many people use them for hours with no issue—but for me, it was a consistent problem.

• Sound Quality: It's okay, but you have to manage your expectations. Because they work by vibrating your bones, the sound, especially bass, is significantly weaker and less rich than what you'd get from traditional headphones. For podcasts and audiobooks, they're perfectly fine. For music, it can sound a bit thin and lacking in depth. If you're an audiophile, you will likely be disappointed.

Would I Recommend Them?

It's a qualified "maybe." I would recommend them to someone who:

1. Likes not having in ear earbuds.
2. Primarily listens to spoken-word content like podcasts or audiobooks.
3. Has tried them and does not experience the headache issue I did.

For my personal use case, the headaches were a dealbreaker. I went back to just using a single Sennheiser earbud, which for me is the perfect compromise. I still have one ear totally free to hear my surroundings, but I get better sound quality and no head pressure.

I have a cheap model that is no longer available on Amazon. I use them for listening to audiobooks and very casually listening to music while doing quiet chores. Also, exercising where the music is there to get me in the groove to move, rather than to be fully listened to. The sound quality you're going to get will vary by brand and quality/price. My coworker swears by her Shokz but I think it might depend on the model. Mine are mostly garbage but they're fine for my purposes and they're resilient.

They are comfortable to wear for several hours at a time. I find that my ear... junction? gets sore from the vibration more than from wearing the headphones themselves. I also wear glasses, so there are a few pressure areas to take into account. I've heard they can contribute to ear wax compaction so that could be something to consider.

Mine have some sound leakage according to my partner. However, he says he can't really understand what's being listened to. I'm not sure if that's because it's transmitting vibrations or if it's because I listen to my audiobooks at 3x speed. Perception of exterior sound can be a bit wonky when you're wearing them, but you'll generally hear stuff you're going to need to hear, like traffic noise. Mine are generally very secure on my head.

Overall, I recommend them for: best feeling of safety when moving outside relative to other available types of headphones; casual listeners where your comfort is more important than sound quality.