rss-bridge 2026-02-28T13:30:14+00:00

Shokz OpenFit Pro Review: Open Earbuds With the One Thing You’ve Always Wanted

Shokz OpenFit Pro envision a world where open-style earbuds have their own version of noise cancellation—and it actually feels possible.

[Gizmodo Editor’s Choice 2026 Badge]

Wireless earbuds aren’t an easy space to innovate in—and not for lack of trying. It’s not that there’s nothing more to be squeezed out of the form factor; it’s the fact that there are probably enough pairs across generations and brands to blanket the moon (that’s not a real fact, so don’t hold me to that). That means a lot has been attempted in the space, and not all of it is worth holding onto.

On the other hand, it also means that when something genuinely new does come around, it’s all the more exciting, and to me, Shokz OpenFit Pro achieve that genuinely new feeling.

4.0

Shokz OpenFit Pro

The Shokz OpenFit Pro give open-style earbuds an ANC-like noise reduction feature and also sound great.

Pros

Incredible sound, especially with Dolby Atmos

Noise reduction works well in quieter environments

Comfortable and sleek-looking

Calling quality is good

Cons

Noise reduction wilts in louder environments

Might not be as easy to hear as competitors

Noise reduction could be considering the price

Large case

See at Best Buy

Noise reduction, not noise cancellation

When I tried the $250 OpenFit Pro at CES 2026, I was skeptical. Not because Shokz doesn’t make great audio products—they do—but because they were alleging to do the one thing I’ve wanted for years in the open earbud world: make a pair with noise cancellation.

[Shokz Openfit Pro Review 05]

© Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

In case you’re not familiar with open-ear wireless audio products, let me back up for a moment. They’re great for a lot of reasons. They’re comfortable because you don’t have silicone shoved in your ears, they’re great for running and biking because you can still hear your environment, and they’re great for taking calls since you can still hear your own voice as you would normally without (again) something shoved inside your ears.

See Shokz OpenFit Pro at Best Buy

If there’s one major downside, though, it’s that they don’t have active noise cancellation (ANC). Because open-ear wireless earbuds can’t create a tight seal in your ears with ear tips, ANC has been mostly off the table. Shokz, however, clearly took that limitation as a challenge and gave the OpenFit Pro the next best thing—noise reduction. While Shokz stops short of calling noise-blocking features on the OpenFit Pro ANC, it definitely has a similar effect.

As soon as noise reduction is turned on in the OpenFit Pro, there’s a noticeable dimming of ambient sound. In an office setting, the effect is significant. I tried the OpenFit Pro while my colleagues and I were busy clacking away at our keyboards, and the second I activated noise reduction, I was suddenly a lot more locked in to my music. Keystrokes were less present, chatter was muffled, and I was free to listen to music or a podcast more intently.

[Shokz Openfit Pro Review 10]

© Raymond Wong / Gizmodo

As skeptical as I was that open-style earbuds could provide anything even close to ANC, Shokz has definitely done it. With that said, however, this is not ANC, and there’s a reason why Shokz doesn’t call it that. Noise reduction does a good job of dampening sounds around you, but it won’t hold up to louder environments like other, more traditional wireless earbuds and headphones, which create a seal in (or around) your ears.

I gave the Shokz OpenFit Pro an obligatory test on the subway, and while it definitely reduced some noise, they were still no match for train screeches and rumbling. Like any other pair of open-ear wireless earbuds, I found myself having to crank the volume in order to compete. In some ways, I actually find them less suitable for loud environments compared to open-ear, clip-style earbuds like the Soundpeats Clip1, because the speaker element sits a bit farther away from your ear, meaning the sound is slightly less direct.

In lower-to-medium-loud settings is where the OpenFit Pro shine, though. In offices, walking on a less busy street, and sitting around at my apartment with cats and my partner doing their thing, the OpenFit Pro definitely gave me a bit of a buffer—just a slight hedge against ambient noise when I wanted it. And when the noise reduction was off, I could hear almost as well as I would had I not been wearing them. For what it’s worth, you can also adjust the level of noise reduction with a slider in the Shokz app for whatever your noise-reducing occasion may be.

The bottom line is that the OpenFit Pro don’t have ANC, and if you’re looking for a pair of earbuds that give you maximum protection from outside noise, these aren’t your pick. If you’re okay with a middle ground that gives you a little bit of a bubble when you need it, then the OpenFit Pro might just be the open-ear wireless earbuds you’ve been waiting for.

They sound fantastic

I’ll just get straight to the point: I think the OpenFit Pro sound fantastic. I was recently impressed by the Soundpeats Clip1, and I’m willing to say that the OpenFit Pro reach parity in sound quality and maybe even outshine the Clip1 at times.

One of the ways that the OpenFit Pro flex on the Clip1 is the inclusion of an “Optimized for Dolby Atmos” toggle in the app. While the Clip1 also have Dolby Atmos for 3D spatial sound, it doesn’t feel anywhere near as immersive as it does on the OpenFit Pro. By switching this feature on, you can listen to any audio content using enhanced Dolby Atmos sound—not just content made specifically for Dolby Atmos. The second you do, everything you listen to instantly gains a greater sense of space, and the whole soundstage gets broadened. I listened to Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over” and was struck by the presence of subtle reverb in the vocals and light percussion in the background of the song panned to one side.

[Shokz Openfit Pro Review 04]

In more bass-centric electronic genres, the OpenFit Pro performed equally as well. I listened to Daft Punk’s “Around the World,” and everything had room to breathe—bass samples felt round and present without overpowering the rest of the mix, and synths bounced back and forth between right and left earbuds just like god intended. Slightly crunchy, robotic vocals sat right in the middle of the mix without getting lost or muddled. I would call the experience “mise en place”—everything in its place.

You could, of course, turn the optimized for Dolby Atmos toggle off, but if you’re looking for the best sound, I don’t see any reason to do that. It’s not that the OpenFit Pro don’t sound good without the Dolby setting on—they do—but they just sound that much better with the added spatiality.

Powering the excellent sound is Shokz’s 11 x 20mm synchronized dual-diaphragm driver, which gets properly loud, though it may sound a bit quieter than competitors like the Clip1, which sit closer to your ear canal. I was able to compete with train noise, though, which means that if you’re wearing these while running or biking like a lot of people are, you should have more than enough volume.

[Shokz Openfit Pro Review 08]

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