Oladance - OWS 2

**First**, I do believe that there are a lot of benefits of staying connected and present when playing (more thoughts below). If you **MUST**, anything open form, and my overall recommendation is the Shokz OpenDots One based on (a) relative sound quality over other open form earbuds, (b) comfortable and stable fit, (c) mic quality, and (d) ability to use while still hearing enough of outside world and wearable with sunglasses. Further details below. As noted, while not ideal IMO, if you are looking for outdoor earbuds that still allow environmental awareness, my go-to recommendation is the relatively new Shokz OpenDots One. They clip on the outside of your earlobe (looks like an earring). It holds on quite well (I’ve done the shake head test, and also use them extensively on my e-board, and have never lost one, have only ever come off when I am changing a shirt). They can be worn without getting in the way of hats or headbands and importantly when wearing eyeglasses or sunglasses, have decent-ish sound quality (of course, in-ear buds are better), and allow you to hear your surroundings. I prefer them to the Bose Open Ultras, which are more expensive and have maybe the WORST mic quality of any earbuds I have owned. Other pluses of OpenDots One over Bose Open Ultra: wireless charging, better case (secures shut better), less fussy charging (often the Bose Ultras will not fully connect, and you will unknowingly not charge one earbud), iffy connections sometimes with IOS devices (will randomly disconnect and reconnect where the Shokz OpenDots very rarely disconnects), and better total play time on a single charge (Bose has a horrible 7 hours). Another good option is the Oladance OWS 2, which is a good value for the price. However, these go OVER your earlobe, and if you wear glasses (in particular, thicker frames), the fit can be tricky, and I’ve had instances where I’ve worn them on my bike, and my helmet strap has jostled them and sent one earbud flying off. I’d recommend the OWS 2 over the more expensive OWS Pro, as the OWS 2 arguably has better sound and definitely fit better if you wear glasses (or need to wear sunglasses). Still, the earlobe clip versions are the best for when you want to wear eyewear. Also, the OWS 2’s standard case does not charge on its own (needs to be plugged in), and you need to purchase separately a case that can charge on the go…and this case is enormous (won’t fit in normal pant pockets, will need to go old school JNCO jeans to fit). Another option is going the bone conduction route, but honestly, these tend to tickle my inner ear at louder volumes, and the sound isn’t the best. As for pros, nothing beats the IP ratings of bone conduction, and they stay on quite easily as they go around the back of your head and kind of press onto the side of your head to stay on, while also clipping over your year. The Shokz Openrun line is pretty much at the top of most runners lists. I still have mine for when I was still running marathons, and I still keep them for office calls, as the Shokz mics are very good. The sound, however, of *any* bone conduction headphone is going to be materially inferior to just about *any other type of earbud*, although the relatively newer Shokz Openrun Pros are a vast improvement over the earlier iterations, and from what I understand over their competitors. Another plus, is that bone conduction has pretty minimal (read: no) bleed through leakage in terms of sound. With that said, as a glasses wearer and someone who needs sunglasses to properly see during any sunny day, the vibrations caused by the bone conduction tech can shake my glasses and create a funky sensation if not positioned 100% correctly. Also, I did notice that when I used the bone conduction headphones too much, I would get very itchy ears. Once I moved to open earbuds, these itchiness issues subsided. Finally, I do think there are a lot of benefits to staying connected to tennis. As you progress, you want to do everything you can to improve your reaction time to shots and the connection to the ball. Andy Roddick talks extensively about the minute cues that elite players will react to, which is why he dislikes auditory disruptions (but candidly, I feel sometimes both pro players and rec players are sometimes too sensitive to any minor external distraction). Still, you can pick up a lot based on auditory cues, e.g., on the serve (spin v. flat), topspin groundstrokes, or a mishit that can unexpectedly land short for an unintentional drop shot. For this reason, some players will use dampeners to take mitigate these auditory cues. For me, I like the softer thump with the RTP dampeners, but it is a nice plus that it disguises my spin serve (where I’ve tried my best over time to make my spin v. flat serve less obvious, or where I may do a low velocity spin serve but want to disguise the extent I am spinning the ball). I know that some players also like this auditory feedback to feel more connected to their shot. Thus, I typically only listen to anything or music when I am practicing my serves or running conditioning drills. Generally, I won’t even listen to music when I am running drills with a ball machine or against the wall. If anything, and you are playing outdoors, just bring a long a small portable speaker (JBL and UA makes those inexpensive clip on speakers). You are much more likely to still stay connected to the ball and to your opponent. Also, while a remote risk, I can only imagine if you didn’t hear your opponent call out and you proceed to blast a winner or OH in their direction. Even if it was inadvertent and you might have not heard it in time regardless of the earbuds, I am pretty sure that most players would be pretty pissed that you blasted a ball at full speed in their direction and would perceive it as being caused by the earbuds. I don’t like it much when a player who is notorious for not paying attention blasts a shot to my body after an “out” call, and I can only imagine how I would react if they were wearing earbuds, open or not.

As a woman who loves comfy earbuds, I’ve tried a few that really stand out. The Sony LinkBuds are super light and comfortable, and I love that they let me hear everything around me while still enjoying my music or calls. The Oladance Wearable Stereo surprised me with how comfy they are too. They sit outside your ears but stay in place, and the sound quality is impressive.

I really love the LinkBuds open for the same reason as you…I don’t like things blocking my ears and they also cause itching after a short while. The linkbuds are great for that reason. I have both the old and new versions. Both work fine but I actually prefer the original version which for me fit more comfortably than the newer earwing unit. Also the original has a larger opening and hear through is just a bit better. The only issue I have is they tend to fall out easily with more active movement. If I’m doing more active things I use either Oladance or Shokz style earbuds even though both cause fatigue on my ears over time but they don’t fall out! You can get the original LinkBuds on eBay for a good price if you want to try them before spending more for the newer version. The newer version does sound a bit better but I had to request the larger earwing to get a good fit in my left ear.