The open-style Oladance OWS 2 earbuds are designed for sporting use and don't fit directly in the ... [+]
Recently, there’s been a trend in the earbud industry towards open designs. This style of earbud hooks over the wearer’s ears and plays audio into the ears without needing to be placed directly in the ear. The concept is a relatively recent development designed for sporting use and where the wearer needs to be alert to what is happening around them while still enjoying their favorite music.
The Oladance OWS 2 is a new open earbud design that fuses traditional TWS wireless technology with regular and bone conduction mics. The OWS 2 earpieces sit just outside the wearer’s ear canal without blocking the opening so the wearer can still hear traffic, travel announcements or anything else important. The OWS 2 are also rated at IPX4 for withstanding drizzle or light rain.
I’ve reviewed open-style earbuds before and not been too impressed, mainly because this style of earbud doesn’t produce an acoustic seal and can’t create a volume loud enough. Open earbuds are micro loudspeakers held close to the wearer’s ear. Because of this, they need more power and a larger driver to produce a sound that can compete with traditional earbud designs.
The OWS 2 earbuds from Oladance can be stored in their charging case, which doesn't have its own ... [+]
The Oladance OWS 2 are probably the first open earbuds to convince me the concept has a future. Thanks to large 16.5mm dynamic drivers, the OWS 2 can produce more volume than most other open earbud designs. The earbuds include a charging case that doesn’t have a battery; it merely functions as a cradle for charging the batteries built into each earpiece. Should you want a case that can charge the earbuds, Oladance sells one as an optional accessory that can hold up to 95 hours of playing time.
These earbuds could easily be mistaken for old Bluetooth headsets. As well as the earpieces housing the drivers, the earbuds have a hook that goes over the wearer’s ear and links to the battery housing. The earbuds incorporate capacitive touch controls for pausing and playing the music, skipping tracks or summoning a voice assistant.
The touch controls on each earbud can be fully customized to suit the user’s needs by using the Oladance smartphone app. With a full charge, the OWS 2 can play for up to 19 hours before they need to be put back into their storage case and recharged. A complete charge takes up to two hours, so placing them on charge the night before a workout might be a good idea.
The OWS 2 earbuds have two parts, one for the driver and the other for the battery. Both pieces are ... [+]
Some open-style earbuds on the market can be uncomfortable because they cannot bend or rotate to fit the wearer’s ear position. Fortunately, Oladance has made the OWS 2 much more adjustable with a five-point adjustment so they can comfortably fit almost anyone’s physiognomy. Wand with each earpiece weighing just 12.7g, they are light enough not to get in the way or be uncomfortable when exercising.
The Oladance OWS 2 earbuds use the latest Bluetooth 5.3 to transmit the audio signal wirelessly. However, the OWS 2 are limited to the basic SBC audio codec; there’s no support for AAC, aptX or LDAC. Using SBC could be a deliberate decision to boost the battery life as hi-res codecs tend to gobble up battery charge quite quickly.
Ordinarily, I would advise anyone to avoid buying earbuds that don’t support a better-quality audio codec. However, because the OWS 2 are intended to be worn outside the ear during exercise, the absence of an audiophile-quality codec isn’t a big issue. The wearing style makes these earbuds fine, even though they are limited to SBC.
Open-style earbuds like the Oladance OWS 2 are designed for sporting use.
The overall sound quality of these earbuds is surprisingly good and far ahead of any similar open earbuds on the market, even with that SBC limitation. There’s plenty of bass on offer, which is unusual with an open design. The midrange produces excellent vocals and podcasts while the treble reproduction is not as focused as some closed earbuds, but it’s less of an issue with this style of wearing. I think the sound produced by the OWS 2 is about as good as it gets in an open style.
The OWS 2 earbuds have microphones built into each earpiece and function well on phone and video calls. The pickup quality is clear and does an excellent job of suppressing unwanted background noise. If you have enough puff to take a phone call while running, the OWS 2 will serve you well.
Verdict: If you are looking for a pair of open-style earbuds that lend themselves to sporting use, the Oladance OWS 2 are about as good as this kind of earbud gets. Although the OWS 2 are limited to using the basic SBC audio codec, the sound quality is excellent and while it won’t excite audiophiles, they do a great job for most people. The adjustable fit of the OWS 2 is superb and if you’ve been put off in the past by how open earbuds fit, it’s worth giving them a closer look because Oladance has cracked the open problem. These aren’t earbuds for everyone, but for anyone doing sports who needs to be aware of their surroundings, the OWS 2 are a good bet.
Pricing & Availability: The Oladance OWS 2 open earbuds are available now in grey, red, black or white finishes. The price of the OWS 2 is $149.99.
More info: www.oladanceshop.com
Tech Specs:
- Design: Open ear.
- Drivers: 16.5mm.
- Audio codec: SBC.
- Bluetooth version: 5.3.
- Multipoint connection: Yes.
- Battery life: 19 hours.
- Controls: Touch.
- Smartphone app: Yes.
- Earbud weight: 12.7g each.
- Total weight: 60g.
- Dimensions: 130 x 48 x 26.5mm.
