Lucyd Lyte Bluetooth sunglasses, a pair of sunglasses with built-in off-ear headphones, were tested in March 2021. Because their modest built-in speakers are practically as loud to everyone else as they appear to be to you. Lucyd Lyte failed to impress. Today, we’ll take a glance just at AfterShokz Titanium and AfterShokz Air, lovely bone-conduction headphones. Which were strongly praised on the review’s comments page.
Open Source, unobstructed ears
I bought one from each of the Titanium and Air in early March have been using them on a routine basis since then. Bone-conduction headphones aren’t just for. But they’re perfect for people who want a unique blend of comfort, environmental awareness, and improved sanitation. When examining items like the Titanium and the Air, the whole first question you must ask yourself is “why?” $80 is a good price. When contrasted to Skullcandy’s $40 wireless earbuds. The earlier Titanium model is already quite pricey—and this only gets harder if you want the newest AfterShokz Air variant, which costs $120 right now.
The Titanium and the Air have a lot of appeals because they don’t go in or on your ears. With a loop that goes over each ear and a little band that wraps over the back of the head, they’re worn like backward sunglasses. This is a significant ease and hygiene victory if you struggle from near-terminal ear sweatiness using traditional earbuds and/or headphones.
The bone-conduction design of AfterShokz is also a huge functional enhancement for individuals who need to maintain their eyes and focus on the road. It’s much simpler to talk with others around you, catch key traffic signs when running or riding bikes, and so on if you have clear ears.
On the other hand, noise exposure might easily distract you from your work. This is less of an issue than you could ever imagine about bone conduction “centers” the sound cognitively, and it was typically fairly easy to tell. The difference between ambient audio and content, with minimal trouble avoiding the earlier and focusing on the others.
Both kinds of AfterShokz include foam earplugs if you need to shut out the outside world, although. This reduces or eliminates the real worth of the headphones’ open-ear design. Lightly putting a fingertip over the ear nearest to the nuisance was enough to reduce the rare loud intrusion—an unmuffled vehicle speeding by, a barking puppy, or an exceptionally loud neighboring discussion.
Moderate audio level
When it comes to music, neither the AfterShokz model can compete with traditional earbuds and headphones. The AfterShokz headphones are loud enough to dance to and have crystal clear audio—but the bass response is severely limited, and full-range music on an AfterShokz is undeniably dull and uninspiring.
Thankfully, all models’ audio profiles are well-suited to replicating natural human speech, so podcasts, phone calls, audiobooks, and voice navigation sound fantastic. The bone-conduction transmission makes audio playing seem centered “within” your skull, making it simpler to distinguish between content and ambient noise than you may anticipate. Both versions have outstanding microphone quality. Calls picked up practically no noise level in my tests, which is much less than the built-in mic on our Pixel 2XL.
Long Battery Backup
For both the Air and Titanium variants, AfterShokz claims “six hours of continuous music + calls on a single battery charge.” During my testing. I easily surpassed it, with the battery level dropping by roughly 10% each hour when listening to podcast upon a podcast on extended vehicle journeys.
The backup time also was good, with AfterShokz promising up to 20 days of battery lasts, which sounds cautious. A Titanium headset that had been left off the charger for a week still showed a 90 percent charge. It takes a little less than two hours to fully charge a depleted headset.
The same $40 Skullcandy wireless earbuds we discussed before give 24 hours each charge, so this isn’t even close to “highest quality” or “best value.” However, the AfterShokz versions are more than enough for most applications.
Functions
The controls on the Air and Titanium are the same: a huge “multifunctional button” on the left earphone and power/volume-up and volume-down buttons under the right earphone. Just under the volume-change buttons is a rubberized cover that conceals the charging connector.
The multifunction button. When pressed once, pauses or restarts audio playing, answers or ends a call, or answers call-waiting and places. The current caller is on hold, depending on the situation. Long-pressing the button for two seconds rejects. The call starts voice dialing, or answers call waiting and hang up on the current caller, and double-pressing. It for two seconds skips to the next song or 30 seconds in a podcast or audiobook.
Two seconds of long-pressing the power/volume-up button turns both models on or off; five seconds permits Bluetooth connection.
Air Model vs Titanium Model
The Air and Titanium both deliver the same audio quality and battery life in my intensive testing. The main distinction between the variants is the Air’s smaller, lighter band, which some users prefer. Moreover, in the newer Air model, the beep while adjusting the level is much louder—to the point that I found it unpleasant.
Despite being noticeably lighter than the Titanium, the Air seemed less adaptable. Some users will wish to alter the pressure point of the headset every two or three hours when wearing either of the headphones for more than two or three hours constantly to avoid annoyance. I discovered that Titanium could be used in a wider range of postures. The Air type makes it a superior choice for long-term comfort. That, along with the Titanium’s softer volume adjustment beep, made it the preferable pick for me.
Of course, individual users may have varying viewpoints first purchased. A Titanium and an Air, and my wife and daughter (who eventually purchased her own) preferred the Air.
Final Words
Unless you don’t have a strong aversion for traditional earbuds or headphones. It’s difficult to justify the Air or Titanium—they’re more expensive. Have a shorter battery life, and don’t provide a complete musical range of audio production. However, they excel at audio jobs involving a normal human speech range, and their battery life is sufficient for intensive daily usage.
More significantly, they remain totally out of your ears. Which is the key characteristic that prompted me to purchase them on a trial basis in the first place. After hours of continuous usage, AfterShokz headphones do not leave you with hurting or sweaty ears. The comfortable aspect isn’t fantastic for three or more hours. I find myself wanting to wiggle the headphones around a little—but it’s a significant improvement.
The bone-conduction technology used by AfterShokz does not affect normal hearing, putting them the absolute opposite of noise-canceling headphones. Well with AfterShokz headphones on, you’ll be able to hear every conversation. A car passing by, and child mischief going on around you. I wouldn’t cycle with earphones in, but both types are perfect for combining a bike commute with the newest installment. A favorite podcast or serially published audiobook.
