Open Ear Headphones Review: Oladance

What are open ear headphones? #

As the name suggests: your ears are not covered by putting something over them (over-ear) or into them (in-ear). The result is: you can clearly hear the outside world at all times.

Why Oladance? #

In late 2022, when I was looking for a pair of open ear headphones, the selection was very small. I got one of the available styles each and tried them out:

I felt right at home with the Oladance. My wife preferred the bone-conduction headphones and kept them 😄

Why open ear? #

Open ear headphones have some advantages over in-ear and over-ear headphones:

• You can hear what’s going on around you. Can be convenient, pleasant or a safety feature¹ (depending on use.)
• You can hear your own voice, which is not being blocked out.
• Comfort. They are more comfortable over an extended period of time (nothing in or pressing on your ear.)
• Stable. They will not fall off your head (no problem on the trampoline.)

Downsides #

I’ve only found one downside: You can hear what’s going on around you! That can be distracting!

They’re not great on public transport or around construction, crowds of people, big roads, etc. But I’m not in those environments much anymore (if I am I’ll use my noise canceling over-ear headphones.)

My experience #

Open ear headphones shine in quiet environments!

How I make use of them is best described in use cases:

Use case 1: person talks to you

I’m in the kitchen and listening to something. My wife can just walk up and start talking to me. There is not this moment of stopping the audio, taking your headphones off and asking “Huh? What did you say?” and the other person repeating themselves.

Because of the open ear design I understood her the first time. I still might turn off what I was listening to, but I don’t need to (unless it’s very loud.)

Use case 2: listen to something in the background

I’m at home, working or doing something. There are a few different things I might listen to on low volume, passively in the background. That might be a Neurostream, silent subliminal, my philosophy or a language learning piece on a loop. Either way, I can have it conveniently running in the background, while hearing everything else normally.

I live at the edge of a forest, which I visit regularly. With my open ear headphones, I can listen to audiobooks and have calls, while still hearing the calming and satisfying sounds of nature: the birds chirping, my footsteps through the high grass, branches breaking under my feet, the wind blowing past me, etc. It would be the same without the soundscape.

Use case 4: for language learning

To train your speaking ability you will want to: hear a word and then say that word. You need the practice to get your pronunciation right.

Open ear headphones allow me to hear my own voice naturally. I can have my headphones on and listen to an audio course or my vocabulary on the go, repeat what I heard and while hearing my own voice unimpaired.

Sound quality #

Sound quality is good and music will be enjoyable if you don’t have any overwhelming environment noise. Calls are enjoyable for both sides 🙂

Price #

I paid 120€ back in 2022 and that is still the price today. For me it was well worth what I paid.

What model to get today? #

Nowadays there are many more models to choose from. After the first generation, Oladance released a second generation and a pro version. JBL and soundcore also created some more affordable alternatives.

I haven’t looked at what’s available today in detail, but I would probably go with Oladance again, if mine were to break now.

Conclusions #

I’m really happy with my Oladance. They are the pair I use the most out of all my headphones and speakers. They nicely address the described use cases and present a uniquely comfortable and convenient solution.