If you’ve done any wireless earbuds shopping lately, you’ve likely noticed a new design category cropping up everywhere. They’re called open earbuds (or open-ear buds, depending on the brand), and just about every audio brand has a pair (or three). They come in a slew of styles, but most either loop around your ears like older Beats buds, or clip on like funky-futuristic earrings. Whatever the style, they're designed to deliver satisfying sound while keeping your ear canals open to the sounds of the world around you.

Open earbuds are a natural fit for staying aware during outdoor activities like jogging, hiking, and especially cycling, where the tiny microphones in traditional buds are rendered useless by wind. They don't sound as full or detailed as regular earbuds, but the best open earbuds can sound quite good.

Buying such a specified item might seem extravagant when buds with noise-canceling and transparency modes work in the vast majority of scenarios. That was my stance at first, too. Like many things in life: sometimes you need to try something in real life to see if you'll like it. Over the last year or so, I’ve gone from open earbuds skeptic to evangilizer—and now I can’t imagine living without them.

That New Sound