Aftershokz has been in the running headphones game for a couple of years now,
and in that time it had one goal: to build an open headphones you can run cycle and work out with,
all without entirely blocking out the world around you.
the Aftershokz Aeropex is the latest in an acclaimed line of the bone conduction headphones.
welcome back, this is Adam - and you're watching #FamilyPopTV youtube channel.
for those unfamiliar with the concept the bone conduction headphones play sound by sending vibration through your cheekbones,
intentionally leaving your ears open so you can have conversations or listen out for sounds like traffic.
as such they're well suited to runners, bikers and gym goers, as well as to people with hearing loss,
since they work by circumventing your eardrum,
they might allow you to hear your music more clearly than other headphone models that you place in or around your ears.
the technology behind the device is radically different from what the headphone brands such as Sennheiser, Bose and AKG have traditionally dished up,
and after trying it i was hooked.
let's see what's in the box:
what we got here: "be open"
that's clever - it's not just a box which wants to be opened,
this actually refers to the open ears, as you can see at the photo inside.
right, here's the silicon carrying case with the magnetic flap and inside we got manuals
and two propriety cables that magnetically latches to the water sensing charging pins.
i am glad Aftershokz included a second cable in box that means i can keep one on my desk
and one in a little carry case which is the way it needs to be if you offer a propriety charger.
Aftershokz knows that, so they give in a spare cable.
we also got here a two earplugs,
and finally, here we go the Aeropex headphones,
these are ultra thin and very lightweight - look at that!
here's the charge connector and volume up and down buttons,
the volume up button also serves as a power on off button and as a manual connectivity reset,
we'll discuss the use of it later in this video,
and here's the noise cancelling microphone,
here's the multifunction button or action button, which does the play / pause and skip songs,
when you not listen to music this multifunction button can be used to re-dial the last number,
if i double tap on the action button it will dial up the last number called.
i'm sure this feature could be useful.
the Aeropex headphones rely on fingertip sized transducers,
the effect is crystal clear sound and you also have the benefit of having your ear free when someone wants to talk to you,
eliminating the need to take out a pair of buds.
Aftershokz claims, that the new transducers have better sound quality than its predecessors;
when i was listening to music with the Aeropex, the sound was clear and crisp,
but if the transducers moved away from the bone the sound can turn a bit hollow.
i'll try to give you an insight on how this Aeropex headphones sound like.
since they have no speakers and produce sound via vibrations i was unable to properly chart the frequency performance,
but it gives a crystal clear mids and high frequencies,
but it won't give you a massive thumping beat.
let's have a look this is the original sound - and that's how you would hear it using professional grade studio headphones:
and here's the same music clip - and how i hear it via Aftershokz Aeropex:
it kind of cuts off the very bottom range of the frequency,
but i have to admit the sound is exactly what i want: crisp and clear,
but more importantly the concept of bone conduction eliminates the problem of having a headphone stuck in your ear,
that restricts natural sound flow,
and on the top of that these are probably most comfortable headphones i ever had in my life!
still, i'm surprised by the sound quality here.
if you're not sure what i'm talking about try to wear these - or these for a straight couple of hours...
for those who take physical activity to a deeper level, Aeropex are completely sweatproof and waterproof
and submersible up to 1 meter deep for around 30 minutes.
talking of which, the Aftershokz doesn't recommend to use Aeropex while swimming.
right, i had to check this out myself so i took my Aeropex to the swimming pool.
it worked absolutely fine never dropped a signal until i decided to dive a bit,
it decreased the bluetooth range a bit.
and this is due to laws of physics, as water molecules attenuate the signal,
so when you would use your Aeropex for scuba diving just keep this in mind.
the Aeropex are available in four colors: black (actually it's cosmic black), blue eclipse, solar red and lunar grey.
battery life: Aeropex claims 8 hours of power through constant usage - and they deliver.
it's actually a challenge for me to train these in a full day of use which is incredible given the size of the headphones,
by the way, the full charge gave me around 13 hours of use. i'm so impressed!
the Aeropex has kind of smart assistant to help the pairing process after sharks calls the system "Audrey".
the first time you power up the Aeropex, you get a friendly voice walking you through the powering process:
[Audrey]: "welcome to Aftershock. battery high."
it's a friendly enough system and while i didn't really need the help, because the setup was very intuitive,
i'm sure it could be useful for a lot of users.
you can pair two devices to these headphones and they can seamlessly switch between them.
that's always a welcome feature.
it allows you to listen to music on ipad and pick up a call on your phone without toggling the bluetooth settings for instance.
it works with literally any device or music player which has bluetooth connectivity,
however, when switching between devices i had to manually reset the bluetooth in my headphones a few times,
this is a very simple task, so when your smartphone or computer won't see the Aeropex headphones,
or you would encounter any connectivity issues,
just turn the headphones off by long press the volume (+) button,
then press and hold it again, but this time for around 7 seconds,
then you will hear the "beep" sound and the short vibrations and the led indicator will flash red and blue,
which means it's been reset and could be paired to your device.
check it out if you want something more specialized to stand in for your everyday headphones during fitness sessions,
we got affiliate links in this video description where you could find the Aeropex for the really good price.
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i'll see you next week - that was Adam - and you watched #FamilyPopTV youtube channel.