I’m sure you’ve heard about open-ear headphones by now. They are the latest fixation in the headphones market, and they’ve been getting better each year. And 2026 might be the year when they really make an impact.
The trajectory of open-ear headphones is not too dissimilar to true wireless earbuds. When wireless earbuds launched, the sound was fine, but there were a lot of technical hurdles; the design was constantly evolving, and the feature set was limited. Every year, there’s been progress, hurdles not so much clambered over but sprinted through.
With open-ear headphones, an offshoot of true wireless earbuds, much of the technical foundation was already in place. It’s the design of the headphones that makes things tricky, as it is both a blessing and a curse.
Too much noise
Open-ear headphones, by definition, let the sounds from the outside world in. The earphones nestle in your ear without covering it up, or sit around the ear in an over-ear hook design.
You’ve got air conduction solutions (which fire sound towards the ear), or bone conduction efforts (give your cranium a tickle to create sound). There are advantages and disadvantages, but the obvious disadvantage is that by letting sound in, there’s no way to protect your ears against noise pollution.
And the outside world is very loud. The London Underground (or Metro, wherever you hail from), or just walking around a city, tends to be accompanied by loud sounds: large groups of people, piercing sirens, and more. And it’s not great for our ear health.
It’s in part why noise-cancelling headphones have become so popular for blocking out the world, but people also don’t want to lose their connection to the world around them, which is why open-ear headphones have grown in popularity.
You can wear them and still have a conversation, still be attached to your surroundings. They’ve even become something of a fashion accessory; a stylish piece of audio hardware masquerading as jewellery.
But there remains the issue of noise, and how to deal with it. I remember reviewing a pair of Huawei FreeBuds that said they came with noise-cancellation to block out sounds. They weren’t very good, and didn’t come close to achieving what they tried to do; but the kernel of the idea was there, though Huawei were a little ahead of time.
It was when the Apple AirPods 4 ANC launched that more potential was unlocked by the open-ear design. The noise suppression is more reduction rather than cancellation, reducing rather than getting rid of them. I have a feeling that 2026 will see many more brands joining Apple by offering open-ear headphones with noise cancellation.
But that’s only one part of the problem with open-ears. The other issue is that they didn’t sound very good.
The audio is getting better too
I’ve tested a few open-ear headphones, though I’ve been tardy in getting reviews published. But I can say that they sound a lot better than they did five years ago.
The Bose Ultra Open Earbuds are one of the best I’ve tried. Clear in the highs, detailed in the midrange, what they lacked was a firm bass output, but I suspect that when the sequel comes out, Bose will have come up with a solution for that. They engineered the first open-ear headphone that sounded genuinely good.
And open-earphones have only gotten better. The Honor Earbuds Open are much better than I anticipated, with their warm sound and decent bass reproduction. The Panasonic RB-F10 sound very good with their wide soundstage and strong bass reproduction. Whisper it, but they’re edging closer and closer to their true wireless siblings.
They won’t surpass them, I don’t think. The limitations of the technology mean there’s always a barrier to how much bass they produce and how sharp and clear those high frequencies can be. The audio brands that deliver the best sound will do so by bringing new tech and clever tuning to the market.
Having heard some open-ear headphones coming in 2026, I’m confident that the best is yet to come. Put the improved tuning with the sound and noise-cancelling together, and you’ve got a combination that will have wide appeal.
