TOZO OpenBuds Review

I recently reviewed the OpenReal open-air neckband headphones from TOZO, and it totally sold me on the concept. They really surprised me, and I’m willing to keep being suprised by more TOZO products. The OpenBuds are similar to the OpenReal, but they’re true wireless earbuds instead of neckband headphones. They actually cost a bit more than the OpenReal at $69.99, which is still a very affordable price. Let’s see if they’re just as good.

What You Get

• TOZO Openbuds Wireless Earbuds
• Charging Case
• Charging Cable
• Quick Guide & User Manual

Look & Feel

My favorite part about these earbuds is the adjustable ear hooks. They make the fit feel very versatile, especially considering the style of housing the OpenBuds posses. In terms of design, the OpenBuds aren’t anything that special, but it’s perfectly fine for the price.

Design & Functionality

Like the OpenReal, the OpenBuds posses pretty sizable drivers. They have 14.2mm dynamic units, and feature TOZO’s ORIGX acoustic technology. This tech is used to keep the sound isolated to you, preventing leakage. While there’s still some audible sound that can be heard, it’s miniscule compared to other bone conduction or open-air earbuds. There’s a good touch interface on the left and right panels that feels very responsive, and the apps has a good amount of features including EQ. However, the EQ isn’t very customizable and only offers a couple of presets.

Bluetooth

The OpenBuds offer Bluetooth version 5.3 for fast pairing and exceptioanly stable connection. Only standard CODECs are supported.

Battery Life

You’ll be able to get a total of 42 hours of playtime from the OpenBuds, which is awesome for the price.

Soundstage

Now that I’m more familiar with these open ear designs, I know what I should come to expect. The OpenReal was more of a neckband headphone, and the OpenBuds are more true wireless. These buds do mostly everything that I liked about the OpenReal. It’s surprisingly wide, with a wingspan that feels bigger than you’d expect. You have individual instruments that come through the mix with elegant layering and good separation, however, you don’t get as much of the room that the OpenReal is able to portray. Everything still feels like a bubble, presenting spatial imaging non-linearly for deeper immersion.

Low End

From what I’ve experienced, open earphones like the OpenBuds shouldn’t be expected to house a ton of bass. However, the OpenBuds are capable of more than you might expect. You get more body to the overall tone here, and it’s more balanced with the rest of the sound signature. There’s more volume to bass instruments, giving them more clarity, but the response could still use more legs. The bass could be something special if it just had some support from underneath, but no harm is done by the timbre that the lows already exhibit.

Mids

Most of the midrange frequencies act well throughout the mix. Instruments are more emphasized in the low-mids, giving certain performances like metal guitars a bit more life. It features little recession in the middle, but you can tell they’re is more artificial coloration than pure detail. This makes these mids less roomy, but it’s what I’ve come to expect from true wireless earbuds over the years. With that said, there is a lot of vocal clarity here, and it really makes most tracks pop. It’s where the crisper textures hide, and it makes them cut through the sound signature with more force.

Highs

Nothing about the highs stick out too significantly, but everything stays pretty smooth. You get a good splash from cymbals, with some average height and texture, but the frequencies don’t posses much gain in general. The OpenBuds play it safe, and you can’t fault them for it when the timbre is still clean and unobtrusive.

Summary

The OpenBuds are another win for TOZO, who constantly gives you reliable and good sounding Bluetooth earphones that are very affordable. I’ve only grown more interested to see what can be done with open-air earphones, and if we keep getting entries like the OpenBuds, the future looks bright.

The TOZO OpenBuds are available from Amazon.