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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a pair of open-ear headphones you can wear in the water, on the bike, and on the couch during a long night of TV watching, choose LOBKIN Bone Conduction Swimming; if you need swappable batteries, a lighter-feeling fit for all-day wear, and a second battery ready to go, choose OceanSounds Open Ear Headphones. In my opinion, the LOBKIN set wins for anyone who wants one device that survives sweat, rain, and the pool, while the OceanSounds pair wins for people who treat headphones as a daily companion and hate waiting on a charger. For TV watching specifically, both keep your ears open, but they solve the problem in very different ways — and that difference decides the pick.
• LOBKIN's biggest strength: an IP68 waterproof rating with 32GB of built-in storage, so it plays music with no phone and no Bluetooth signal at all — even underwater.
• LOBKIN's biggest trade-off: it's a bone-conduction hook design with no noise cancellation and no swappable battery, so charging is a fixed 2-hour routine.
• OceanSounds' biggest strength: a swappable battery design with two replaceable magnetic battery modules and a charging case, so you're never tethered to a wall for long.
• OceanSounds' biggest trade-off: no waterproof rating is listed and no built-in memory, so it's a Bluetooth-only headphone for dry-land use.
• Who LOBKIN is for: swimmers, surfers, and cyclists who want one rugged headphone that works with or without a phone.
• Who OceanSounds is for: runners, gym-goers, commuters, and TV watchers who want all-day comfort and instant battery swaps.
The LOBKIN X21 is built around one idea: sound that reaches you through vibration instead of through your ear canal. It's an open-ear hook design with a bone conduction driver, an 8-ohm impedance, a 20 kHz frequency response, and 90 dB sensitivity. Because nothing plugs your ear, you stay aware of traffic, voices, and whatever is happening around you. That's the whole selling point of open-ear audio, and it's why this style has become so popular with cyclists — you hear the car before you see it.
Then there's the spec that separates it from almost everything else in this category: IP68 waterproofing and 32GB of internal memory. That combination means the LOBKIN doesn't need your phone at all. You load your tracks onto the built-in storage, switch to MP3 mode, and swim, surf, or ride with zero connection to anything. Bluetooth 5.4 handles the normal everyday case — pairing to your phone or tablet with low latency — and a noise-canceling microphone keeps calls usable in noisy places. Battery life is 10 hours, and a full charge takes about 2 hours over a magnetic cable.
At 29 grams, it's light for what it does. The frame is flexible titanium alloy that resists bending out of shape, the coating is soft against skin, and the ear tips are memory foam. You get a pair of earplugs in the box, which matters more than people expect: bone conduction sound gets muddy in water, and plugs sharpen it. Buttons handle playback, so there's no touch surface to fight with wet or gloved fingers.
Who should buy it? Swimmers first, obviously — the 10-foot depth rating and MP3 mode are the reason this thing exists. But also cyclists, runners, and anyone who wants a headphone that shrugs off rain and sweat. For TV watching, it's a reasonable pick if you want to hear the room around you or if you're watching on a tablet while you ride a stationary bike. The catch is that open-ear sound leaks, and with no noise control you'll hear your household as much as your show.
OceanSounds Open Ear Headphones: Who It's For
OceanSounds takes the open-ear hook formula and attacks the one weakness every wireless headphone shares: the dead battery. The A-143 ships with two magnetic replaceable battery modules and a charging case. When one module runs down, you swap in the other in seconds and keep listening. That's a genuinely useful design for travel, long outdoor days, and anyone who has ever finished a workout with a dead headphone and no charger nearby.
The fit philosophy is the same as the LOBKIN's: open ear, ear-hook shape, non-in-ear structure, nothing jammed into your canal. OceanSounds leans hard into comfort here, and the numbers back it up — the whole package weighs 120 grams including the case and spare batteries, and the earbuds themselves are designed for all-day wear without the pressure and fatigue that in-ear tips cause. The enclosure is ABS, same as the LOBKIN, and the color is listed as skin.
Connectivity is Bluetooth 5.4, matching the LOBKIN. That means fast pairing, a stable link, and low-latency audio across phones, tablets, and laptops. There's no headphone jack, no noise control, and — importantly — no built-in memory and no listed water-resistance rating. This is a dry-land headphone. Rain and heavy sweat are a question mark, and swimming is out.
Controls appear to be button-based like the LOBKIN, and the box contents tell you what the brand expects you to do: one charging case, two battery modules, two earbuds, and a manual. It also carries a 360-day warranty, which is a longer stated coverage window than the LOBKIN's.
Who should buy it? Runners, walkers, cyclists, gym regulars, commuters, and anyone who wears headphones for hours at a stretch. For TV watching, the swappable battery is the standout feature — you can binge an entire series without hunting for a cable mid-episode, and the open design keeps you aware of the room. If you've been hunting for the best rechargeable over-ear-style experience in an open-ear body, this is the closest thing here.
Who should skip it? Swimmers, surfers, and anyone who wants to leave their phone behind. Without storage or a water rating, it can't do what the LOBKIN does.
• Best for swimming and water sports → LOBKIN. IP68, 10-foot depth, MP3 mode. There's no contest.
• Best for battery flexibility → OceanSounds. Two swappable modules and a charging case beat a single fixed 10-hour cell.
• Best for leaving your phone at home → LOBKIN. 32GB of internal storage holds a huge library with no connection needed.
• Best for all-day comfort → OceanSounds. The non-in-ear, ear-hook build is explicitly designed for long wear without fatigue.
• Best for cycling → LOBKIN, narrowly. Both stay secure on ear hooks, but the LOBKIN is the one rated to survive rain and sweat.
• Best for TV watching on the couch → OceanSounds. Swap the battery and keep going; you won't interrupt a binge to charge.
• Best for noisy households → neither, honestly. Neither has noise cancellation, so both let ambient sound in. If that's your priority, look at ANC Bluetooth earbuds instead.
• Best for travel → OceanSounds. A charging case plus spare batteries is a better travel kit than a single magnetic cable.
I'd buy the LOBKIN Bone Conduction Swimming. In my opinion, the IP68 rating plus 32GB of standalone storage makes it the more capable device — it does everything the OceanSounds does on land, and it keeps working when you're wet or phoneless. That's a lot of extra utility for one purchase. The OceanSounds is the smarter choice if you'll never get it wet and you want to stop thinking about charging, especially for TV watching marathons. But if I had to pick one, I'd take the headphone that can't be killed by a pool.
FAQ
Yes. It carries an IP68 rating and is engineered for extended time at depths around 10 feet. Just remember to switch from Bluetooth to MP3 mode once you're underwater, since water blocks the Bluetooth signal.
They do. The package includes a charging case and two magnetic replaceable battery modules, so you can swap one out and keep listening instead of waiting on a charge.
Both work, since both connect over Bluetooth 5.4 to a TV, tablet, or laptop. The OceanSounds is the better fit for long sessions because of the swappable battery, while the LOBKIN suits viewers who want to stay aware of the room or watch while exercising.
That depends on how you'll use it. If you want water resistance, built-in storage, and a rugged build, the LOBKIN is the better buy. If you want swappable batteries, longer stated warranty coverage, and all-day comfort, the OceanSounds wins. Check the current price on Amazon for both before deciding.
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