Review verdict: Xiaomi has gone open-ear with the OpenWear Stereo wireless earbuds in the Philippines. The OpenWear Stereo has a unique (some may say weird) form factor, gives you excellent awareness when you’re out and about, and doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to own. It’s not as loud as say the JBL Soundgear Sense, but for the price you’d be hard-pressed to find better value.

Pros:

• Open-ear design means you can hear everything around you
• Unique design
• Excellent battery life
• Good overall fit

Cons:

• Looks weird
• Audio gets overwhelmed in louder environments

We’re seeing more and more companies coming out with their open-fit headphones over more traditional in-ear ones. Open-fit headphones are the latest audio trend to hit manufacturers, and Xiaomi is the latest one to come out with its entry into the market. Their unique OpenWear Stereo offering has many things going for it, chief of which is its affordable price tag compared to other offerings in the market.

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo Review Philippines: Design

Because of the nature of open-fit designs, their cases are usually significantly bigger than your normal TWS. Xiaomi’s offering isn’t any smaller, though it’s slimmer, which is pretty much par for the course for these headphones. While it is big, it is pocketable though unlike TWS buds you’re going to feel it in your pocket.

As for the case itself, it’s elegantly designed and has a physical pairing button on it. There’s also an LED light that flashes during the pairing process and also lets you know if the battery is about to go.

Moving onto the headsets themselves, their design is, uh, unique. One acquaintance pointed out that they look like tadpoles in the fetal position and I couldn’t get that image out of my head. The large bit of the TWS holds the speaker that pumps sound directly to your ear, and the tail part holds what I assume is part of the battery.

Aside from the weird design, the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo hooks to your ears, although there isn’t any adjustability here. It works for my ear size but people with smaller ears might have a difficult time keeping them on especially if you decide to run with them.

The Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo has an IP54 rating, so it can stand a bit of sweat and rain without suffering any ill effects. I advise against taking these things with you swimming or in the shower though.

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo review Philippines: Software and features

Xiaomi’s open-fit TWS buds have great specs on paper. It uses 17x12mm Elliptical Dynamic Drivers and 10mm Sound Leakage Reduction Drivers for superior audio quality and minimum sound leakage. The earbuds also use 2 mics and AI tech to reduce distortion and unpleasant ambient noise when you’re taking a call.

Since there aren’t sound drivers stuffed in your ear, you can still hear ambient noise around you, making the Xiaomi OpenWear perfect if you’re biking, running, or just generally commuting.

As far as software goes, it uses the same app as the Redmi Buds 5 Pro, which allows you to change up a few things, including gestures, audio effects, and a few beta features. It’s not as customizable or as feature-rich as Xiaomi’s other buds, but it’s hard to do a lot of audio customization with open-fit buds. There’s just too much ambient sound that gets through for that.

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo review Philippines: sound quality and battery

The Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo has good sound quality overall, with the audio being well-balanced, full-bodied, and with slightly punchy bass. I think the biggest issue I found with overall audio quality is volume, as the content that you’re listening to can very easily be overwhelmed with ambient sound, especially in noisy areas like the corner of Ayala Avenue during rush hour.

Being able to hear ambient sound is one of the main appeals for open-fit headphones, though it’s also one of its major downsides. The Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo’s volume doesn’t go high enough to overcome excessively noisy environments, which had me struggling to listen to my favorite podcast as I was walking on the sidewalk. Forget about using this on a plane or other similarly noisy places.

Moving onto battery life, the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo managed to last me around 7 hours before they had to go back to the charging case. The case itself gives a total battery life of 38 hours for my use, which is a lot of play time for something like this. Once the battery is exhausted, you’ll be charging them via a Type-C connector on the case.

Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo review Philippines: verdict and wrap-up

The Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo is an affordable option for anyone who’s looking for an open-fit TWS for running, biking, or commuting. It has some volume problems in really loud environments, but that’s usually the trade-off for devices like this. As it stands, the Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo has a great mix of sound quality and battery life, and despite its odd design, it does its job well.

The Xiaomi OpenWear Stereo is priced at Php 6,199.