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Review cover Mojawa Run Plus Bone Conduction Headphones (Hardware)
Official GBAtemp Review

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Bone-conduction headphones are perfect for outdoor activities, but they're also great for much more.

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Okay, I'll admit it; I'm a tragic mess at directions. My e-biking excursions are frequently marred by my having to screech to a halt, dismount my bike, and pull my phone out of my backpack so that I can figure out where I am. I've tried mounting my phone to my handlebar, but I really don't like having it there, and I've also tried getting Google Maps to play out of a mounted speaker, which gets instantly drowned out if I'm going at any reasonable speed. The solution to my directional woes would be headphones, but it's incredibly dangerous to bike around with your ears blocked, to the point of being illegal in a lot of places. At that point, what can you do? The answer is actually really simple: bone conduction audio. 

Bone conduction headhones are an interesting bit of science-y tech: they utilize vibrations against your skull to play music. Instead of having to plug your ears like earbuds, or wear earcups like headphones, bone conduction headphones just rest around the back of your head, with loops that secure to the tops of your ears. This lets you hear everything around you normally, while also still allowing you to listen to music (or directions) unimpeded. Of course, the biggest contention with bone conduction is the bass they output--or rather, the lack of it. Mojawa, however, has designed a pair of bone conduction headphones that supposedly offer a bass-y sound. Do their Run Plus live up to the claims? 

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Any outdoor activity where you need to be aware of your surroundings, whether it's jogging, biking, or even working, the Run Plus comes in clutch. They have a very slim profile, and they're practically weightless while resting on your head. On either side are two earpieces; one rests behind your ear, while the other rests just a tad away from the inside of your ear. If you pinch the outer part of the earpiece while playing music, you'll be able to feel it vibrate the sound through you. 

Surprisingly, the Run Plus handles lower tones and bass quite well; you definitely lose a little something, but for what they are, it's impressive. Mids are definitely what they handle best, and highs are pretty good, so long as you're not maxing the volume out--if you do, then you might hear some shaky distortion. That distortion, coupled with the audio getting a little muffled by the sounds of wind while biking can dampen things, but you can definitely still hear the bone conduction despite it. They're also thin enough to fit nicely under a helmet without being uncomfortable, too. 

Wildly enough, if you don't like carrying your phone with you at all, Mojawa included 32GB of onboard storage for you to transfer music to the headphones themselves, so you can play MP3 files completely unimpeded. It's a fun feature, and with the on-ear controls, you can skip tracks or change volume without having to mess with a smartwatch or pull your phone out while out running. If you do want to connect them to your phone, they have a solid Bluetooth connection with a respectable range. 

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Even for indoor use, the Run Plus are useful, whether you have sensitive hearing that earbuds might aggravate, or you need to be able to hear a family member call out to you at any time. Being able to hear directions while biking are a highlight to be certain, but I found myself appreciating the ability to listen to music while monitoring my father who might be calling out for medical reasons. 

Another aspect the Mojawa headphones excel at is preventing sound from leaking out. I can have the Run Plus playing fairly loudly with other people in the room and it's difficult to tell what I'm listening to, let alone if at all; it's nice to not have to worry about your music tastes being judged. The Run Plus offer some good battery life as well, netting you about 7 hours of use per charge--great for their size, and enough to the point where I wasn't bothered by having to charge them constantly. They however do use a proprietary charger, which is a shame. 

There's a lot to love with the Mojawa Run Plus, particularly if you lead an active lifestyle. Mojawa has a lot of thoughtful inclusions on the Run Plus, from the sound isolation, to the included 32GB storage. I'm a huge fan of wearing them whenever I go out biking, and they're fun to have on-hand to listen to whenever I don't feel like putting earbuds in. For $139.99, they're higher-end bone conduction headphones, though they do provide a higher-end experience. 

Verdict

What We Liked ...
  • Good bass
  • Stays secure
  • Charges very quickly
  • Super comfortable
  • Great at preventing sound leakage
What We Didn't Like ...
  • Proprietary charger
  • Distorts highs a tad at max volume
9.5
out of 10

Overall

Whether it's for cycling, running, or any outdoor activity, the Mojawa Run Plus does bone-conduction audio wonderfully.
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Reactions: KiiWii, impeeza, Payne and 1 other person
KiiWii
These look great, never tried bone conduction headphones before. Do they tickle/vibrate your innards?

Also: Onboard storage sounds like a great feature!
 
duwen
You definitely need to try out bone conductive 'audio' before committing. In my experience, it "sounds" pretty weak, and for many others it just doesn't work at all.
Fine for phone convos, audio books/podcasts etc, but If you care about any sort of audio fidelity (particularly listening to music), don't even bother.
 
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Reactions: Scarlet
Scarlet
duwen said:
You definitely need to try out bone conductive 'audio' before committing. In my experience, it "sounds" pretty weak, and for many others it just doesn't work at all.
Fine for phone convos, audio books/podcasts etc, but If you care about any sort of audio fidelity (particularly listening to music), don't even bother.
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It's definitely a culture shock coming from decent IEMs. I use the Moondrop Aria as my daily drivers but have a set of Shokz when I'm commuting just so I don't miss car sounds etc. The sound lacks impact, and unless you're wanting it turned all the way up, it's going to be drowned out by external sound at times. I don't see that as a negative myself since I want to be aware of my surroundings.

I love bone conduction, but it's the kinda thing you really need to know you want before buying. I think it's also important to know what kind of band size you're getting too. I had a set of Shokz a few years back and had to give them to my girlfriend because the band was just huge behind my head. Grabbed a new set recently with them doing smaller band sizes as an option and have really got on with them.
 
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