# Open-Ear Headphones The AfterShokz TREKS Audio Buds Sit Outside the Ear Lobe for Easy Listening By M | Published 2016-06-26 | Tech Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/openear-headphones References: [thegadgetflow](http://thegadgetflow.com/portfolio/aftershokz-trekz-open-ear-bluetooth-headphones/?utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=webfeeds) & [amazon](https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018XNGO5A?tag=trenhunt0f-20) Retail brand AfterShokz is offering consumers an alternative set of [open-ear headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/sony-linkbuds-clip-open) that unconventionally sit outside the ear lobe for easy listening during sport activities. The headphones are ideal for consumers that need to retain hearing of their surroundings during an activity, but still want to listen to music or other media while they move. Often times [ear buds are designed to block](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/jbl-sense-pro) a user's hearing and streamline it so that they only hear through the headphones. While this is ideal for many listening experiences, during a sport activity such as biking, running or hiking having an active awareness of one's surrounding is crucial to one's safety. The TREKZ headphones wrap around the wearer's head with a solid band and sit right outside of the lobe channelling the music inward. ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 5.8/10 - Popularity: 78% | Activity: 89% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 50% men, 50% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [Tech](https://www.trendhunter.com/tech) > [Gadgets](https://www.trendhunter.com/gadgets) ## Key Themes ### What Makes This Trend Stand Out - **Open-ear Headphones:** The trend of open-ear headphones provides users with the ability to retain hearing of their surroundings during activities while still enjoying music and media. - **Active Awareness Audio:** The active awareness audio trend offers disruptive innovation opportunities for businesses to create audio products that allow users to remain aware of their surroundings. - **Sport-specific Audio:** The trend towards sport-specific audio offers disruptive innovation opportunities for businesses to create headphones designed specifically for certain sports or activities. ### Sectors Adopting This - **Sporting Goods:** The sporting goods industry can benefit from the trend towards open-ear headphones by creating products that are tailored to certain sports or activities. - **Technology:** The technology industry can benefit from the trend towards active awareness audio by creating products that integrate audio with other technological advances such as augmented reality. - **Media:** The media industry can benefit from the trend towards sport-specific audio by creating content that is specifically designed to be listened to during certain sports or activities. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Helmet-Friendly Open Ear Headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/detachable-open-ear-headphones.md) - [Industrial Open-Ear Headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/nothing-ear-open.md) - [Glasses-Friendly Open-Ear Headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/jlab-open-sport.md) - [Open-Ear Audio Technology](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/openeardesign-tws-earbuds.md) - [Open-Style Conduction Earbuds](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/openrock-x.md) - [Open-Ear Premium Earbuds](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/ultra-open-earbuds-1.md) - [Workout-Ready Open-Ear Headphones](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/oneodio-openrock-pro.md) - [Open-Style Air Conduction Earbuds](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/jbl-soundgear-sense.md) - [Lightweight Clip-On Earbuds](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/shokz-opendots-one.md)