Disclaimer: I received a pair of AfterShokz Trekz Air in Canyon Red to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!

The idea of having a go-to pair of headphones always sounded so cool to me yet I couldn’t find the perfect pair. In the past, I’ve seen those people with their headphones/buds on planes, in their car, running at races and at work and just happy as can be. Maybe they have a specific pair to wear at work to chat on video calls, and a different pair to down out noises while on a plane and then another pair for when they work out. That’s annoying because that is what I was dealing. I had a pair of earbuds for running, over-ear-headphones for work and nothing for hands-free video or regular calls. This is exactly why I decided to opt-in to test the Trekz Air by AfterShokz, Could finally have it all with one product?

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What’s in The Box?

UPS My Choice just alerted me that my package will be delivered. Next thing I know, there is a knock at the door and here are my Trekz Air! This was during one of my remote days and I was working from home, so opening up the box had to wait till after work.

You probably know that my background is in graphic design and my degree is in visual communication. All design intrigues me, especially package design. AfterShokz didn’t disappoint. At first inspection, the design is clean, modern and crisp. The words Trekz Air are foil stamped on the front in shiny silver. Same with some product points on the left side. What’s not clean and crisp? The real model photographed on the front. She looks like she just finished working hard with sweat droplets on her face and messy hair. She’s diverse. She looks like me (well sorta!) I want to be her. Or at least put in the work like she did. Hmm, things are looking pretty authentic, and I like it. 

The package opens from the right by pulling on a small folded ribbon and separating the hidden magnet closure. BE OPEN is seen on the inner flap. Then I see another photo of a focused dude who actually looks like he’s working out. My eyes light up when I see the beautiful Canyon Red’s behind the plastic window on the right of the box. It was kinda tricky opening that window — I don’t like to ruin any product packaging. I’m with this with all packaging, even for food! 

Carefully, I removed the Trekz Air, placed them aside, and checked out the accessories that came with them. Included in the box are:

• Trekz Air in Canyon Red
• Micro-USB Charging Cable
• Silicone-like zip-up storage case
• Earplugs in a clear storage box 
• User guide  

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First Impressions and Step Up

If you closed your eyes and touched the surface of the Trekz Airs, you’d notice how smooth their texture was. The construction of them is built well. Nothing sharp or awkward sticks out. There isn’t a place where stray hairs could get caught. They are beautifully designed. That super soft smooth texture extends to the silicone-like zip-up storage case. It’s lined with mesh and holds the headphones perfectly. 

First, I made sure to charge up my Trek Airs completely. They had a little charge on them already, but the user guide specifically says to charge first. Once the LED light turned from red to blue (about 2 hours), I was ready to pair. Pairing was simple. I made sure the Bluetooth was turned on in my smartphone settings. While the headphones are powered off, I put them on. At that moment I realized how incredibly light they are. They only weigh 1.06 oz! I entered pairing mode by pressing and holding the volume+ button on the right bottom. The LED light flashed red and blue. Once I heard Audrey say ‘pairing’ I went to my smart phone’s Bluetooth menu again and selected Trekz Air by AfterShokz”.  She said ‘connected’ and the LED flashed blue one time. I did this same sequence when pairing to my work laptop. 

Most of the buttons are on the under part right side. Those include the power and volume control as well as the charging port and LED indicator. Those buttons control the volume up/down, power on/off, mute, EQ setting and battery status. The left outside houses the multifunction button. That button can play/pause music, skip to the next song, answer/end a phone call, answer call waiting and put the current caller on hold or hang up on the current caller, reject a call, prompt device assistant and redial the last number. The power/volume+ button has a nice embossed bump on it so it’s easy to find when your headphones are on. 

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The Tech Behind the Tech

Trekz Air is truly a remarkable technology product. It’s insane how we can listen to music with bone conduction technology. Although, Beethoven was using this tech in the 1800s. He found a way to hear music through his jawbone by biting a rod attached to his piano. 

According to AfterShokz, Bone conduction is a natural part of the hearing process—sound travels through our eardrums and bones simultaneously. They took the concept to the next level through the development of a suite of proprietary audio technologies and design patents. The result: headphones that deliver unrivalled situational awareness and comfort. Transducers guide mini vibrations through the cheekbones to the inner ears, delivering sound without plugging or covering them. They also implement PremiumPitch. They say that it doesn’t seem sensible that audio travelling through your bones instead of your ears could be so finely tuned. It wouldn’t be possible without our PremiumPitch technology, which assures the finest in bone conduction audio, with a range that suits music and voice. Gosh, I love tech!

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Workout or Work They Work!

They became my favorite headphones after my first test. While sweating it out on the run with my 90s Dance Jams Spotify playlist, I was still able to hear the outside world. Heard my neighbor & his two dogs bark hello while ‘2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted’ blared. Heard a covey of quails call out while ‘I Like to Move It’ roared. Heard many of my neighbors start their engines for their morning commute while ‘Ain’t 2 Proud 2 Beg’ boomed on. I never, ever experienced this with over-ear headphones or earbuds. Also, no ear pain from stuffing earbuds into my ears. 

During a work trip, I brought them with me to the hotel gym and did a treadmill workout with my FitBit Coach app. No cords got in my way, which freak me out around treadmills, and I could hear my coach and my new-to-me environment. 

They didn’t even fall off my head during planks, downward facing dogs or jumping jacks when I wore them during a FitBit Coach strength session. In the past, I would do my FitBit Coach strength sessions at home and listen via the speaker on my phone. Then, I would worry if I was disrupting my family. Thankful for the Trekz Air lightness and stability during these sessions and how I don’t wake anyone up.

My job has me on calls and video chats at least 2x a day. What?! You thought all I do is run and review products huh? By day, I work full time as a sr. art director for Manifest. They are an agency that has locations around the nation. I really didn’t consider AfterShokz as a brand that could help me with my day job. Well, they can and they did. Trekz Air helped me so I could participate in calls AND take notes AND do design work all while my team hears me clearly, hands-free. I felt confident when my teammates told me they could hear me while I took a call through my headphones. Trekz Air is so beyond just listening to music! 

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Beautiful Tech

One of the 2018 Fall/Winter Pantone colors is 19-1536: Deliciously deep red, whose luscious depth entices. It resembles the Trekz Air Canyon Red color so well and believe me, they do entice. I love how deep muted tones are making a comeback. According to Pantone, the deep muted hues are a comforting classic. I even matched my lip color and nail color to the Canyon Red. It’s pretty cool how Canyon Red goes with my skin tone so well. It’s the Canyon Red color that makes me feel so comfortable to wear them out and about and to work. Nothing flashy, just a classic and signature look. 

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Final Thoughts

I found my unicorn of headphones, Trekz Air by AfterShokz. They really can do it all. For the past month, they’ve taken me from run-workout to strength-workout and to work. I’m honestly surprised that a headphone could do all that seamlessly. If you are curious and would like to try a pair for yourself, BibRave partnered with AfterShokz with $55 off of their Trekz Air Bundle. Apply code BRBUNDLE for a package that includes: your choice of Trekz Air color (Slate Grey, Forrest Green, Midnight Blue or Canyon Red), BibRave Trucker Hat, Shoe Bag, Sport Towel and Cell Phone Power Bank. 

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