Eri Reviews Things

At PAX Aus 2025, I lost two things – my voice and my Shokz OpenFit Air earphones. They were a gift from my boyfriend, and they were really good earphones. However, I couldn’t afford to buy another set, as they cost $200 AUD (or $139 during Black Friday). So I needed to find an alternative.

Enter the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds.

The Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds are Bluetooth earphones priced at $34.97. Just like the Shokz OpenFit Air, these earphones are also wireless, feature an earhook design that doesn’t require plugging anything into your ears, and have decent sound straight out of the box, all for a low price. It comes with three colours: black, dark green, and tan. And despite its low price point, its performance will surprise you.

The packaging for the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds is pretty decent. The box itself doesn’t feel like garbage, and the earphones and their contents are packaged well. Inside, you’ll find the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds, their charging case, a USB-C cable (the same colour as the earphones), and a user manual. You can use the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds immediately upon unboxing, but I recommend charging them fully.

First impressions: the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds’ charging case is slightly wider yet thinner than the Shokz OpenFir Air. When wearing them, the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds don’t feel uncomfortable, and I was able to use them in the gym or on public transportation. Raw audio quality-wise, it isn’t bad. It’s not perfect, but, at least to me, it’s tolerable.

The controls on the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds are pretty simple. To control volume, tap the left earbud once to lower volume, and tap the right earbud once to increase it. Double-tapping both earbuds triggers play/pause. And if you tap three times on the left earbud, you trigger Siri or Bixby.

One thing that sets the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds apart from the Shokz is that it does not require an app. So you can’t track them or change the touch interface. That’s the only thing (to me at least) that makes them different from my old earphones, and that shouldn’t be a problem. At the same time, the sensitivity of the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds differs from that of my Shokz, because when I go out to walk to my train station, my hair is thick enough to activate the Shokz’s pressing functions. But with the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds, that isn’t the case.

Also, the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds have pretty good battery life. It doesn’t have a long battery life, as it lasts only 6 hours. But if you’re like me, who rarely goes outside, you will be able to spread its use. Additionally, the case has a small LED indicator that shows how much battery life it has left, so you can tell when it’s time to charge. The case is about 8cm wide, 7cm long, and ~1.5 cm deep, giving it a somewhat flat profile that makes it easier to put in your pocket.

The only issue I had with the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds is their latency. There will be times when one of the earbuds will experience some delay and will have to fast-forward its playback to catch up. This only happens in highly populated areas, like a full gym, really crowded public transport, or even on congested city streets or shopping malls. This doesn’t happen too often, but it does hinder the listening experience in random moments. Fortunately, there’s no noticeable delay when you’re using them on your PC, especially when streaming videos.

Overall, the Otto On The Go Wireless Earbuds are a near-perfect replacement for my Shokz OpenFit Air and should be considered if you’re after over-ear earphones. They fit quite well with your ears, sound great out of the box, and, most of all, are affordable. While it misses some bells and whistles that the Shokz has and experiences audio delays in congested areas, it’s still able to do the job and is worth putting on when you’re on the move. They are a good set of earphones if you’re after good sound, comfort, and ease of use.

PS: To the person who stole my Shokz, I hope you’re happy, you stealing thief.