Gear & technology
Bone conduction
Also called bone conduction headphones
Bone conduction headphones send vibration through the bones of the skull, usually from pads resting in front of the ears, so the ears stay open. They are built for runners and cyclists who need to hear traffic, not for sound quality.
Sound reaches the inner ear without passing through the eardrum, which is part of how you hear your own voice. The approach limits Bass and loudness and leaks sound to people nearby, so these products trade fidelity for awareness and comfort.
A few IEMs list a bone conduction driver as one element of a Hybrid design, where it is meant to add a sense of body rather than carry the whole signal.