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Asus’ new open earbuds are a wonderful companion for handheld gaming

A photo of the Asus Cetra Open Wireless earbuds, showing their hook design that fits over your ear.

They look like your average open earbuds, but with optional RGB LED effects. | Photo by Cameron Faulkner / The Verge

The Cetra Open Wireless aren’t like most other gaming earbuds. They’re large, with an open-style design that rests just outside of your ears, letting game audio mix with sounds in your environment. These allow for immersion, but only if your environment is quiet enough. And turning them up might let those nearby hear what you’re listening to.

Even if you love open-style headphones as much as I do, you will probably agree that they are not the best choice for every listening scenario or all people. However, the Cetra Open are some of the most comfortable and feature-packed gaming earbuds I’ve tried, and the sound quality — while lacking in bass compared to earbuds that get a tight seal — leaves little to be desired. Plus, they ship with the best USB-C 2.4GHz audio transmitter available, one with a passthrough USB-C port that lets you charge your device or an accessory as you listen.

Asus Cetra Open Wireless earbuds

Where to Buy:

Before I started testing the Cetra Open, I spent most of my time alternating between the SteelSeries Arctis Buds and Sony InZone Buds while gaming, both of which come with active noise cancellation, a snug fit, good sound, and USB-C transmitters of varying sizes that make listening to games on my Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch 2 a breeze. However, I didn’t consider switching back to either once I started using the Cetra Open for numerous reasons. I’ve been playing Silent Hill F and Esoteric Ebb on my Steam Deck without feeling like I missed out on their phenomenal sound design. They work great with my PlayStation 5, too.