Bro Snaps

I have an weird habit of trying a bunch of headphones and getting annoyed when they aren’t what I expected.  This ultimately leads to multiple trips back to the store to return them.  For workout headphones it was worse.  For a long time I had this cheap pair with a long cord and ear wraps.  Not great sound, but as long as you tucked the cord under your shirt they worked great.  After two years I finally had to put them to rest after sweat ravaged their insides.  I would have just gone out and got another pair of those for $25, but apparently they don’t make them anymore… F Balls…  So commenced my search.

At first I just shlepped around with the 1st generation iphone headphones, but since they are made for short people, I had one too many instances of doing a pull-up or hanging knee-ups and having the cord pull the phone out of my pocket, disconnect and drop heavily to the ground.  What followed was me screaming at it like a red-headed step child.  (For those of you who are going to suggest the arm band… don’t.  They suck)   I looked at the Dre. Beats Power Beats in-ear, but the reviews were all along the lines of “these fall apart”, which I kind of already knew since I had the control talk set.  Those only lasted a year without working out in them.  I did not look at the over-ear Beats, because let’s be honest; if you are working out in giant studio headphones, you look like a douche trying to show off your headphones.  That and there is no way in hell they would stay on if you were doing serious activity – again reference back to my “douche” comment.

Then I moved on to my trial and error portion.  First try, the Iron Man brand, in-ear headphones (~$40).  I used them once and returned them.  They supposedly “lock” into your ear, which is bullshit, because last time I checked my ear canal didn’t have the same squared off grooves as the headphones.  You can’t adjust the size for your ear hole either.  They suck, plain and simple.  Next up was the Jabra Sport Bluetooth headphones ($100).  The Bluetooth feature is great because you don’t have to worry about the cord getting in the way, but these things won’t stay behind your ear without a lot of adjusting.  Not only that, but the actual earpiece is flat so it doesn’t have any noise reduction or strong sound quality.  I could have done without amazing sound, but if I’m running I don’t want to constantly be screwing with my headphones.  They were also returned immediately.

Finally, I bought the Bluebuds X ($169).  I’ve never seen a television commercial on normal tv for these, but saw them on the LTF channel at the gym.  They are pricey, but are freaking great.  They are also Bluetooth, have the buds that block out background noise, good sound, adjustable sizes and you can change how they fit behind your head.  The fin hooks that fit under the part of your ear above the canal, keep them in place.  You can jog, jump rope, etc and they stay put.  Plus, you can just set your phone on the ground and not have it bouncing around in your pocket.  Lastly they have about 6 – 8 hours of battery.  I’m sure if you were working out for more than 2 plus hours straight they may get uncomfortable, but for me, it was exactly what I wanted.  Snaps.

http://www.jaybirdgear.com/bluebuds-x-bluetooth-headphones/remarkable-sound/