3 things to pay attention to when buying sports headphones

Časa je še dovolj in ena “mini raziskava” vas lahko reši številnih težav ob potencialnem napačnem nakupu. Torej vprašanje je, katere tekaške slušalke vam bodo najbolj ustrezale. Ne glede na to, ali ste začetnik ali ste zelo izkušeni in želite nadgraditi svojo opremo za naslednji maraton, smo tukaj, da vas usmerimo v pravo smer in vam pomagamo, da si zagotovite najboljše športne slušalke za svoje potrebe.

As with any piece of equipment, there are many factors to consider before making the final purchase. While appearance is an important element for most runners, getting through long distances at your best takes more than a nice set of headphones. You have to consider audio performance, water resistance and overall fit, because no one wants uncomfortable headphones right?

To make the task at least a little easier, we have identified three basic areas that you should pay attention to when hunting for running headphones. Throughout the guide below, we've also included some recommendations that we think best fit each element.

Awareness of surroundings

Če izberete komplet “noise-cancelling” slušalk bo vaša izkušnja poslušanja po vsej verjetnosti gladka in neprekinjena. Čeprav to na splošno zagotavlja odlično kakovost zvoka, je pomembno, da med tekom upoštevate svojo okolico, zlasti če tečete skozi mesta in bolj prometna območja.

Že res, da lahko nekatere najboljše “noise-cancelling” slušalke pomagajo izboljšati splošno kakovost zvoka, vendar jim manjka zmožnost, da bi se zavedali svoje okolice. Ko gre za tek, pa bi seveda morala biti osebna varnost na prvem mestu. S tem v mislih je vredno preveriti, katere “bone-conduct” slušalke bi lahko bile alternativa.

The best headphones of its kind, such as H2O Audio Tri Multi-Sport, they let outside noise in by sending sound vibrations through the bones in your ear and jaw, leaving room for the sounds of traffic, cyclists and, say, loud drivers.

Enak učinek boste dosegli z najboljšimi “open ear” slušalkami, kot so Shokz OpenFit, ki ne postavijo tehnologije neposredno v ušesni kanal, kar pušča prostor, da lahko sprejemate okolico. Če vam “open ear” dizajn ni všeč, bi načini prosojnosti, ki ga najdete na ušesnih čepkih, kot so AirPods Pro 2, pomagali, če ohranjate glasnost na nizki do srednji ravni.

Water resistance

This one is probably pretty obvious right? Water resistance is definitely the next very important factor when buying running or sports headphones in general. Somehow it even seems to be becoming a more important factor year by year, as the amount of precipitation is increasing and also everything indicates that the weather will be even more capricious in the future.

The easiest way to check water resistance is to look at the IP rating. What exactly is an IP rating? Simply put, headphones rated IPX4 or higher will provide a reliable level of water resistance. This means that such headphones can be worn in the rain without any worries and we do not need to worry about damaging them or affecting their performance in any way. The online portal Tech Radar recommends, for example, two models of headphones that offer a high standard of water resistance: JBL Reflect Aero (IP68), or already mentioned H2O Audio Tri Multi-Sport (IPX8).

In addition to easily surviving rainy conditions, headphones with IPX4 or higher water resistance standards are also sweat resistant. This is an important piece of information, especially for those who engage in high-intensity sports. If, for example, you are a regular attender of HIT exercises, the rain probably doesn't bother you, but you also need to think about water resistance against sweat. A very popular model for such occasions for sure Beats Powerbeats Pro (IPX4), which are headphones that, among other things, also have a long battery life, which is certainly useful for long-distance runners.

The fit

One thing runners especially appreciate is comfort. The same applies to sports shoes as it does to headphones. There is nothing better than quality, comfortable headphones.

Za razliko klasičnih in bolj kot ne modnih slušalk, je pri športnih pomembno to, da zagotavljajo varno prileganje, ki seveda omogoča zanesljivo tekaško izkušnjo. Številni proizvajalci so se dizajna slušalk lotili na drugačen način in najbolj priljubljen je gotovo “over-ear” dizajn, kot recimo pri modelu Shokz OpenFit.

Bogata serija “over-ear” slušalk znamke Shokz jih postavlja v sam vrh zelo zanesljivih naprav, ko govorimo o športni tehnologiji. Se pa Shokz specializira tudi za slušalke s paščkom, ki gre čez glavo in vrat, na primer model  Shokz OpenRun Pro. Otherwise, the latter are in a higher price range, but they are worth the investment if comfort and audio quality are your priorities.

V zadnjih nekaj letih so znamke, kot je Bose, ubrali drugačen pristop k dizajniranju slušalk. Govorimo o “open-ear” principu, ki s t. i. stilom “clip” poskrbijo, da ušesa ostanejo odprta, s čimer imamo možnost večjega zavedanja okolice. Podobno je storil tudi Huawei z najnovejšimi slušalkami Freeclip, ki jih v uredništvu tudi testiramo.