I’m going to tell you about my headphones, but first, here’s the short version: If you’re looking for a pair that refuses to fall out no matter how hard you sweat, buy these. I have been wearing them exclusively for the better part of a decade and can’t see myself using anything else.
I will preface this by saying I’m not an audiophile. I don’t care much about bass levels or “richness” or noise-canceling. What I do care about is a pair of headphones that stay put after I’ve been running for an hour, or even 20 minutes — something the headphones that came with my iPhone cannot achieve. Bose Soundsports, and more specifically the little rubber “wings” that hug the inside of your ear, are the only things that have ever stayed in place, plus the only ones that don’t become muffled when I inevitably start perspiring (even when Apple headphones stay in, I have to take them out every ten minutes to wipe them off on my shirt). The sound is good — they’re Bose, after all — and it honestly doesn’t matter how perfect “Good for You” sounds when I’m bouncing on the treadmill, anyway.
I will say that the wire is a little cumbersome, and, yes, you do have to use your dongle to make it iPhone-compatible, but for $50, what do you want! I appreciate that someone out there wants over-the-ear headphones, and I look forward to a wireless future (I actually just sprang for some discounted wireless Soundsports, which I haven’t tested yet — though they aren’t the truly wireless ones my colleague Maxine wrote about). For me, on most days, though, these will do just fine. Two years ago, I bought a pair of them on Cyber Monday for a white elephant exchange (we’d capped the price of gifts at $50). When it got unwrapped, one of my friends looked at me and said, “Those aren’t $50!” Oh, but they are today.
More Bose Cyber Monday Deals
The noise-canceling headphones beloved by Roxane Gay.
Strategist writer Maxine Builder says these are her favorite truly wireless headphones for exercise — they also have those little wings — but they’re a bit pricey for me right now.
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