Types of Headphones

Who doesn’t like to put on a nice pair of headphones, turn on your favorite tunes and drift away from reality for a little while. However, do you know what type of headphones to choose for your lifestyle?

There is so much variety in the world of headphones, that it may become very confusing when trying to understand all the different kinds available on the market and what functions you really need out of them.

Earphones/earbuds

This type of headphones goes directly into your ear canal and have removable tips. If

you are buying headphones with the purpose of listening to music while working out, this may just be the type to get. I own a pair of wireless in-ear monitors and they sound great and do a decent job isolating outside noises.

Earbuds don’t do deep into your ear and normally have no removable parts. They feature less noise isolation compared to other headphones and delivery somewhat lower quality of sound.

Over Ear Headphones

This type of headphones features a memory foam cushion that surrounds your entire ear. They often provide either passive or active noise cancelling functionality. While active noise cancelling happens when your headphones emit an ambient noise, designed to block outside sounds. Passive noise cancelling relies on the foamy cushion pressing against your ear.

The advantages of over-ear headphones are comfort and quality of sound. The disadvantages are that they are generally bulky, heavy and not as portable as earbuds and the like.

On Ear Headphones

On ear headphones are basically the same as over-ear, but smaller. The cushion rests on your ear, which may be beneficial if you experience ear pains during pro-longed use of over-ear headphones. They are also generally smaller and more portable.

Wireless Headphones

This type of headphones connects to your device via Bluetooth (in most cases today) and transmits great quality sound. I’ve always been very skeptical about this technology. My opinion used to be the quality of sound cannot be the same as my favorite wired on-ear headphones. Boy was I wrong!

My wife gifted me a pair of wireless headphones for Christmas and now they are the

best thing since chocolate pie for me. I wear and bring them with me everywhere. The quality of sound is amazing. They easily block any outside noises in the gym when I train, or outside when I walk my dog. And I don’t have to carry my phone around the house of I’m listening to a podcast or YouTube video.

Should you need more info on how to choose the best quality headphone model, check out this review article. They go pretty in-depth on the subject.

Oh, I completely forgot one more thing:

Neck-sitting

Normally headbands rest on top of your head, but the new sports models often come

with a band that rests on your neck. This is the model my wife gave me. I feel like it is more comfortable than my other standard headphone models. Besides they don’t mess up my hair, which, since I have very soft hair on my head is a problem sometimes. I end up looking like I just woke up after taking the headphones off.