The wait is finally over. Throughout the last week we have shown you our picks for the Best of 2011, including:
Now it’s time for the Best Overall Workout Headphones of 2011. We put a lot of time and effort in coming up with this list, and when we were done we realized it was just too hard to narrow it down to a Top 3. This year, we ended up with a Top 5, and to be honest you can’t go wrong with any of these choices.
General Criteria
We previously outlined our general criteria for best sports headphones here.
Best Overall Workout Headphones of 2011
If you’re serious about your workouts or training then we’ve got the perfect list for you. These workout headphones are our all around favorites.
Number 1 – Monster iSport Immersion In-Ear Headphones
Monster definitely got these headphones right when they marketed them as the “Athlete’s Headphones”. We’re still trying to find something bad to say about them, but the problem is we just can’t find anything negative.
Number 2 – Bose IE2 Headphones
Bose isn’t traditionally known for creating workout headphones. However, they have definitely stepped up to the challenge. As usual the sound is amazing, and their Stay Hear technology adds something new to the market.
Number 3 – Sennheiser Adidas CX 680 Sports Earbuds
With a similar ear fin technology as the Bose IE2, the Sennheiser Adidas CX 680 come in a close 3rd here. Building off their PMX 680 series into earbuds, they have all the essentials of a great sports headphone.
Number 4 – Yurbuds Inspire Ironman Series Sports Earbuds
The name of these headphones says it all: Ironman. Not only do they look like Ironman headphones, but they perform just the same. They introduce yet another technology for staying put during exercise: Twist Lock.
Number 5 – Sennheiser PMX 680 Sports Headphones
We may have ended 2011 with only a Top 4 list, if it wasn’t for the fact that nearly every other person we talked to loved the Sennheiser PMX 680 Sports Headphones. These happen to be the only neckband headphones on the list this year.
What to Expect in 2012?
Features. We expect to see lots of features added to headphones, if not next year, definitely by 2013. Right now athletes are using multiple sports devices in conjunction with headphones to track things like heart rate, distance, calories burned, and so on. As technology improves, expect to see everything in one device. In fact, check out some of the new headphones by Polk Audio or Motorola and you can already see the change happening.
