Waterproof headphones: 5 models for more swimming fun

Music is a multi-talent. Music makes you happy. Music comforts. Music makes people laugh. Music awakens emotions. And: music motivates. The millions of amateur runners in the world have long recognized this. More joggers are now doing their running laps with their favorite sound or a podcast in their ears than those who have left Airpods etc. at home. Now water is an element that has a bit of a hard time with electronics of all kinds. Nevertheless, water lovers can also listen to music while they swim lengths in the indoor swimming pool in winter and in the outdoor pool in summer. Even superstars of the swimming scene such as record Olympic champion Michael Phelps or Natalie Coughlin (both USA) trained with music in their ears.

Exciting: The market leader from California does not have any models in its range that are suitable for swimming training. So Airpods alternatives are in demand.

In this article you can read what you should consider when buying headphones for crawling and which models are suitable.

A pair of headphones that are to be used while swimming is a must three important criteria fulfill.

Here too, there are three options to choose from.

A distinction is also made between the widespread in-ear models and so-called open-ear headphones, which sit next to the ears and work with bone sound. A system that was specially developed for enjoying music underwater. So-called transducers transmit the sound vibration not through the air but through the skull bone into the inner ear. Bone ultrasound pioneer Shokz has come up with this OpenSwim such a model on the market. Small disadvantage: The ears are exposed and are therefore open to all background noise. To ensure undisturbed sound during swimming training, earplugs must be worn, but these are usually included in the scope of delivery. In the in-ear version, the buds act as earplugs. This model from Sony is supposed to deliver reliable music even in seawater.

An international standard has been established for all technical devices that could come into contact with water or liquids in general. The International Protection (IP) codes provide, among other things, information about the waterproofness of a product. While headphones for jogging can easily be certified IPX4 (protection against splashing water) or IPX5 (protection against jets of water), headphones for swimmers must be marked with at least the IPX7 label. With this number, the manufacturer guarantees that the headphones are protected against “temporary submersion”. Sports swimmers should therefore choose models with the highest certification if they want to enjoy their headphones for longer. The protection class IPX8 means “protection against permanent submersion”. The OpenSwim by Shokz , Sonys WF-SP900 and this cheap one NoName Model has been certified with the highest protection class.

Bluetooth technology, which is widely used for headphones on land, has not yet been able to establish itself in headphones for swimming, despite smartwatches. The radio connection between the transmitter and receiver is not stable enough and usually breaks off just below the water surface. In short: the best option for swimmers are headphones with an integrated MP3 player. This must then be equipped accordingly on the laptop at home before the training session. When buying, you should also pay attention to the storage capacity in addition to the battery life. It should be at least 1 GB. Some manufacturers now offer 4GB devices or more. A current one Bluetooth headphones test read here.

Note: The article was first published in March 2021.