After 80 miles of sweaty Florida running and at least two monsoon style thunderstorms I am happy to say they are working great. No issues, easy to load using Windows Media Player, light, comfortable, charge quickly and overall a great purchase. The controls are slightly more tactile than the iPod shuffle but easy to use and very intuitive. And best of all you can get them at Wal Mart for $49.99. Just make sure the package says waterproof, some places might have the old model still on sale.
UPDATE: 6 months and still going strong. I would have been on my third iPod Shuffle by now. I've read a few of the reviews and can see how some people might have issues with the earbuds staying put. In my case it hasn't been a problem and my ears are almost as big as the presidents. I've had them on runs as long as 53 miles without a problem. Do make sure you buy the current sweatproof/waterproof version. The previous model was not waterproof and from the reviews I read they died as quickly as an iPod. Sony 2 GB Digital Music Player (Black)
i had the previous version too (w202) which died after 3 months. sony ended up refunding me. while waiting for these, i tried a knock-off version from ebay, but those never stayed on my head. even though the old version died, i loved them, and was holding my breath for these.
first, the audio quality seems better (the old pair had no bass). i dont have the old pair to compare with, but they seem just the slightest bit bigger (not complaining). i'm assuming thats for different audio components and more water resistance. the jog dial for choosing tracks is now just a lever, so its easier to use. the volume up button is now a bit longer, so you can tell which button is which. and the shuffle switch is now a button. it looks like this button will let you choose a playlist. i haven't tried that feature yet, but my guess is it would let me have a music track playlist while working out, and then an audio book playlist for cardio.
anyway, these are great for working out. they stay on my head while lifting, cardio, abs, etc. i charge them in my car while driving to/from the gym, and i've never had the battery die before a workout was over. not having to deal with wires is great, and its easier just having one device instead of 2 devices synced with bluetooth.
the only reason i didnt give them 5 stars is because longevity is still in question. also surprised they didnt bump the memory up from 2 gig to 4 gig.
I just purchased these at the San Jose Rock N' Roll 1/2 Marathon Expo. They seemed interesting and the offer was one I couldn't refuse--for a mere $60 and 100 FREE Song downloads, I was able to take these puppies home.
My first 'dry run' was the 1/2 Marathon the following Sunday morning. They did not disappoint! I only fiddled with them once, during my entire 13.1 mile run. They sat in my ear perfectly, the sound quality was amazing, and I downloaded songs to them easily the night before my race event.
I'm so happy with this pair of 'exercise-friendly' headphones that I can't wait for my next workout.
My only issue now is that I don't know what I'll do with the Sennheiser PMX80 Sport Series II Behind the Head Ear Phones For Sports for which I paid $38.99 that will never get used :(
I had such high hopes for these headphones as I was wanting a pair that would double as an mp3 player that I could use while running. The bottom line here for me was that while running the headphones have to much bounce and movement to stay put. Keep in mind that somebody else might have a different experience but for me it did not take long after running to be annoyed by there constant movement. Its almost as if you would need a sweat band or something to hold them in place. They sound great and the ease of use for transferring music and playing is also great. They are light and charge super fast. In the end however while running they just have entirely too much movement for me. I might be going back to the Motorola headphones that I once had.
I have been on a seemingly endless search for a convenient way to listen to music while I run. Lots of people like to run/jog/walk/bike/etc. while listening to music, right? One would think that there would be a myriad of reliable, high quality options out on the market to support this demand.
This Sony player was the latest in a series of options that I have tried since my old Rio Cali player. I was coming off an ill-fated attempt to use the iPod Shuffle for exercise, an attempt which failed for two well-documented reasons: repeated malfunctioning when exposed to moisture/sweat, and the failure of the earbuds (the only option available for the Shuffle) to stay in one's ears during any sort of rigorous activity (like running). I did quite a bit of research online and saw that this Sony player was getting a lot of good reviews from runners. It was supposed to be essentially waterproof, stay in your ears, and have the added convenience of no wiring or external device to hook into. Great! I ordered it and eagerly awaited its arrival.
The first thing I noticed when I put these headphones on: they are ugly. Some people care more about how they look when they run than others, and I am probably somewhere in the middle, but these are right up there with the least aesthetically pleasing headphones I have seen. The black rectangular pieces on the side look like giant bluetooth devices and are larger than they seem by looking at the pictures. Ok, whatever. As long as I can run with them, I can deal.
Begin running. After about half a mile, I'm starting to sweat just a little bit, and the earbuds are starting to slip out of my ears. They are generally staying on (as opposed to the whole unit falling off my head onto the ground) but the buds are jiggling around a bit and my ability to hear the music is suffering accordingly. This continued with increasing frequency for the duration of the run. Very frustrating. I tried again a couple of days later after having changed the earbuds to one of the additional size inserts that comes with the unit. Same result: not acceptable.
There are certainly some good things about this player. The interface on the unit is fairly easy to use while running. There didn't seem to be any issues with sweat affecting the performance (although again, I only used them twice). Also, the computer software that comes with the unit was easy to install and easy to use. But none of that really matters if you can't go half a mile without having to re-arrange your nerdy freak-show looking headphones in your ears on the run every other minute.
And so the endless search continues... - Running Headphones - Sony Mp3 - Mp3 Player - Wireless Headset'
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