How to Choose Headphones/Earbuds-12: Choose for Office Use

When smart phone and tablet PC become more and more popular, everybody needs at least one set headphones or earbuds, no matter Bluetooth wireless or wired, to enjoy music/podcast everywhere or take a hand-free calling. For most people, it’s still a big challenge to choose the proper headphones/earbuds for his applications? After reading this series of articles prepared by Audiovance, you can make smart choice better than before.

Factors necessary for office use

Different people has different demands for headphones using in the office. Among them, below four factors are mostly being considered with different priority.

• Awareness of ambient sound for communication.
• Long time comfortable fit.
• Sound quality.
• Good looking.

Types not good

Based on above four criteria, among 8 popular types (please ref. Article-8), we’ll remove three types of headphones from consideration due to below reasons.

• On-Ear Headphones

No special advantages comparing to over-ear headphones.

• In Ear Buds with Earhooks

No special advantages comparing to open-ear air conduction headphones.

• Bone Conduction Open Ear Headphone

No special advantages comparing to open-ear air conduction headphones.

Types for consideration

• Over-Ear Headphones

If you are audiophile caring sound quality very much, will mainly use the headphones at home or in the office, over-ear headphones can be your best choice.

Pros:

1. Great noise isolation.
2. Excellent sound quality.

Cons:

1. Can be bulky and heavy, poor in portability.
2. Long time wearing brings pressure to head and hot to ears.
3. Expensive compared to other types of headphones.

• Half In-Ear Pods

It is the first kind of earbuds with stem. It’s well-known that Apple Airpods 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd generations are representatives of this type. Without soft ear tips designed in, your ear canals will not be blocked entirely so that you can be aware of ambient sound.

Pros:

Comfortable fit

Portable and lightweight

Safer listening with awareness of environment sound

Cons:

Not as great sound quality as in ear pods/buds.

Some people may not achieve secure fit.

• In Ear Pods

It is the second kind of earbuds with stem. All generations of Airpods Pro are representatives of this type. With soft ear tips to block your ears entirely, you can get very good noise isolation. Some of them also provide Active Noise Cancelling as over-head headphones.

Pros:

Portable and lightweight

Excellent noise isolation

Immersive listening

Cons:

Some people feel uncomfortable fit because ear canals are blocked entirely and closely.

If without optional ANC to Transparent mode, it’s not good to use them while outdoor walking or running with safety concern.

You can feel annoying thumping noise in walking or jogging.

• In Ear Buds: Normal

Some people call this as stemless earbuds, on which there’re soft ear tips but no stems as airpods. Most earbuds made by Samsung and Bose are belonging to this type.

Pros:

Portable and lightweight

Excellent noise isolation

Immersive listening

Without stem, they’re better for listening while sleeping. At the same time, these have no confliction with long hairs.

Cons:

Some people feel uncomfortable fit because ear canals are blocked entirely and closely.

If without optional ANC to Transparent mode, it’s not good to use them while outdoor walking or running with safety concern.

You can feel annoying thumping noise in walking or jogging.

According to calling, they may not perform as well as earbuds with stem.

• Air Conduction Open Ear Headphones

OpenComfy 201 from Audiovance belongs to this type. It provides very comfortable fit as half-in-ear pods like Airpods. It also provides very secure fit for sports/running as earbuds with hooks like Powerbeats Pro, as well as Shokz bone conduction headphones.

Pros:

Lightweight and comfortable fit, very good for long time listening

Secure fit, very good for sports and running

Open-ear for awareness of ambient sound, safer for outdoor activities.

Cons:

They are bigger than other earbuds and obvious to be seen.

Open-ear brings many advantages but an obvious disadvantage that is less noise isolation.

After comparing above five types, it’s easy to understand which type can meet your requirements the best. For example, if you’re looking for the best comfort-fit, secure-fit and awareness of ambient sound, open ear air conduction headphones can be your choice. If you want to use them in the office with good looking, comfort fit and awareness of ambient sound, half in ear pods can be your choice. If you care the sound quality very much, over ear headphones, in ear pods/buds can be your choice.

After deciding the proper type, you can go to the next step for brand and model. In this step, you can take brand reputation, budget, battery life, controls and more factors into consideration.