When did ear buds give way to headphones?

[MorrisZapp]

I failed to notice it 😂

I was in the gym, struggling as always with my ear buds (tiny ears, need really loud music too) when I noticed the girl next to me had traditional style headphones on.

Looking round the gym, headphones outnumbered earbuds by two to one, and it's the same in the street, on the bus etc.

I bought some headphones and they are HEAVENLY. In fact my workout was twenty minutes longer because the tunes kept me going.

I'm behind the curve obviously - when did headphones take over?

You need some sleep headphones. I use these, but there are cheaper versions, too.

https://www.snoozeband.co.uk/

I get hot ears which would burn. I refused to wear the headphones they wanted me to put on during an MRI.

I wear airpods (£120), they are three years old, work perfectly, never lost one and never dropped out of my ears whole I was running. If they do you can get little silicone covers for them that grip in your ear.

I charge them overnight and whilst I'm at work on my desk. I wear them for workouts, YouTube yoga, high intensity workouts, walking the dog etc.

AirPods triggered an awful ear infection for me so can’t wear them anymore. I always had headphones as well and have always found them much more comfortable so use them all the time now. AirPods always fell out anyway!

These are weird but I guess you find the style in Bluetooth .
They don't stick into my ears and the sports clip stops them from falling out.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/buyagain/search/?q=Ear+buds&ref_=pd_bap_m_srh

I have both, but avoid wearing over ear headphones in situations where they might draw attention to my temporary distraction, eg, walking home alone at night. Even out walking the dog, I keep one earbud in, one out so I can be vaguely aware of joggers, cyclists, etc.

I prefer AirPods but I had my Daith pierced last year and was advised to wear headphones so the buds didn't irritate the piercing. Now I wear AirPod Max because my whole ear fits inside the cushion, I find other headphones uncomfortable on my ears.

Also, and this is a big plus for me, noise cancelling headphones keep your ears warm while you're out in the winter.
They are lovely and snuggly!

Sennheiser for me. For a time I was a DJ, so really got into my headphones.
I bought my first pair 15+ years ago. They’ve always had a great range and arguably too many to choose from.

The headbands for all of the pairs I’ve owned tend to be the most comfortable to wear for prolonged periods and the sound quality, even for the cheapest in the range, outshines other brands. I used to have a pair of the budget level HD201s in my gym bag, which I bought from Amazon for £12 as part of the “warehouse deals” back in the day because the box they came in had been torn! 😎
Keep an eye out on Amazon is my recommendation. I’ve bought several pairs of Sennheisers over the years when they’ve had special offers, which seems to be fairly frequently.

Panasonic are also worth a look. Technics, a brand loved by DJs over the world, is actually a Panasonic brand. I’ve been impressed with the one pair I own. They’re a retro look pair, very comfortable/light to wear and the battery life is superb. Panasonic RPHTX90N incidentally.

Depends a bit on your piercings! My ear buds now get in the way of my tragus piercing.

I’ve never liked earbuds, find them really uncomfortable - I’ve been a die hard over ear big headphones wearer for ever!
I’ve always had Bose ones, they last really well and I love the noise cancelling effect plus like a pp mentioned, they keep your ears really warm. I get earache without them but when it’s chilly and I’m out without them for a family walk or something I do try and remember to wear a hat that covers my ears.

I was a trend setter without realising 😆. Never liked earbuds/earphones either and found them useless to wear at the gym: they’re always falling out! Surprised it took so long for more people to switch to cans to be honest.

Beats kick started it, then companies such as Bose and Sony started to release much better quality headphones, then noise cancelling became standard.

I understand earphones have their uses but a decent pair of headphones suits me better.

Beats were the start, first noticed them at the London Olympics... but I still use normal plus in apple in the ear ones

you can get headbands with earphones for sleeping.
game changer.

I have some decent noise cancelling headphones when WFH (noisy neighbours) and for planes/trains. I don't use these when exercising - too expensive to get all sweaty and bumped around.

I use a cheap pair of ear buds when walking/exercising.

Ear buds are a pita. I definitely prefer proper earphones for the gym.

I use my pods at home & headphones when out.

buds!

I personally wouldn’t wear noise cancelling when out & about, it’s good to hear your surrounds

Mine are some made up brand from TK Maxx and I think they're amazing! So soft and comfy, and for me at the gym it's all about the driving bass and these are great. They aren't 'noise cancelling' but inevitably they do effectively close out the outside world.

In fact when I tested them out for the first time I was in the office and I had to turn my chair to face the door as I felt weird not being able to hear anything at all behind me. I wouldn't use them for walking outdoors but loads of people obviously do. I'm seeing them absolutely everywhere now.

You can turn the ANC part off though and have regular headphones for when you need your wits about you, best of both worlds.

I use Shokz headphones for running and walking. They are often the only ones that are race approved. You can still hear what's going on around you but the sound quality is really good.

@galliverstravels I will often take a headphone out so my ear isn’t covered but I grew up in a very rough part of London so am a lot more cautious than others.

I always wear headphones as I can't stand the feeling of earbuds. In fact it's rare to see me without headphones as I listen to an audiobook to get me through all the boring stuff. I do wear one earbud at night though to help me sleep. I tend to sleep on one side, so the ear that faces up has an earbud and gravity holds it in and I avoid that horrible feeling of it being shoved right in my ear hole!