Looking for the best option for a waterproof MP3 system. all my songs are on itunes so something that would work with that would be preferred
also, concerned about the ear buds… i normally don’t use the type that sells with the waterproof ones when i run … does water get trapped inside of your ear? concerned that would drive me crazy. the systems aren’t super cheap so looking for real feedback before i purchase one. thanks
http://www.underwateraudio.com/waterproof-ipod-shuffle/
http://audioflood.com/?gclid=CL7O2fWY4roCFcxaMgodORcAIw
Waterproofed iPod Shuffles. No case necessary. All roughly $150.
I use underwateraudio with the hydromarmony head phones. Had them for almost a year and so far they work good. Can’t say I’ve ever had water trapped in my ear by these at all.
If it broke, I’d buy another one for sure. I had another brand first, the kind where you put your Ipod in a case but underwateraudio seems to work better and its less hassle.
As for the headphones, you need to get a good seal between your ear canal and the earbuds. For me, the “Christmas tree” shaped buds work best in that regard, but it is very individual.
If you get water between the bud and your ear drum, you will lose sound in that ear.
I have used my WaterFi unit for 2 years with no problems. Sometimes the buttons get a little “glitchy” and hard to activate, but I presume this is because of the water-proofing process which makes everything tighter than normal inside.
I would stay away from H2O Audio or X-1 I think they’re called now. I had two of their cases and they do not last long, maybe a year as the earphones stop working. The company doesn’t back it’s stuff. At least that was my experience with their product.
I’ve heard good things about audio flood and plan on trying them next. It’s a waterproofed iPod not a case. The ear buds for swimming have a tight fit so water does not get in. If they pop out while swimming I clear my ear and replace. Doesn’t feel like there’s water trapped in there that I have noticed.
x2 for Audioflood
I’ve had my water proof shuffle/headphone combo. from them for a few weeks and it works fine. No case needed, can press buttons underwater… The headphones aren’t too great sounding out of water, but while swimming they sound fine. I have non-earbud friendly ears so the right one fits fine, but the left one doesn’t. Water gets in and out of my left ear, so the music qualify is variable, but the earbud tip fits snug in my right, and I can hear the music fine. This set comes with about 5 different earbud tips that you can try. Now if I could use my Bose headphones underwater, I might actually love swimming… :O) I needed something to get me back in the pool and this certainly helped. For me it definitely makes the time go by faster…
I would stay away from H2O Audio or X-1 I think they’re called now. I had two of their cases and they do not last long, maybe a year as the earphones stop working. The company doesn’t back it’s stuff. At least that was my experience with their product.
I’ve heard good things about audio flood and plan on trying them next. It’s a waterproofed iPod not a case. The ear buds for swimming have a tight fit so water does not get in. If they pop out while swimming I clear my ear and replace. Doesn’t feel like there’s water trapped in there that I have noticed.
This +1. And a waterproof nano Ipod ($150) off Amazon has lasted me 3 years already. Great battery life too. I hardly ever charge the thing.
CC
I purchased a cylindrical waterproof mp3 player off ebay, new and shipped from china, for $11. It works. The fm radio reception is pretty weak though. The headphones it came with aren’t super comfortable, but it’s not bad.
I use the Finis Neptune for swimming & I love it! DCrainMaker has a good review on his website check it out.
waterproof ipod shuffle.
thanks so much for the options. was looking at the underwateraudio and waterfi. will probably purchase one of these. Also thanks to everyone about their thoughts with the water seal/earbuds… i just didn’t want water stuck in between…will look for the christmas tree option!
Based on reviews and fellow athletes, I went with the SwiMP3 and I’ve been very happy with it.
I bought the waterproof iPod Shuffle, and a set of the behind the head wrapped headphones. Works awesome!!!
I bought the Audioflood one. The head phones that came with it fit my left ear but not right. I see that Audioflood have new headphones, I am going to order some to see if they are better.
Watch the Audioflood videos, especially the one where they put the ipod through the washing machine multiple times.
http://audioflood.com/?gclid=CL7O2fWY4roCFcxaMgodORcAIw
Has anyone tested the Sony Waterproof Walkman Sports mp3 player (the wraparound headset)?
With the three listed waterproofed iPod Shuffles, how is the sound quality of the headphones? Are there any good reviews of these iPods and headphones? Which one is best?
The standard headphones that came with my WaterFi had mediocre sound quality. Not great, not bad. They have since changed the headphones that come with the unit, so can’t speak to those.
That said, there is no much other noise going on at the same time (bubbles, splashing, water moving, etc) that sound quality is of pretty low importance to me.
Curious: has anyone tried underwater speakers while doing swim training? I know synchro teams use them, but they spend most of their time underwater, rather than with their ears at the air-water interface. I got my parents some cheap chinese underwater speakers for their pool, but they simply sucked, even when you weren’t swimming. I’m curious if good underwater speakers are audible when swimming, since that’d be a pretty flexible solution.
I tried the Sony waterproof headphones on advice from this forum. I had asked about a waterproof solution for running since I killed 2 mp3 players and 3 headphones (cheap ones, fortunately) due to sweat in the past 2 years.
That advice, unfortunately, was not that helpful for me. The Sony headphones are designed well and work well, but the design with the all-in-one earbud/mp3 player integrated meant that there are these rectangular blocks attached to the earbuds (they look like bluetooth headphones but are heavier.) At least for me, that small extra weight translated to really annoying extra sound while running - sounded exactly like someone was rubbing a q-tip up and down within my ear canal and was loud enough to require me to turn up the volume to nearly max levels to overcome it.
So I’d avoid any earbuds that add weight to the earbud, as you might run into the same problem if you’re using it for running. For swimming, it wouldn’t be a problem.
Underwater Audio --------water proof ipod from Amazon and the short cord white ear buds.
Great customer service.