There are a variety of headphones on the market and which is the right heatset for you? Different types of headphones have advantages and drawbacks that influence their suitability in various environments and situations. Your ideal choice of headphones depends largely on your personal preferences and listening habits. If you're uncertain about which headphones to choose or want to understand the differences between on-ear and over-ear options, read on for more insights.
Pros and Cons
Scenarios
Open-Ear Headphones
What is it for?
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Business professional
In office environments, business professionals often need to stay connected with colleagues and clients while remaining aware of their surroundings. Open-ear headphones allow users to hear ambient sounds while on calls or listening to music, facilitating social interactions and maintaining productivity without isolating them completely. Additionally, office workers frequently wear headphones for extended periods during meetings, conference calls, or long work sessions. Open-ear headphones, with their better ventilation and reduced isolation from external sounds compared to over-ear headphones, offer greater comfort and help mitigate ear fatigue and discomfort over extended use. If they're going on a business trip, it is convenient to carry.
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Fitness enthusiasts
During activities like running, cycling, or other outdoor adventures, remaining aware of their surroundings for safety is vital for fitness enthusiasts. Open-ear headphones allow ambient sounds to enter the ears, enabling users to hear warnings, traffic noise, or other environmental cues, thereby reducing the risk of accidents. Open-ear headphones are typically more breathable and comfortable than over-ear headphones, which is crucial for extended training sessions, minimizing discomfort and allowing for longer workout durations. Bone conduction headphones are usually designed for magnetic charging, which is resistant to water and sweat, are perfect for outdoor activities in demanding conditions.
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Warehouse/logistics environment:
In warehouse and logistics operations, drivers or operaters need to communicate effectively with colleagues and remain aware of their surroundings. Open-ear headphones allow them to hear mechanical sounds, alarms, or other critical environmental noises in the warehouse while on calls or listening to music, which is crucial for quickly responding to emergencies, enhancing work efficiency and safety. Compared to over-ear headphones, open-ear headphones offer better ventilation and comfort, reducing discomfort and fatigue during prolonged use throughout the workday. This is particularly important for warehouse staff who wear headphones continuously.
Recommended Products
Nuroum OpenEar Pro
Lightest ever business open-ear headset for all-day comfort
Price: $149 Weight:31g
Talking time: 12h Music time: 15h
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Outstanding noise reduction: With a HiFi 4 DSP processor and ENC noise reduction technology, Nuroum OpenEar Pro can transmit your voice clearly during calls and eliminate ambient noise, which is suitable for working from home or in the office.
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Multipoint connection: With a range of up to 10 meters, you can move freely without losing connection to your device. Besides, you connect to 2 devices simultaneously and switch at will between music apps and phone calls.
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Powerful sound and deep bass: With HiFi4 DSP as well as an advanced algorithm, it provides powerful sound compared to other traditional open ear headphones, allowing you enjoy more lively and dynamic music while working in busy office environment.
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Magnetic quick charge and long battery life：A full charge of 2 hours allows for uninterrupted calls for 12 hours or music play for 15 hours, ideal for long day workers or outdoor adventurers. Its magnetic charging can be used in wet challenging environments.
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Lightweight: It only weighs 31g and you can almost ignore it. Taking ergonomics and comfort into account, it allows business professionals to wear for long periods.
Shokz OpenComm2
Bone conduction stereo Bluetooth headset for hybrid working
Price: $159.95 Weight:35g
Talking time: 16h Music time: 8h
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Crystal-clear calls: With DSP technology and cVc technology, it can filter out ambient noise and ensure your voice delivery is clear, ideal for warehouse and logistics operators in a noise condition.
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Outstanding audio quality: With 7th generation bone conduction technology and PremiumPitchTM 2.0, providing a great music experience even when you're walking down the street or in a busy warehouse.
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Stable Bluetooth connectivity: With an impressive wireless range of up to 30m/98ft, you can move freely without worrying about Bluetooth disconnection. Additionally, it can connect two devices such as phones and computers.
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User-friendly integrated controls: Integrated headset operations reduce PC or mobile device controls to simplify functionality. With a mute button, office workers can mute their voice with one touch. And you can simply press a button to adjust the volume, mute and unmute during calls, play or pause audio, check the battery level, and more.
Levn Open Ear Headphones with Mic
Sweatproof Wireless Headset for Work, Driving, Running, Workouts
Price: $89.99 Weight:29g
Talking time: / Music time: 14h
Lightweight: This bluetooth headset with microphone weighs only 29g, makes them an excellent choice for sports enthusiasts, suitable for running, hiking, biking, cycling, driving, and more activities. It boasts skin-friendly and soft silicone ear pads along with an ergonomic design, ensuring a comfortable wearing experience even when wearing a helmet and glasses.
Long battery life: Users can use headphones for 14 hours after charging 2 hours without worrying about forgetting to charge it.
Multipurpose Usage and Easy to Use: LEVN open ear headphones with microphone feature a multi-function button. You can easily control play, pause, answer calls, and end calls with one hand, allowing you to easily switch between calls and music.
AI Noise-canceling Microphone: This LEVN Bluetooth headset utilizes advanced environmental noise reduction technology to effectively block most background noise, enabling callers to hear your voice clearly and enhancing call quality. The 270° rotating microphone optimally positions for better voice pickup.
Over-Ear Headphones
What is it for?
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Audio professionals:
Over-ear headphones offer a wider frequency response and accurate sound reproduction, enabling professionals to hear and analyze audio details effectively for precise sound tuning and post-production decisions. Besides, over-ear headphones typically feature good noise isolation, effectively blocking out external noise and providing a quiet working environment. This helps audio professionals to concentrate during demanding audio editing and mixing tasks.
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Immersive music experience seekers:
With larger drivers and design, over-ear headphones provide richer music details and a broader soundstage, enabling music lovers to better perceive the spatial and layered aspects of music. Due to their effective noise isolation, over-ear headphones can block out external noise, creating a private, focused listening environment. This is particularly important for those seeking relaxation and contemplative moments through music.
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Gaming enthusiast:
Over-ear headphones typically provide a wider soundstage and more accurate sound positioning, crucial for gamers to track enemy locations, hear environmental cues, and immerse themselves in the game world. With high-quality audio performance and deep bass effects, over-ear headphones enhance the immersive experience and emotional engagement in games, allowing players to deeply connect with game stories and characters. Effective noise isolation helps to block out external distractions, creating a quieter gaming environment that aids concentration, improving gameplay performance and reaction times.
Recommended Products
Nuroum HP31D
Professional wireless headset with mics as ultimate workspace tool
Price: $149 Weight:184g
Talking time: 35h Music time: 45h
AI-Powered ENC Noise Cancellation: With AI-Powered ENC noise cancellation and HiFi4 DSP processor, it achieves an impressive 99.9% background noise suppression. Whether in a bustling office or on noisy street, your caller will hear only your voice, ensuring crystal-clear communication.
Bluetooth 5.3 & Multi-Point Connection: With a remarkable range of up to 33 feet, the HP31D lets you move freely while maintaining premium sound quality. In addition, the Bluetooth multi-point connection allows simultaneous pairing with two devices, effortlessly switching between computer meetings and incoming phone calls.
Easy Controls : With a mute button and a multi-function button, you can mute your voice and answer your call conveniently
Wireless charging & Long Battery Life: Revel in extended usage with up to 35 hours of continuous calls and 45 hours of music playback on a single charge. There are two charging options included charging base and USB cable enhance flexibility, allowing you to recharge effortlessly.
All-Day Comfort: Its pillow-soft ear cushions and a stretchable headband with a padded leather sling allow for all-day wear. And the 180° rotatable ear muffs accommodate various head shapes.
Versatile Connectivity & Broad Compatibility: It connect via Dongle, Bluetooth, or USB A/type-C cable to your PC, Mac, cell phones, or tablets. Compatible with Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, and iOS, the on ear wireless headset is a reliable companion for work or amusement.
Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex
The most portable over-ear professional headset with best-in-class active noise cancellation performance
Price: $329 Weight:136g
Talking time: 20h Music time: 32h
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Noise cancelling technology: With Jabra ClearVoice, which is a state-of-the-art technology that combines a multi-microphone system with beamforming and superior algorithms, it meets the open office's requirements adjusting a balance between cancellation of background noise and other people's voice.
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Useful APP: In the Jabra Sound+ app, you can choose sound mode and find the strongest noise suppression level you need. Besides, you can adjust different sound effects on the app according to your preference and adjust audio settings based on personal preferences and work environments to enhance productivity and comfort.
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Long battery life: It allows uninterrupted calls for 15 hours or music play for 21 hours after charging up to 120 minutes, which can power through your all day work.
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Convenient and lightweight design: At only 136g, it’s lighter than a pack of cards. When you're not using it, you can fold it up.
Logitech Zone Vibe 100
Wireless headphones with various colors for the office and working from home.
Price: $99.99 Weight:185g
Talking time: 18h Music time: 20h
Special design and various colors: It has a special design and three beautiful colors: rose, graphite, and white.
Immersive audio: With the sonic pleasure of 1.57 in (40 mm) speakers driving full, rich audio, it brings music and meetings to life with deep bass, crisp highs, and low distortion, which helps to mask ambient noises such as keyboard typing and conversations.
Mutipoint Bluetooth and Long battery life: With mutipoint Bluetooth, you can move freely in the office or home. You can get up to 20 hrs of listening time and 18 hrs of talk time on a full charge.
Useful APP: With the APP Logi Tune, you can adjust the sidetone, mic level, and EQ for your preferred audio experience. The Logi Tune app currently supports headset voice prompts in the following languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese for Logitech headsets. You can keep your devices up to date and join meetings with just one click.
Conclusion
In deciding between open earbuds or over-ear headphones, the primary consideration is how much ambient noise you want to hear. If you enjoy being aware of your surroundings while listening to music, open-ear headphones are likely the best option for you. Nuroum OpenEar Pro is one of the outstanding open ear headphones with great sounds, stable connectivity, long battery life, and lightweight. On the other hand, if you prefer more isolation from external sounds and value personal space, over-ear headphones would be more suitable. For maximum immersion and effective noise cancellation, over-ear headphones are the top choice. HP31D is a professional wireless headset for clear communication, seamless collaboration. So choose the headphones that fit you！
