If you’re the nostalgic type, it’s time to take a long, soulful look at the cables coming out of your headphones. Say goodbyes now, as they probably won’t be around for much longer.
Thanks to dramatic advances in the world of wireless earphones, those infuriating, tangle-prone, dangly bits of wire will soon be a thing of the past.
Recent developments in consumer acoustics mean that True Wireless Stereo (TWS) earbuds are now not just popular, but well within the financial reach for most of us.
You might be thinking that TWS Earbuds aren’t for you, that they’re no better than the wired pair you use at the moment. Well, you’re wrong. Here are a few occasions that TWS Earbuds beat regular headphones.
1. On the commute
Most jobs these days require some degree of travel to get to your place of work. If you’re lucky enough to work in an industry that doesn’t require commuting, feel free to skip this section (and stop feeling so smug!) you lucky so-and-so. For the rest of us, TWS headphones have distinct benefits over traditional, wired solutions.
Stop us if this sounds familiar: you’re traveling to work, trying your best to shut out the noise and packed bodies around you. Today it’s working. You’re engrossed in a podcast, film, or piece of music that has transported you somewhere nicer than the inside of a metro carriage. You are lost in the experience. So lost, in fact, that you nearly miss your stop! You notice just in time, but now you have a phone and a tangled mess of cables to deal with, leaving you with no hands free to fight through the sea of bodies between you and the doors. As if that stress wasn’t enough, it is a scientific fact* that the second a pair of headphones enters your pockets, it will entangle itself with the rest of your stuff.
For the ultimate in commuting relaxation, we recommend using TWS earphones that include a form of noise cancellation.Active Noise Cancellation(ANC) is a clever technology that uses in-built microphones to pick up background noise and then neutralize it before it reaches your ears. However, the TWS headphones with excellent ANC features are usually quite expensive, with prices at about $200.
Noise cancelling used to be exclusive to high-end devices such as the AirPods Pro. Now it’s available in more bank-account friendly offerings, such as UGREEN’s fantastic HiTune TWS earbuds.
With Qualcomm cVc 8.0 Noise Cancelling Technology, you can enjoy whatever you’re listening to in spite of a noisy background. All you have to worry about is sinking back into some Mozart, Metallica, or the Joe Rogan Experience.
*not really
2. When you’re exercising
Ah…exercise. Love it or loathe it, you can’t deny that having a soundtrack (other than your heavy breathing and the blood pounding in your ears) makes the whole thing more enjoyable.
Here in the office we love running, but if you’ve ever tried to use traditional wired headphones while pounding through the countryside or burning up miles on the treadmill, you’ve probably found that running with loose cables is tolerable for about 20 seconds. At which point the constant swaying weight pulling on your ears becomes too much! With TWS earbuds this issue is no more. Cyclists can also benefit from a lack of cabling in much the same way!
You get the idea: If exercise is your form of escape, TWS earbuds are perfect for blocking out distractions and helping you hit that next PB (Personal Best).
If the gentler pace of Yoga is more your cup of chai, you’re probably already aware that some poses, such as downwards dog, are pretty much impossible with wired headphones.
Aside from the distracting, swinging weight of the cables, inversions, and other more strenuous poses can cause wired headphones to simply fall out. That’s not very zen. With TWS tech, this worry is dealt with, meaning and you can concentrate your focus on nailing your Surya Namaskars instead.
Whatever exercise you’re doing with your TWS earbuds, be sure to choose a pair with a solid IPX rating. This means that you can get caught in the rain and work up a sweat without risking damage to your precious tech!
3. Working with your hands
If the nature of your work is solitary, and/or involves using your hands a lot, such as gardening or construction, using TWS earphones could be of real benefit.
There’s nothing worse than coming across an awful song on your music playlist while at work. With regular headphones, changing the song means stopping what you are doing, reaching into your pockets, unwrapping the tangled mess, unlocking your phone, and then, finally, skipping the track. Most TWS headphones come with touch control as standard, so skipping a cheesy pop song that’s somehow in the middle of your heavy metal playlist is as easy as tapping the side of your face.
If your work involves using potentially dangerous equipment such as a chainsaw or other power tools, the last thing you want is the possibility of anything getting caught up in the moving parts. The wires attached to earphones are a potential source of damage and destruction, both to your equipment and possibly yourself. Buying a pair of true wireless stereo headphones eliminates this risk, and with offerings like UGREEN’s Hitune earbuds available for less than $40, a better question is: can you afford not to upgrade your listening experience?
4. In the kitchen
Another place where the benefits of TWS technology become clear is in the kitchen.
Cooking usually involves sharp objects, heat, liquids, and a bunch of other things you probably don’t want mingling with your consumer electronics. Once again, it’s TWS to the rescue.
A bonus with wireless headphones is that you can keep one ear free to listen out for the sounds of your children, pots boiling over, smoke detectors etc by switching to mono mode. Simply take either side’s earbud out and your TWS earbuds can switch to mono mode automatically. Easy-peasy!
5. On a flight
Is there anything more tedious than taking a flight? With nothing to do but gazing at clouds, your phone quickly becomes your main source of entertainment. If you’re smart and loaded up your device with movies, music, and podcasts before you got on the plane, you’re all set….almost.
You’ll need a way of listening to your media. On planes, the noise means you’ll need to go the extra mile. That’s when TWS Earbuds with Noise Cancelling are by far the best solution.
6. Breastfeeding
If you are a mother or are expecting to be one soon, TWS earbuds might come in handy during one particular task of motherhood. We’re talking about breastfeeding, of course!
As idyllic a scene of motherhood as it is, there is nothing to do during breastfeeding except sit there and wait until your tiny tot has had their fill. Yawn. Instead, why not enjoy some music or podcasts? However, even something that simple can pose problems when an infant is involved. Speakers can be a no-go, as feeding is a very sensitive time, and in our experience, it doesn’t take much to put the little ones off their food.
Wired headphones eliminate the problem of excess noise, but trying to breastfeed while preventing the wires from distracting or disturbing your child isn’t easy. TWS earbuds can let you breastfeed without loud sounds breaking the peace or dangling wires flapping around your kid’s face. Is there anything they can’t do?
7. Gifting
With Thanksgiving and Christmas just around the corner, your brain is probably starting to rev up into gift-buying mode. TWS headphones are a sure-fire win for just about anybody who doesn’t already own a pair. Whether it’s your gadget-obsessed father, a teenager who lives almost entirely in the digital world, or a clever way to give your significant other some peace, TWS headphones are a great choice.
Final thoughts
There are a huge number of (well, at least 7) situations where using TWS earphones is clearly the superior option. The lack of a tangled, spaghetti mess of wires is probably the biggest advantage, but touch controls and impressive passive noise cancellation (as found with UGREEN’s Hitune wireless earbuds) offer significant value too. So whether you love working out, fly frequently, or have to buy a gift for a tech-savvy relative, a set of TWS earbuds is the right choice.
Let us know in the comments below when you get the most out of your TWS earbuds!