Wednesday , March 27 2024
If you're willing to give up some quality in sound to gain quality in pure comfort and safety, these might be for you.

Gadget Review: earHero Earpieces

Have you ever watched a TV show or movie and seen those cool secret agent types with the tiny little earpieces and thought, “Man, I want that!” Well, what if you could get them and not only run around pretending that you’re a special agent (in your head, please – no guilty charges of impersonating an officer of the law), but also get the benefit of comfort and safety in a fashion unknown before in consumer earbuds? Then you would have in your hands a pair of earHero earpieces.

earHero_300dpi

The product was conceived and patented by husband-and-wife team Matt and Mali Murphy. They run an audiology clinic in Boise, Idaho called the House of Hearing Audiology Clinic.

I was very excited to try the earbuds out, but when you first look at them out of the box it can be a little disconcerting because we have gotten so used to the cosmetic appeal common to most headphones and audio equipment these days. But what they lack in pizzazz, they certainly make up for in comfort and safety.

Let’s talk about the comfort first. I’m a big fan of music and I used to listen to my NatureSpace app in order to fall asleep, but if you’ve tried to sleep with earbuds in and you happen to be a side-sleeper like me, it’s not comfortable at all. I’ve tried numerous earbuds in an effort to find a pair small enough not to cause discomfort when pushed against a pillow, but I could never find one fully pain-free, until now. As you can see from the image, these have no rubberized coating or shell around the speakers. These are very similar to those used in hearing devices already, so they are built to be small. They are worn over the back of the ear, and the little gray strip you see coming off the microphone is meant to rest against the inside of your ear for pressure and stabilization of the earpiece.

Once I had them on, I also ran around and jumped in my house to see if I could knock them loose or out completely. No dice. One caveat, though: they fit best for people with completely normal-shaped ears. Mine are a little on the large side and stick out some. I also didn’t fully develop a distinct ridge along the inside, which is where the plastic strip rests for pressure, so they didn’t fit me perfectly, but they still held on well and were comfortable.

Then comes something we don’t think about all that often in terms of earbuds: safety. Because of the specialized design of the earHero earpieces, when they are in you not only get your music, you can also still completely hear your surrounding environment. This is incredibly important to people who normally wear earbuds while riding bikes, skateboards, even just walking down the street. With this product you can be totally aware of what is going on around you and never miss something important like, “DUCK!” or “WATCH OUT!”

The only real drawback is the quality of the sound. It’s decent, but for the true audiophile out there, this is no Beats product. It’s really geared towards those who are willing to give up some quality in sound to gain quality in pure comfort and safety. Also, you get the bonus of looking like a secret agent, which is priceless.

About Luke Goldstein

People send me stuff. If I like it, I tell you all about it. There is always a story to be told.

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