Word in your ear
The popularity of the iPod has spawned an avalanche of new headphones aimed at people who don’t want those telltale white wires to flag up what’s under their jacket. Jack Mottram rounds up the best of what’s on offer.
pon receipt of a new iPod. range for _
be it Photo. Shuttle or the
del'iantly uncapitalised nano. the lirst thing to do is ditch those tacky white earbuds. The sound quality is nothing to write home about. they allegedly act as a beacon to would-he muggers. and. let‘s lace it. with oyer the million iPods sold last year. sporting them doesn't exactly mark you out as a painfully hip early adopter any more.
'l'hankl'ully. inst as the world‘s preferred MP3 player has spawned a market for add-ons and accessories ranging from dinky protectiye coy'ers shaped like hooded tops to elaborate DJ mixing stations. so the world‘s headphone manul'acturers are keen to cash in.
To begin at the bottom. with cheap but worthwhile upgrades. (irit‘lin — widely acknowledged as the leader of the iPod al'termarket — can offer a pair of liar'l'humps.
SPORTING WHITE 'PHONES DOESN'T EXACTLY MARK YOU OUT AS A HIP EARLY ADOPT ER
lincased in soft rubber which adapts to the contours of the car. they screen out external noise. allowing you to listen sal‘ely at low \‘olumes. Similarly. Shure's lilg model — marketed at Sony PSP-owncrs. but a good match to any MP3 player ~ snugly inside the ear. employing technologies found in the t‘irm‘s pricier models. a long time l'ayourite of stage musicians for their hi-l'idelity and noise- cancelling properties.
But these come with wires. like things from the 20th century. Logitech's wireless headphones for iPod connect to the dey‘ice \‘ia Bluetooth. and let you change tracks by pressing gently on the headphones themselyes. Alternatively. the Macally mTune
sits
nanos and' Shul'lles sidcstcps modern connectivity protocols —- you simply wodge your 'Pod into. the ,4; ‘
side of these cans.‘(If you 41- .1.
like the simplicity of this metho
and are handy with a soldering iron. an enterprising hacker has posted step-by-step instructions for integrating a Shul'l‘le into charity shop headphones at home page.mac.com/_iitnyounkinl.
Next. since Apple's industrial design department has made machines for music on the move into bona l’ide. il' questionable. fashion accessories. come the
wearable options. Apple itsell'
supplies the nano Lanyard Headphones which loop around your neck. supporting the slimline player at chest height. Similar. but much more comt’y. is the SongSling by mophie. which also features retractable earpieces.
Finally. it cash is no object. and you consider yourself an audiophile. inyest in a Simpl Al. a clip-on pre—amplilier. which aims to meet the performance needs of truly hi-li ‘phones. Whether those dodgily downloaded MP3s are worth listening to on high end kit remains open to question. but it's
bound to impress your neighbour
on the Tube.
1) The Macally mTune-N, $49.99, macally.com;
2) Mophie Song Sling, $14.99 mophie.com
3) Griffin Earthumps, £12.83 ebuyer.com
4) Logitech Wireless, £82.99 headphoneworld.com
5) 1805 JVC Earwarmer Headphones, £29.99 headphoneworld.com
6) Shore E29 headphones, £59.99 headphoneworld.com
For further information and a wide selection of other products, visit headphoneworld.com.