It’s almost time for New Year’s resolutions- and there’s really no reason to wait. If the holidays lead to a natural increase in calorie consumption, that also means that it’s a perfect time to spend a little extra effort at the gym (or the track, the pool, the ring, the streets, or wherever you work out). Perhaps you just need something light and reasonably priced for a gift idea under the tree, or want to treat yourself to something nice and give your exercise routine a little boost. No matter the reason, we’ve got a personal audio solution that’s sweatproof, wireless, and looks nice enough to be wearable anywhere, anytime.
The Fitbit Flyer Wireless Fitness Headphones are a step in an interesting direction for the company, and a natural brand extension from their line of fitness trackers. They have a fairly unique look and feel, though the feature set doesn’t offer much new- in fact, there aren’t even fitness tracking capabilities and these won’t track your steps or heart rate. It’s a crowded market out there, with lots of options for just about any personal taste or budget, and these are aimed at filling the most middle-of-the-road group (which is probably the largest). They include some of the usual accessories- a protective pouch, the typical micro USB charging cable, but also a quite wide array of eartips, fins, and even wings that all help keep them secure and stable even when you’re running at a sprint.
We liked the six hours of battery life (as rated, and we found it to be over that in most conditions), and the hydrophobic nanocoating and an IP67 rating meaning they can get wet (but should not be immersed in water, so don’t take them swimming). Sound quality is impressive- and it has to be, considering the competition- and we tried these with a pretty wide array of different genres and styles. Rock and pop sounded natural, electronic tracks never dipped into flatness or became too cold, and hip-hop basslines sounded pretty good with their Power Boost mode enabled (which modifies the EQ settings “with a setting enhanced by Waves technologies”). Switching between the modes is easy, with buttons right on the control pod (along with normal remote functions). The control pod is a bit large though, and slightly bulkier than we would have liked.
Available in two color schemes- a darker silver-and-blue option they call Nightfall and a lighter, off-white and gold they named Lunar Gray. For anyone looking for crisp, clean audio in a sleek build, it’s hard to go wrong with these. As fitness headphones, they are solid- trading better audio clarity and build quality for some advanced features that you might not need. Expect to spend around $129.95 online and in stores for the Fitbit Flyer.
