Anker is launching a new pair of wireless sports earphones under its Soundcore brand that have a unique hook design to fit comfortably around the ears.
They're called Sport X10 headphones, and according to the company, they were made with comfort in mind. In a statement (opens in a new tab), Anker says people have complained that the Athletic earbuds have a "bulky design" and often fall out during a sweaty workout. Anker's solution was to add ear hooks that could rotate 210 degrees so people could adjust the buttons to find that sweet spot.
To combat sweat, the Sport X10 has an IPX7 water resistance rating (opens in a new tab), which means it can be submerged up to one meter (about three feet) under water. The devices are also equipped with Soundcore's SweatGuard technology to protect "against the corrosive properties of sweat." Anker is so confident in the X10's water resistance that he claims you can rinse the earphones under the tap after an intense workout and they'll still work.
drums and sound
Along with sweat protection and earhooks, the Sport X10 headphones have long battery life and a host of features for great sound. On a single charge, they can last up to eight hours, or 32 hours when used with the charging case. Anker also added a quick charge feature to allow for "two hours of playtime" after a 10-minute charge.
Under the hood, the Sport X10 features 10mm dynamic drivers with Soundcore's BassUp feature that adjusts the bass level of a song in real time. You can also control the sound of your headphones by connecting them to the Soundcore app (available on iOS and Android) and selecting one of 22 EQ presets. For people who want even more control, the app has a custom 9-band equalizer setting to tweak the finer details.
Other notable features include a six-microphone array for taking calls and Hybrid Noise Cancellation to block out ambient noise. On windy days, you can enable wind noise reduction in the app to further improve call quality. Rather, the headphones have a transparency mode so you can hear the outside world and pay attention to what's going on.
And the last key feature of the Sport X10 earphones is the stereo mode (opens in a new tab) to control the songs. For example, double-tapping the right earbud plays or pauses a song, while double-tapping the left earbud skips a track.
While not as impressive as the Sony WF-1000XM4 wireless earphones, the Sport X10 is still a decent package. The headphones are available in the US (€79), Europe (€99), UK (€89), and Canada (CA$119). You can get the pair in black or oatmeal white on the Soundcore website (opens in a new tab) or on Amazon (opens in a new tab). A red model should be launched between the end of July and the beginning of August; no exact date is given.
If you're looking for a good pair of sports headphones, TechRadar has a list of the best for 2002.