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What about in-ear fins and over-ear hooks?įor the most part, earphones these days are designed to stay in your ears without any additional support. You want something with noise cancelling of some form. For instance, if you're listening to music every day on a noisy commute, you won't want a pair like the Audeze models which are open-back and do absolutely nothing to cancel out external noises. Where will you wear them?Īs well as a fit, the environment you're going to do most of your listening in will dictate which headphones you should buy. Look for one that offers multiple tip sizes (if you're buying in-ears) or a well-designed and extending headband (if you're buying over-ears).
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At the end of the day, it doesn't matter how great a pair of headphones sound if you hate wearing them. If they are, ensure you've activated the highest available streaming/download quality in the app's settings.Ī big part of buying any pair of in, over or on-ears is the fit of the product. Check what streaming service you're on and if your favourite tracks and albums are available in Lossless/Hi-Res audio formats. So if you are buying a pair of Hi-Res capable headphones, make sure you're going to make the most of it. Will you make the most of Hi-Res?Īs streaming services try to outdo each other's offerings, more of them are upping the ante when it comes to streaming higher quality audio. A good example is the type of in-ears or over-ears that use that Lightning power to enable Hi-Res audio with a built-in DAC. For us a good pair of Lightning headphones has to include something extra.
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Mainly because Apple sells a very cheap and easy 3.5mm to Lightning adapter that you could just plug any old pair of wired earphones or headphones into. This is undoubtedly THE question when looking for this specific type of headphone. Still, if you're set on buying Lightning headphones, what should you look for? Why buy Lightning headphones? But if you are looking for the very best wired headphones for your iPhone, here are our top picks. Of course, wireless headphones are infinitely more convenient, and the majority of people will be better served by them. That means it's one of the highest-quality ways to get audio delivered directly from your iPhone. They can also draw power from an Apple device, even if the device is asleep.Īpple's Lightning port can also support headphones with integrated digital-to-analogue converters (DACs) and amplifiers, so audio travelling through the Lightning port will pass into the headphones digitally, thus avoiding typical analogue signal interferences you get with other headphones. So, why choose from our pick of the best Lightning headphones? Well, Lightning headphones do have a special quality they're capable of receiving lossless stereo 48kHz digital audio output from Apple devices and sending mono 48kHz digital audio input. That was a job that used to be fulfilled by the bundled Apple Earpods, but Apple stopped including the wired Lightning earbuds in the box back in 2020 as part of its attempt to reduce electronic waste.
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