I am consumer advocating the hell out of you

[prog]

Koss in-ear headphones are the most PoS consumer product I've had the misfortune to encounter in recent memory. What makes them so wonderfully awful is the "mute" hardware button installed halfway up the cord. It is the very definition of a misfeature.

Pressing the button kills the signal from your iPod for the duration of pressure, without actually pausing the iPod itself, resulting in you missing whatever information came up the wire in the interim. I guess if you're listening to a familiar song that you don't really care about that's OK, but otherwise, not so much.

Sadly, the button does not let you ignore it. First of all, it's huge and sensitive, so if you stuff your iPod in your pocket like I do, you end up pressing the button by accident all the time as you move around. Far worse, after about a month of use, the button decided that I didn't need to hear the left channel any more. I could still hear it if I held the button halfway down, so as far as I can tell it is indeed the button's fault.

On a tip from xartofnothingx I just picked up a pair of Sony clip-overs. They are perfectly comfy and, 10 minutes in, they pass the "how does Ladytron's Witching Hour sound on these" test admirably. Of course I mainly use my iPod for NPR podcasts, so now I can once more hear Jack Beatty sputter indignantly in both ears instead of just my right one. This is my third set of headphone for this five-month-old iPod. I hope they last a little longer this time.

Comments

[rikchik.livejournal.com]

That's a shame - I've got a pair of Koss over-the-head headphones, and they've been great. Of course, they don't try to do anything fancy besides fold up.

[dianamp04.livejournal.com]

THANK YOU! I'm glad I'm not the only one who seems to kill headphones. Though mine seem to have a 3 month life period. Which is why I was buying the $4 over the ear ones for a while, those actually are the best earphones I've had...but this time, on the advise of my roommate and your other half I also bought the sony ones. Their much looser then the $4 ones, which I'm not sure if I like or not.

[xartofnothingx.livejournal.com]

shut it. :P


yeah!! i'm glad you like them.. :) so far they've lasted me quite a while but i don't seem to kill them as much as you or dianamp04 so let me know how they turn out!

[keimel.livejournal.com]

What kind of clip overs? I have a pair of MDR-V150's, (and a pair of Koss Pro 4A, but those are way old and super heavy studio) which are bulky but good sounding.

Would like a useful lightweight pair that won't fall off.

[jtroutman.livejournal.com]

I am still using my 5 year old Etymotic ER-4s and I love them for the amazing sound isolation. They have some newer products that are cheaper now, and aimed at the iPod market, including a bluetooth wireless earphone.

I also highly recommend HeadPhone.Com for all of your headphone needs (but they no longer carry Etymotic gear, I notice).