Please Don’t Stop the Music: Polk Headphones and SWITCH Portable Speaker Review

Music can be a real game changer for me. I can go into a workout feeling stressed out and tense, but the minute a good beat comes on and I start moving, my mood tends to elevate right along with my heart rate.

Of course, it’s helpful to have a good way to listen to those tunes, because I don’t know about you, but the speakers on my laptop and phone don’t exactly pump up the jam the way I like it pumped.

Happily, I had a chance to check out some primo audio gear recently: Polk UltraFit 3000 Headphones and SWITCH Portable Bluetooth Speaker.

Can you hear the beat now? Credit: Polk Audio

UltraFit 3000

I don’t have much trouble with regular earbuds falling out, but I do have issues with pain and discomfort after wearing them for long periods, so I was glad to see that the UltraFit 3000 came with three options for custom eartips, which allowed me to choose the one that felt best in my ears.

Another much-appreciated custom option was the cord length — there are two custom lengths included, so if you’ve got your music device of choice clipped to your waistband or sitting on the treadmill, you can use a longer one, and if you have it strapped to your upper arm, you can use the short one without having to worry about a bunch of excess cord flopping around and catching on your arm. (I know I’m not the only one who has that issue.)

The headphones also feature moisture-shield technology (great for heavy sweaters like me), as well as handy in-line controls and a microphone.

Fit Bottomed Line: The sound quality was fantastic, although the music came through so strong and clear that it was hard for me to hear traffic noise around me, so I’ve had to make a point to keep the sound turned a little lower than I’m used to for safety. But that’s probably not a bad thing.

The eartips are super comfortable, and if I’m not wearing a hat and sunglasses, the whole thing feels great. If I am wearing a hat and/or sunglasses, though, I have a little trouble with the over-the-ear design. That being said, my husband has no trouble whatsoever with that design.

At $79.95, these are a bit of an investment, but for those who want high quality sound and customized comfort (and are cool with the over-the-ear design), they’re well worth the price.

Share your music everywhere you go. Credit: Native Union

SWITCH Portable Bluetooth Speaker

The SWITCH is not only a speaker — it also functions as a professional conference-call device and a cell-phone charger. It can be used with any Bluetooth device as a speaker, so yes, it’s great for music from your phone so you can Zumba all around the room (ba) with serious sound, but you can also use it to amplify your workout DVDs or favorite fit and inspiring film.

It’s small enough to fit in your gym bag, but the sound it create can easily fill a room. And, it’s available in five colors, so you should have no problem picking one that fits your decor.

Maybe most important to mention: I was able to set it up with minimal hair-pulling (although we did have some trouble getting it to connect to another phone after we’d already connected it to mine).

Fit Bottomed Line: I haven’t utilized the conference-call feature, but I have used it for sound and to charge my phone, both with great success.

Like the headphones, this kind of sound doesn’t come cheap — the SWITCH is $149.99. But, considering you can use it pretty much anywhere and for a variety of purposes, that brings the cost per use way down. Plus, the fact that you don’t have to have a degree from MIT to figure it out is pretty sweet.

How important is sound quality to you when it comes to working out? —Kristen