Sports Calendar

MI-SPORT £64.99

What looks like a pair of ordinary wireless on-ear headphones has a 1GB MP3 player built in. The Mi-Sport is waterproof (and comes with earplugs for use when swimming, which you wear under the cans), so if you switch your training between the track, gym and pool you won’t need to buy different players. It also offers equaliser settings for pop, rock and classical music — but sadly none of them really improves the dull sound. The quality of the construction in this plasticky player leaves something to be desired and it has some design quirks as well. For instance, the USB cable fits into the player in two ways, but only one of them allows it to be charged and loaded with tunes.

Verdict Uninspiring sound, but adaptable — and the most comfortable player on test.

www.mi-sport.net

BEST FOR LAP SWIMMERS

FINIS SWIMP3 £100

The waterproof SwiMP3 is designed exclusively for swimming and doesn’t look, feel or even work like a normal digital music player.

It’s a two-part player that attaches to either side of a pair of swimming goggles and rests on your cheeks, using bone-conduction technology to transmit sound vibrations directly to your inner ear. Consequently it sounds mushy in the air: the technique works best in water, where the SwiMP3 impresses with rich, smooth tones. It’s not the easiest player to use, though, with small, unresponsive buttons, and the meagre 256MB memory holds only a few dozen high-quality MP3 tunes.

Verdict An ingenious way to alleviate length longueurs.

www.finisinc.com

BEST FOR LONG SWIMS

SPEEDO AQUABEAT £70

This rubberised player, the smallest on test, is aimed primarily at swimmers — and with 1GB of memory it will hold enough albums to get you across the Channel. A stiff plastic clip attaches the player firmly to most goggles, although it did prove too small for one pair. The Aquabeat comes with both long and short headphone cables, but both are prone to tangling. The music controls are sluggish, taking a long time to turn on the player and select tunes; at least they’re textured, so you can identify them without removing your goggles. Audio quality is lightweight and deteriorates further beneath the surface.

Verdict Small and light, but with slow controls — and sound is average at best.

www.speedoaquabeat.com