Hamburg- MP3 players have become one of the most popular accessories for joggers as listening to your favourite music can help overcome the last few metres before finally arriving home. But to enjoy jogging and listening to music at the same time there are a few things you should take note of. The best kind of MP3 player to go jogging with is one with flash memory. Many players have a hard disk drive with moving parts that can experience problems while you are jogging over rough terrain, as Michael Knott from the Hamburg-based technology website netzwelt.de explains.
"Electronic flash players on the other hand are completely immune to vibration," he says. It is usually older MP3 players that are vulnerable to shocks and vibrations and almost all players found in stores today have flash memory.
Last year 4.16 million MP3 players were sold but only 23,000 of them had hard drives, according to Roland Stehle from Germany's Gesellschaft fuer Unterhaltungs- und Kommunikationselektronik, a consumer electronics umbrella organisation that provides information about the sector.
Although the capacity of flash players to store songs is growing steadily and almost all of them are suitable for jogging, some come with headphones that can cause problems when running, as Urs Weber from the German magazine Runner's World explains.
"In many cases the standard headphones don't fit well and fall out when jogging." Weber recommends choosing headphones that have multiple types of ear attachments and are adjustable.
What are known as In-Ear headphones are the best, according to Stehle. Weber also believes In-Ear models produce better quality sound.
"Many joggers swear by In-Ear headphones while some don't think they are any good at all," says Knott. They feel uncomfortable using In-Ear headphones because they cannot hear what is going on in the outside world.
Knott recommends trying the traditional style semi-open headphones that sit on the ears and remain in a stable position with the aid of a headband.
Studio style headphones, on the other hand, are not suitable because they fill with too much sweat. "It might happen that while you are jogging you feels like you are wearing steam boilers over your ears."
Some headphone models already have an MP3 player integrated into the headband.
Another thing to look out for is the connection between the headphone and the player. Cables are often a source of possible danger for joggers, according to Knott. "It can get caught on something and pull the headphones from your ears."
A cable can also distract you while jogging if you continually have to take care of where it is. In that case it might be wise to choose a Bluetooth headphone that has no cables. "A pair of Bluetooth headphones cost between 28 and 42 dollars more than cable headphones." But the downside is that there is just a small choice of Bluetooth headphones on the market.
A good way to keep a normal player in a secure and stable position is with the aid of an armband placed in the upper area of your arm, explains Knott. That way the player will not bounce around as when it is in your pocket.
Apple's iPod Shuffle and players from Creative and Philips are easily and safely attached to your clothing with a clip, adds Weber. One way to protect the player from rain is with a silicone covering. "Unfortunately many silicone covers don't fit 100 per cent," says Knott.
For those who lose their sense of rhythm while listening to music as they jog there are MP3 players that choose music to suit your running pace. "That is very useful as many joggers tend to run too quickly when they listen to a fast song," says Knott.
Those players can identify the beats per minute of a song and match it to your jogging tempo. Or the jogger can choose the pace.
All in all MP3 players can provide motivation without taking your breath away as you jog.
