There are a mindboggling amount of different headphone types to suit user habits, but this could be by far the most unusual design we've seen yet.
The Shair from Japanese startup Vie does away with the cushion padding seen on regular headphones and replaces it with a 3D-printed cage for your ears.
While most headphones — whether its over-ear or on-ear — apply some pressure to the cushion area, the Shair's cage rests over the ear without touching it. Most of the weight is carried by the headband.
This way, the wireless headphones are more comfortable to wear for longer hours, because they don't press on the ear's soft cartilage or cup it and trap heat, the company promises.
Audio tech from Yamaha
The product is currently looking for funding on Kickstarter, but unlike most projects on the crowdfunding site, the Vie Shair features audio tech from big brand Japanese audio maker Yamaha. That alone may be enough to convince people to back it on Kickstarter.
The headphones come with Yamaha's high-quality MACH-5 audio module, which allows users to change the character of sound, based on your preferences.
Vie was founded by former Warner Music Japan exec, Yazz Imamura. He is joined by ex-Warner colleague Andrew Dunbar, who serves at Vie's COO.
Dunbar told Mashable the team is confident its manufacturing partners will offer assurance to people who feel wary of Kickstarter startups' ability to deliver the final product.
The 3D-printed cage will also be made by a big manufacturer — Nasdaq-listed firm Stratasys. It will be made of a nylon material similar to that used for glasses, to provide more comfort, he added.
Hands-on: Testing comfort
Comfort-wise, the headphones delivered on Vie's promise, and feel oddly refreshing to wear compared to my regular over-ear headphones I have on all day at work.
Here's the comfort dilemma for most people: If you choose over-ear headphones, it can be more comfortable than an on-ear set because over-ears have larger paddings that go around the ear, opposed to the smaller on-ear paddings that press directly on the ear. This can be especially uncomfortable if you wear glasses, because on-ear sets press the arms of your glasses onto your head.
But with the way over-ears sets typically cup your ears, you can get hot and sweaty more easily.
If you eschew headphones altogether and go with earbuds, your choices range between rubber in-ear opens — which have great sound,but get gunky and waxy — and less well-fitting plastic earbuds (think: regular Apple earbuds) that pick up less wax but can start to feel sore after long hours because they don't fit well in the ear canal and press on some spots.
Compared to all of these choices, the Shair's quirky design seems to solve a lot of the issues. The cage rests over the ear, and lightly sits on the skull, taking pressure off the ear structure.
The company's Kickstarter ad features a woman wearing a set while running, but I'm doubtful the Shair will stay snug if I took them out for a jog. Dunbar told me the version I had in my hands was a pre-production set, and eventually the Kickstarted version will have an adjustable headband.
Still, I'm not confident the set will stay in place with a lot of bouncing around due to the way it sits directly on the headband and doesn't hug the head.
Audio quality could be better
Vie touts the open cage design as a way for the user to hear what's around them, which can be safer if you want to hear oncoming traffic.
But that comes at a compromise on audio quality, because of the way the sound leaks out. This greatly diminishes bass response, so you won't hear the thumping sounds of your favourite electronic tracks.
I tested the set with Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" playing through a software equaliser pumping up the bass more. Still, the audio output wasn't very bassy, so I missed a fair bit of the low cello warmth on the track, and heard a lot of high and mid-high portions like the cymbals and snare and sharp clapping.
Dunbar noted people concerned about bass response can swap out the open cages for closed versions. These should keep sound in a little better, which will help you hear those bass notes.
He added that Yamaha will use its advanced
Mach-5 audio codec in the final headphones, which will help make the audio sound clearer and drive up bass a little more.
Audio geeks will be excited to know the headphones are planar magnetic — typically found in higher quality audiophile headphones — compared with the more common dynamic coil technology that cheaper sets use. This means the Shair is capable of producing cleaner, clearer sound, so you can hear the slight crackle in the singer's voice. Cheaper headphones can suffer from muddier sounds.
Overall, the headphones look promising. For most people who want comfort and clean sound in a wireless package, these will probably delight.
If you're an audiophile, however, you're probably better off going with a more traditional design to capture all the nuances in those vinyls.
