Headphones For Sleeping In The Test: Two Sleeping Headphones For The Bed

2023 Author: Sheila Hailey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-24 11:17

1. Sleeping headphones in the test: Navly headband with Bluetooth
2. Noise-canceling sleepbuds tested: QuietOn Sleep

Headphones for sleeping: what is it and what types are there?

Of course, you can wear any "normal" headphone model to fall asleep - but at the latest when you lie on the side of a pillow, conventional headphones are annoying. Over-ear models shift and can break due to the pressure, in-ears stick uncomfortably into the ear canal or get lost. Instead of looking for the AirPods between the sheets every night in the dark, you should rather leave them on the dessert and buy a more suitable solution: headphones for sleeping. The term "sleep headphones" is not clearly defined and can relate to different designs and purposes. In this buying advice we differentiate between:

Wireless Bluetooth headphones that can play music and can be worn in bed due to their special design.
Sound-absorbing ear inserts (“sleepbuds”), which primarily block ambient noise and are intended to ensure quiet and better sleep.

Sleeping headphones in the test: Navly headband with Bluetooth

Navly Bluetooth headband sleep headphones

Now from € 19.99 at Amazon price can now be higher. Price from 08.06.2020 11:34 a.m.

A real bestseller is the Navly headband for just under 20 euros at Amazon. We tested the sleep and sports headphones in a few days and nights and can largely agree with the positive customer reviews. In principle, it is an elastic headband that is tubular and in which there is headphone technology: two round flat speakers on the left and right, a button panel embedded in the fabric material at the front and a slot with a micro USB connector at the back.

The quality of workmanship is simple and reminiscent of a sports leggings, which can be found at discount stores up for grabs: Here and there is a bit of yarn from, probably sooner or later will not withstand one or other place of natural wear and tear. Rather a product that will serve its purpose for the next two to three years than a lifetime purchase. At the admittedly low price, that's okay.

The comfort is extremely good. The headband, which is somewhat tight at first, expands after a few days and becomes more comfortable. Nevertheless, it sits securely on your head so that you can also go jogging or doing yoga exercises. If necessary, you can leave it on all night while sleeping - but with "hair-raising" consequences for the hairstyle the next day. Side sleepers will find that the flat speakers hardly exert any pressure on the ear - however, one of the speakers is then pressed more firmly against the head by the pillow, which can make the sound on the side appear a bit louder and duller. This can only be adjusted through precise settings in the equalizer. Better: shape the pillow so that there is some “air” in the area of the speaker.

The sound quality of the Navly headphone headband cannot be compared to good headphones, so you shouldn't have any false hopes. The mids are fine, there is also a little bass. But the highs are tinny and make some songs sound like from a plastic kitchen radio. The sound is absolutely sufficient for podcasts and radio plays. Also for the morning run with the favorite playlist or as "sleep headphones" while watching Netflix on the phone / tablet there is no objection to the Navly headband. But it is certainly not an instrument for the enjoyment of music.

Tip: The loudspeakers can be flexibly adjusted in the "fabric tube" so that the sound can be optimized a little after being put on. The more centrally the speakers are positioned on the ear canals, the better the sound. There is practically no shielding of ambient noise. Even at medium volume, the person next to the bed hears involuntarily that there is music playing - something like when someone is talking on their cell phone and you are standing right next to it. You have to get used to the operation on the forehead. It doesn't help to memorize where each button is - after all, you can't see it when you're wearing the headband. A mirror helps with the first attempts, then you get the hang of it.

Conclusion: An interesting product, this headphone headband. No revelation in terms of sound, but quite comfortable to wear and, above all, extremely affordable. At least as "bed headphones" for YouTube viewing, it is much more suitable than conventional in-ears. But it is more worthwhile for athletes to invest significantly more money in special sports headphones.

Navly Bluetooth headband sleep headphones

Now from € 19.99 at Amazon price can now be higher. Price from 08.06.2020 11:34 a.m.

Advantages:

Comfortable and secure fit on the head
Good value for money

Disadvantage:

Tinny sound: Not for serious music enjoyment, but sufficient for podcasts and YouTube
Simple build quality, limited durability

Navly headband headphones: test rating

Sound: 45 percent
Comfort: 80 percent
Hardware, design & functions: 75 percent
Battery: 75 percent

Overall: 69 percent

On the subject of sleep, you should also inform about the Apple Watch:

Start photo gallery (7 photos)

Noise-canceling sleepbuds tested: QuietOn Sleep

QuietOn Sleep earplugs with active noise canceling

Now from € 199.00 on Amazon price can now be higher. Price from 29.06.2020 12:52 p.m.

QuietOn is no stranger to us - we already tested a very similar product from the manufacturer. At that time my judgment was positive, although I found the price to be excessive. In the meantime, a lot has happened in the area of true wireless headphones: In the meantime, models such as the Apple AirPods Pro or the Libratone Track Air + also offer active noise cancellation and also play music in good sound quality. There was no such competition at the time - so there is a legitimate question as to why a product like the QuietOn Sleep should be good for around 200 euros, which has nothing to offer apart from Noise Canceling (ANC). Technically speaking, these are "high-tech oropax" that do not play any sound signalscan. A comparable product was also available from Bose for some time: However, the "Noise-masking Sleepbuds" were discontinued due to battery problems.

Well, the deciding factor should be size. The two housings of the QuietOn Sleep are extremely compact - in any case a bit more space-saving than most true wireless headphones. Thanks to flexible memory foam attachments, the ear canals are reliably sealed - but this also creates the typical "cork-in-the-ear feeling" that not everyone can get used to. Otherwise the wearing comfort is okay, nothing presses uncomfortably. You can wear it for a few hours at a time.

As soon as the housings are inserted, you don't hear anything. This is precisely the task of this gadget: it offers noise protection from conventional earplugs and also electronically filters out low frequencies by means of counter- sound. To test the effectiveness, I combined recordings of aircraft cabin noise with a low-frequency sinus tone (60 Hz) and let it run at high volume. In fact, the QuietOn Sleep audibly filters out the bass portion better than the Oropax Soft used for comparison for just under 5 euros.

The disillusionment came when I used my AirPods Pro (about 280 euros) afterwards. Here, noise canceling is even more effective and pushes noise a little better into the background. The fact that these are still full headphones for listening to music and telephoning (headset) actually only allows one judgment…

Conclusion: The ANC hearing protection QuietOn Sleep is hopelessly overpriced and can only be recommended in a few cases. When it comes to fading out low frequencies, using as little space in the ear as possible (sleepability) and the battery life of up to 20 hours is decisive - only then should you consider this gadget. In view of the good selection of true wireless headphones with noise canceling, the purchase price is not justifiable - unless, of course, money is irrelevant. For a quiet night, normal earplugs made of foam and without ANC technology are also well suited and for air travel you would rather get the AirPods Pro, the Sony WF-1000XM3 or the Libratone Track Air +.