14 DAY TRIAL // If any prices had been supplied, it would have been easier to judge the sales odds of the new headphones that SOUL Electronics has just launched, but as it is, we'll have to make do with their technical details and special traits.
There are three new headsets coming, advertised as the Combat series: Combat+ Over-Ear Headphones, Transform On-Ear Headphones, and Flex Sport Earphones.
As the name implies, the first is a model with large ear cups, the second has smaller ear cups that rest on the ear lobe rather than around it, and the third uses ear buds, meaning those small things that you stick into your ear canal.
The Combat+ Over-Ear Headphones possess washable mesh ear pads (a spare set is included in the shipment). Said pads are breathable and shouldn't interfere with normal body heat. Control and fit are assured as well.
Of course, SOUL Electronics made the series for athletes, like runners, joggers, etc., so it would have sealed its own coffin if it missed this trait. In fact, pro football player Tim Tebow and runner Usain Bolt both tested it.
The Combat+ Over-Ear also get noise cancellation, compression fit and are made of bacteria-resistant materials. That way, it will take a lot longer than usual for all that sweat to spawn microscopic life. And when that happens, you can just wash the pads anyway.
The Transform On-Ear headphones have a wide, breathable rubberized headband and washable ear pads of their own, but the rest of the design is left the same as above, minus the cup size.
Finally, the Flex Sport Earphones have water/sweat proof ear buds (IPX5 waterproof standards), also with bacteria resistance. They are shaped like ear hooks, for good fit.
According to SOUL, out of potential customers that are also athletes, 67% want headphones, and 59% of those want over-ear phones. Thus, when shipments begin later this fall, the Transform On-Ear and Flex Sport will likely sell less, cumulatively, than the Combat+ Over-Ear.
