Headphone killer

I used to get through headphones more quickly than I got through running shoes until I bought the Senheiser PMX80

which, for some reason, have lasted for about 4 years and still appear to be going strong.What kills the headphones is the sweat and I sweat much more than the average person when I am working out. Perhaps Senheiser inadvertently created the equivalent of the everlasting light bulb and have withdrawn this model from the market as a consequence; I don't know whether the more recent models are as resilient. Being waterproof is not necessarily enough to protect against the evils of sweat: sweat can transform into vapour and is also corrosive. One of my iPods has been visibly eaten away around the headphone socket: the sweat must have condensed on the headphone cable and run down to the socket.

I also used to kill iPods and have got through several of them - especially the early iPod Shuffles - but it seems as though Apple has managed to solve the problem as - touch wood - I haven't had to replace any for years. The reason I wanted to change headphones is because I like to be able to change the song I am listening to while I am running. I usually have a playlist of songs that are all between 175 and 185 bpm to synchronize with my cadence but not all of those songs are good for running to.

So I bought myself the Jaybird Freedom Wireless Bluetooth headphones when I was in New York back in November last year.

These guys are so bullish on being sweat-proof that they offer a lifetime replacement guarantee for sweat damage. They may come to regret this now that I have a pair. I would say that I have worn them running around 10 times since I bought them and they have already conked out. Luckily, I bought them in Best Buy who I was able to call and get to send me an email copy of the receipt (which, of course, I had thrown away or lost). The headphones are very cool but if I am going to have to send them back every few months they will lose some of their appeal. With the next pair I will restrict myself to only using them outdoors where I sweat much less (due to the cooling effect of the air).

If any companies are looking for a beta tester to test their supposedly sweat-proof gadgets, then look no further, I'm your man...