GoKawiilIt's important to make sure your swimming headphones boast a robust enough IP rating — short for Ingress Protection — to stay protected in the water. These can be a bit confusing, as some manufacturers list two numbers while others list just one (e.g., IP56 versus IPX7). When shopping, you mostly need to pay attention to the second number in the rating, which reflects how well they're equipped to handle water (the first number refers to dust, which isn't as relevant; a rating with a X generally means manufacturers only tested for water resistance). Ratings of 6 and below can only handle things like sweat and rain, while IPX7 and IPX8 can handle different levels of actual submersion.
For audiophiles, the bone conduction itself as well as auxiliary features like adjustable EQs are also important to look at. As manufacturer Shockz points out, the water sealing your ear naturally causes an occlusion effect, amplifying lower frequency sounds in a way that can be overpowering, and headphones resting on your cheekbones instead of in your ears means outside noise is much more of an issue. To combat this, some swimming headphones offer special swimming EQs that naturally amplify harder-to-hear tones and help block other sounds.
Bone conduction's reliance on vibration can also be the downfall of some swimming headphones, especially at higher volumes, which can mean intense amounts of buzzing. Different brands boast various strategies to combat this: some swimming headphones allow listeners to manually adjust the transducers, others claim to have transducers at angles optimized for buzz reduction. It's definitely something that's worth looking into when shopping around, especially if you like to blast your music. With the right research, you can enjoy the most tech-savvy swim of your life — maybe next you can pick up a pair of smart goggles.