Fitness enthusiasts in South Africa have a broad range of wireless earbuds from which to choose, with some of the best coming from brands like Apple, Beats, Shokz, Jabra, and EarFun.
Important aspects to consider when deciding on a pair of earbuds for exercise include battery life, comfort, sweat resistance, and audio quality.
MyBroadband looked for the best wireless earbuds available in South Africa that are ideal for working out. We used review ratings to decide on the best options.
We settled on the second-generation Apple AirPods Pro, Beats Fit Pro, Jabra Elite 8 Active, Shokz OpenRun, and the EarFun Air Pro 3 wireless earbuds.
We stumbled across the EarFun Air Pro 3 earbuds — a lesser-known brand — when looking for a more budget-friendly option to include.
They promise impressive battery life, active noise cancellation (ANC), sweat resistance, and solid sound quality despite the lower price.
Five of the best wireless earbuds ideal for fitness are listed below with pricing.
EarFun Air Pro 3 — R1,695
EarFun claims its Air Pro 3 earbuds are the world’s first next-generation low-energy audio wireless ANC earbuds.
The buds provide up to nine hours of playback on a single charge, with the charging case adding 36 hours. They also feature fast charging, which can add two hours of listening time in ten minutes.
The earbuds feature a flagship Qualcomm QC3071 audio chipset and support adaptive aptX. The earbuds’ QuietSmart 2.0 hybrid ANC technology enables noise cancellation up to 43dB.
EarFun’s Air Pro 3 earbuds don’t have a rating on Amazon. However, they scored 4.9 out of five across eleven Takealot reviews.
Jabra Elite 8 Active — R3,289
Jabra describes the Elite 8 Active earbuds as the toughest in the world thanks to their IP54 resistance rating, which means they are resistant to sweat and dust.
The buds themselves have an eight-hour battery life, while the charging case can extend this by 24 hours.
The Elite 8 Active earbuds feature Jabra’s Adaptive Hybrid Active Noise Cancellation technology, which the company says is 1.6x stronger than its standard ANC, thanks to a new chipset.
Jabra’s Elite 8 Active earbuds are rated 4.2 out of five across 2,553 Amazon reviews, with 62% of reviews giving them five stars.
Shokz OpenRun Pro — R3,599
Shokz’s OpenRun Pro earphones are the only ones listed that don’t fit the typical earbud mould and are designed specifically for working out and running.
The earbuds use bone-conduction technology, which Shokz says provides open-ear comfort, more precise sound, and a higher maximum volume.
The Shokz OpenRun Pro earphones don’t fit into a charging case. However, they offer up to eight hours of playback on a single charge.
The earphones have an overall rating of 4.6 out of five across 17,042 Amazon reviews — 78% of which gave a five-star rating.
Beats Fit Pro — R3,799
Beats by Dre’s Fit Bro earbuds offer up to six hours of listening time on a single charge, while the charging case has enough capacity to keep them on for up to 30 hours.
The earbuds have the same chip featured in Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 — the Apple H1 chip — which is claimed to improve pairing speeds, lower latency, and provide better power efficiency.
Beats Fit Pro earbuds are available in a choice of four colours, namely black, white, grey, and purple, and are sweat and water-resistant.
The earbuds have an overall rating of 4.5 out of five across 36,151 Amazon reviews, with 74% of reviewers giving it a five-star rating.
Apple AirPods Pro 2 — R5,299
Apple’s second-generation AirPods Pro earbuds pack the company’s H1 chip and feature Active Noise Cancellation and transparency modes to help the wearer stay aware of their surroundings.
The buds themselves have a battery life of up to six hours, and the charging case provides enough juice for an additional 30 hours of listening time.
Apple says the earbuds and the charging case are resistant to sweat and water thanks to their IPX4 resistance rating.
The earbuds have an overall rating of 4.7 out of five across 609,485 Amazon reviews — 86% of which gave a five-star rating.
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