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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want an everyday open-ear headset for running, hiking and cycling with a big-driver sound emphasis and touch controls, choose IHAO Open Ear Earbuds; if you need headphones you can actually swim with, that store your music onboard and last longer per charge, choose POLVCDG Swimming Headphones.
• IHAO's biggest strength: a lightweight open-ear fit (33 g, bendable ABS + titanium alloy frame) paired with large 50 mm drivers, deep-bass tuning and touch media controls — a straightforward sport-and-commute headset.
• IHAO's biggest trade-off: IPX4 splash resistance and roughly 6 hours of play time mean it's built for sweat and light rain, not for being submerged, and it can't store music without a connected device.
• POLVCDG's biggest strength: IPX8 waterproofing rated for submersion up to two metres for an hour, plus 32 GB of built-in memory and about 10 hours of battery — it plays music with no phone at all.
• POLVCDG's biggest trade-off: underwater you must switch to MP3 mode because Bluetooth can't travel through water, and its 16 mm drivers are physically smaller than IHAO's.
• Who IHAO is for: land-based athletes and commuters who want an open-ear design, punchy bass and touch controls at a light weight.
• Who POLVCDG is for: swimmers and pool or open-water users who want one device that keeps playing music when the phone stays in the bag.
The IHAO Open Ear Earbuds are built around an air-conduction, open-ear concept: the drivers sit outside your ear canal and deliver sound through the air rather than sealing your ears. In practice that means you keep hearing traffic, footsteps and conversation while your music plays — the classic reason runners and cyclists pick this shape in the first place. The frame is made from ABS and titanium alloy, weighs 33 g, and is designed to bend so it hugs the head; the ear hooks are meant to stay put on the cheekbones rather than press into the ear, so there's no in-ear pressure building up over a long session.
On the audio side, IHAO leans on big hardware for this category: 50 mm large-aperture drivers with a dedicated deep-bass function, covering a 20 Hz–20,000 Hz range. The company also claims in-call stereo sound through the built-in mic. Connection is Bluetooth 5.0 with a stated 10-metre range, and it can hold a link to two devices at once, which is handy if you're switching between a phone and a laptop. Controls are touch-based for media, and noise handling is described as passive cancellation — in other words, the open design does the work rather than active electronics. Battery is a 180 mAh cell: about 2 hours to charge, roughly 6 hours of play time and up to 10 days on standby. The IPX4 rating covers sweat and splashes, so a rainy run is fine, a swim is not.
Buy it if you want an unobstructed-ear headset for running, hiking, cycling or the gym, you like the idea of a bass-forward tuning and touch controls, and you want something that weighs almost nothing on your head. Skip it if you swim, you need music without carrying a phone, or you expect a full workday from one charge — 6 hours is a session, not a week.
The POLVCDG Swimming Headphones are a bone-conduction open-ear design with one job that separates them from almost everything else in this comparison: they're rated IPX8, meaning they can be submerged in water up to two metres deep for an hour. That's the whole point of the product, and it's the reason the spec sheet reads the way it does. Because Bluetooth signals don't travel through water, POLVCDG pairs the wireless mode with an MP3 mode and 32 GB of onboard storage — enough, by the brand's count, for over 8,000 songs. You load your tracks, leave the phone on the poolside, and the headphones keep playing.
The physical design follows the same open-ear logic as IHAO: a flexible titanium frame coated in skin-friendly material that adapts to head shape, 32 g of weight, and completely unobstructed ear canals so you stay aware of your surroundings on a run or ride. The differences show up in the details. POLVCDG uses 16 mm bone-conduction drivers with an 8-ohm impedance and a 20 Hz–20,000 Hz range, and it lists environmental noise cancellation for calls plus active noise cancellation as the control type — a more electronics-forward approach than IHAO's passive setup. Controls are volume-based rather than touch. Battery life is stated at up to 10 hours with fast charging, which is a meaningfully longer window than IHAO's 6.
Buy it if you swim, you want one pair of headphones for pool sessions and land workouts, and you'd rather not carry a phone to listen. Skip it if you never get your headphones wet, you'd rather not manage an MP3 library, or you simply want the biggest drivers you can get for casual listening — 16 mm is a smaller driver than IHAO's 50 mm.
• Best for swimming → POLVCDG Swimming Headphones. IPX8 with submersion up to two metres for one hour is the deciding spec; IHAO's IPX4 is splash-only.
• Best for battery life → POLVCDG Swimming Headphones. Up to 10 hours of play time with fast charging versus IHAO's roughly 6 hours from a 2-hour charge.
• Best for phone-free listening → POLVCDG Swimming Headphones. 32 GB of built-in storage and an MP3 mode mean no paired device required.
• Best for big-driver, bass-forward sound → IHAO Open Ear Earbuds. 50 mm large-aperture drivers with a deep-bass function are the standout audio spec here.
• Best for touch controls → IHAO Open Ear Earbuds. Media control by touch, versus POLVCDG's volume-style controls.
• Best for multi-device switching → IHAO Open Ear Earbuds. It can connect to two devices at once over Bluetooth 5.0.
• Best for calls in noisy places → POLVCDG Swimming Headphones. It lists environmental noise cancellation for calls and active noise cancellation, where IHAO relies on passive noise control.
• Best for pure land sport → either, honestly. Both are open-ear, both weigh about the same (33 g vs 32 g) and both use flexible frames — the choice comes down to whether you get wet.
If I had to pick one, I'd buy the POLVCDG Swimming Headphones. In my opinion the IPX8 rating, the 32 GB of onboard storage and the longer battery life make it the more versatile of the two — it handles the pool and still works as an everyday open-ear headset on land. The IHAO Open Ear Earbuds are the better call only if your sport never leaves dry ground and you specifically want a 50 mm driver with touch controls. For anyone who splits time between water and road, POLVCDG is the one I'd recommend. Check the current price on Amazon before you decide.
Yes — the spec sheet rates them IPX8, which the brand describes as safe for submersion up to two metres deep for one hour. That's a real step beyond splash resistance, which is what IHAO's IPX4 rating covers.
No. Bluetooth signals can't transmit through water, which is why POLVCDG includes an MP3 mode and 32 GB of built-in storage. You load music onto the headphones and leave your phone out of the water.
The specs point in different directions. IHAO uses noticeably larger 50 mm drivers with a deep-bass function, while POLVCDG uses 16 mm bone-conduction drivers with environmental noise cancellation for calls. Larger drivers usually mean more bass presence; bone conduction trades some of that for the underwater capability.
IHAO states about 6 hours of play time from a 2-hour charge, with up to 10 days of standby. POLVCDG states up to 10 hours of music, calls and podcasts per charge, and supports fast charging. If battery life matters most, POLVCDG wins on paper.
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