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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a pair of Bluetooth earbuds for running that lock onto your ears, isolate background noise and keep going for days on a charge, choose Skullcandy Push Play Active; if you need one set of headphones that also works in the pool and lets you hear traffic while you run, choose H2O Audio TRI 2.
• Skullcandy Push Play Active — biggest strength: up to 34 hours of total battery (10 hours in the buds plus 24 in the case) with IP55 sweat and water resistance and flexible over-ear hangers that keep the buds planted.
• Skullcandy Push Play Active — biggest trade-off: it is an in-ear, sound-isolating design, so you block out the world unless you switch on Stay-Aware mode, and it has no built-in music storage for swimming.
• H2O Audio TRI 2 — biggest strength: true dual-mode operation — Bluetooth 5.3 for land plus an 8GB MP3 mode that plays clear audio up to 12 feet underwater, all in an open-ear bone conduction design that keeps your ears open to traffic.
• H2O Audio TRI 2 — biggest trade-off: roughly 8.5 hours of mixed-use battery (9 hours Bluetooth, 6 hours MP3) and a bone conduction driver that starts at 200Hz, so it will not deliver the same deep bass punch as a sealed in-ear bud.
• For runners who want long battery, noise isolation and a secure over-ear fit → Skullcandy Push Play Active.
• For swimmers and multisport athletes who want one headphone for both land and water → H2O Audio TRI 2.
The Push Play Active is built around one idea: staying put. The flexible over-ear hangers hook the bud onto your ear rather than relying on the seal alone, which is exactly the kind of design that survives a run, a gym session or a dusty trail. The IP55 rating covers sweat and water spray, so rain and heavy perspiration are not a problem. In my opinion, that combination of hanger plus IP55 is what most road and trail runners actually need, because the failure point for running earbuds is almost never the driver — it's the bud working loose.
Battery is the other headline. You get up to 10 hours in the earbuds and another 24 hours in the case, for up to 34 hours total, and the listed charge time is 1.5 hours. Rapid Charge adds two hours of listening from a 10-minute top-up, which is the number that matters when you realize you forgot to charge before a run. Multipoint pairing lets you stay connected to two devices at once, so a phone and a laptop can both be live, and there are three preset EQ modes (Music, Bass Boost, Podcast) if you want to shift the sound without fiddling in an app.
Controls are touch-based on the bud itself, and the connection is Bluetooth 5.3 with a listed range of 10 meters. The driver is a 6mm dynamic unit with a 20Hz–20kHz range, 22 ohm impedance and 104dB sensitivity — modest driver size, but the sealed in-ear fit does the heavy lifting on perceived bass. Stay-Aware mode pipes ambient sound back in so you can hear cars, bikes and other runners without pulling a bud out.
H2O Audio TRI 2: Who It's For
The TRI 2 is a different animal. It's an open-ear bone conduction headphone, which means it sits outside your ear canal and sends sound through your cheekbone instead of sealing your ear. That single design choice drives everything else: your ears stay open, so on a run you hear traffic, other people and your own surroundings naturally. For runners who train on roads or shared paths, that's a genuine safety argument, not a marketing line. Control is via built-in buttons rather than touch, which the spec sheet frames as intentionally optimized for use in challenging conditions — gloves, sweat and motion.
The real differentiator is dual-mode performance. On land, the TRI 2 streams over Bluetooth 5.3 like any other headphone, and it handles music, podcasts and calls. Underwater, Bluetooth doesn't work, so the TRI 2 switches to MP3 mode and plays from 8GB of built-in memory — enough for roughly 2,000 songs and up to 130 hours of music, in M4A, MP3, WMA, FLAC and APE formats. Audio is rated clear up to 12 feet underwater, and the box includes optional earplugs for swimming. That is a genuinely unusual capability: one headphone that covers a pool session and a run without you needing a second device.
Battery is the trade-off. H2O Audio lists an average of 8.5 hours of mixed-use playtime, 9 hours in Bluetooth and 6 hours in MP3 mode, with a 2-hour charge time. That's plenty for a session or a week of short workouts, but it's well short of the Push Play Active's 34-hour total. The driver is bone conduction with a 200Hz–20kHz range and 32 ohm impedance — the 200Hz floor means deep sub-bass simply isn't part of the design, and the open-ear fit means you'll hear your environment whether you want to or not.
Who should buy it: swimmers, triathletes, open-water and pool athletes, and runners who want an open-ear, awareness-first headphone. Who should skip it: anyone who wants heavy bass, total noise isolation on a noisy commute, or maximum battery between charges.
Side-by-Side: Which Should You Choose?
• Best for open-ear awareness while running → H2O Audio TRI 2. Bone conduction leaves your ear canal open, so traffic and surroundings stay audible.
• Best for battery life → Skullcandy Push Play Active. Up to 34 hours total (10 in the buds, 24 in the case) versus 8.5 hours mixed-use on the TRI 2.
• Best for swimming → H2O Audio TRI 2. Bluetooth doesn't transmit underwater, and the TRI 2's 8GB MP3 mode is designed for exactly that, rated clear to 12 feet.
• Best for noise isolation → Skullcandy Push Play Active. It's an in-ear, sound-isolating design with a Stay-Aware mode you can switch on when you want the world back.
• Best for bass-heavy listening → Skullcandy Push Play Active. A sealed in-ear fit with a Bass Boost EQ preset will out-punch an open-ear bone conduction driver whose range starts at 200Hz.
• Best for carrying music without a phone → H2O Audio TRI 2. 8GB of onboard memory means no phone required, which is the whole point for swimming.
• Best for quick top-ups → Skullcandy Push Play Active. Rapid Charge gives 2 hours of listening from a 10-minute charge; the TRI 2 lists a 2-hour full charge time.
If running is the main job, I'd buy the Skullcandy Push Play Active. The over-ear hangers, IP55 rating, sound isolation and 34 hours of total battery line up almost perfectly with what a runner needs, and the multipoint pairing and EQ presets are useful extras rather than filler. I'd only steer you to the H2O Audio TRI 2 if you swim, or if hearing traffic while you run matters more to you than bass and battery — in which case the TRI 2's 8GB MP3 mode and bone conduction design make it the more versatile single purchase. Two different jobs, two different answers.
For a standard road or trail run, I'd point to the Skullcandy Push Play Active — Bluetooth 5.3, IP55 sweat and water resistance, flexible over-ear hangers and up to 34 hours of total battery. If you want your ears open to traffic, the H2O Audio TRI 2's bone conduction design is the better pick.
In my opinion the Push Play Active is the stronger dedicated running earbud: it's sealed and noise-isolating, has three EQ modes, multipoint pairing and Rapid Charge for a 10-minute, 2-hour top-up. The TRI 2 is technically an open-ear headphone rather than a sealed earbud, and it trades isolation for awareness and swim capability.
Yes. It uses Bluetooth 5.3 on land for music, podcasts and calls, with an average of 8.5 hours of playtime and up to 9 hours in Bluetooth mode. The open-ear fit keeps you aware of your surroundings, which many runners prefer.
No. It's rated IP55 for sweat and water resistance, which covers rain and perspiration, not submersion. For swimming you need the H2O Audio TRI 2's MP3 mode and its 8GB of built-in memory, since Bluetooth doesn't transmit underwater.
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