Finnish sports watch manufacturer Suunto’s claim to have released the first sports headphones developed ‘by athletes for athletes’ is debatable, but the Suunto Wing are undeniably among the best headphones for cycling.
The Wing boasts a range of features designed to make cycling while listening to music as safe and enjoyable as possible, while the build quality and aesthetic delights are top drawer.
These are bone conduction, non-air conduction headphones – a market dominated by the Shokz brand, formerly known as AfterShokz. This means that your favorite songs are sent to your inner ear via vibrations through your cheek and jaw bones.
Suunto says that because the Wing’s design doesn’t cover your eardrum, you can detect the first crack of an avalanche – or the sound of an approaching car, if that’s more useful to you.
The design is also said to put no pressure on the ear canal, making these headphones more comfortable to wear than in-ear earbuds – especially welcome on big days in the saddle.
Tron-like LED lighting, an IP67 waterproof rating, a dedicated outdoor mode, a 10-hour battery life, and balanced sound that surpasses some in-ear cycling headphones earn the Suunto Wing a place at the top of our list of the best cycling headphones.
The £169/$199 price is certainly high, although it’s equivalent to the cost of around six new albums on vinyl – and what price do you pay for greater road safety while you rock out?
Suunto Wing specifications
Made from a mix of titanium and silicone, the Suunto Wing weighs 33 grams, with a smooth-feeling black strap that slips around the back of your neck and connects to two ‘Lava Red’ sound units. It’s a striking aesthetic.
The Wing is IP67 rated, meaning it can withstand immersion in one meter of water for 30 minutes, while it is designed to operate in temperatures down to -20ºC – ideal credentials for commuting in the British winter.
There are sleek looking, customizable red LED lights on the side of the sound module. These are designed to improve your visibility on the road – cycling with headphones remains a hotly debated topic.
You can turn on the lights and cycle through their modes using the buttons on the Wing or via the Suunto app. However, Suunto says it will speed up battery drain by an unspecified amount.
Total battery life is estimated at 10 hours – enough time for two spins through the deep cut of Acid Mothers Temple The penultimate Galactic Bordello, also the world you createdleaving almost two hours to listen to some white noise and cleanse your auditory palate.
The battery fully charges in one hour and the modernist ‘portable charging station’ can be used as a power bank to double the listening time to 20 hours.
This sleek device is larger than earphone cases and is the only way to charge the Wing, so you’ll need to take it with you if you’re away from home for more than 10 hours.
The general Suunto app includes a full user manual and the ability to switch Wing to Outside mode, which works by increasing the maximum volume. It’s otherwise quite limited and doesn’t offer the EQ adjustment you’ll find in competing headphones.
How I tested
Much of my twenty years of journalistic experience came from working on guitar, vinyl and tech magazines. In that time I have reviewed a wide musical spectrum of amplifiers, effects pedals, turntables and headphones.
I recently tested a range of bone and air conduction headphones designed for cycling and running, to find out which ones are best suited to the rigors of an active lifestyle.
To assess the Suunto Wing’s performance, I used it during my daily commute, in addition to a few gravel rides, about 50 miles of running, and some gym sessions while training for the Prague Half Marathon.
This gave me a good idea of the fit, ease of use, comfort and hi-fi performance.
Suunto Wing performance
If you’ve never used bone conduction headphones before, the feeling of vibrations through your tragus may take some time to get used to, especially if you’re irritable.
The fit is easy and much more reliable than the many in-ear earbuds that have fallen out of my gaping earcups while running or cycling. Simply slip the band around the back of your neck and slide the two smooth, silicone-covered sound units over your ears so they rest on your cheekbones.
The Wing headphones stayed in place and delivered consistent sound throughout my tough training regimen, without the need for any manual adjustments. I experienced no friction or irritation from the strap, which feels smooth, light and premium.
However, I advise against expressing feelings of surprise; raising your eyebrows temporarily removes the sound units from your ears, interrupting your immersion in acoustic ecstasy.
Instead of tap controls, the Wing’s functions are controlled with mini buttons. The one on the left speaker for play/pause is easy enough to find, but the volume buttons on the band, which are also used to cycle through the light modes, are even smaller.
Pressing the buttons while on the bike can feel as easy as making an origami model of the International Space Station while wearing oven gloves.
You can also activate these controls and answer calls by nodding or shaking your head. I found the double head shake required to skip songs surprisingly easy to perform, although I also accidentally skipped a song a few times with an overly enthusiastic gesture.
Suunto Wing sound quality
The sound is well-rounded and significantly better than I’ve experienced with other bone conduction headphones, which inevitably chase air conduction buttons in the audio inputs.
Across a range of genres, the Wing never felt tinny or fatiguing, and there’s plenty of bass on tap without a hint of windy distortion.
The bone conduction design also means very little spillover – a treat for my desk buddy Jack Luke – although the diligent clatter of his keyboard remained loud and clear in my peripheral hearing. If you want noise-canceling headphones, don’t choose bone conduction.
On the bike, the Wing continued to deliver a pleasantly full sound. It successfully withstood the challenging effects of wind noise as I thundered along the towpath to work, all the while remaining aware of approaching dangers.
This balancing act is crucial with cycling headphones, and the Suunto Wing does this as well as anything I’ve tested.
Driving home through rush hour traffic against a stiff headwind, I enjoyed the nuances of Kevin Morby’s peaceful alt-country Sunset album. Morby’s tranquil Dylan-esque vocal tones, soft guitar arpeggios and winding sax solos held their own harmoniously amid the urban noise.
The only downside I noticed is an edge of crackly clipping around vocals and other volume peaks. It’s a minor issue that most cyclists will happily put up with in exchange for unfettered traffic awareness.
The end result of Suunto Wing
I have yet to test a set of bone conduction or in-ear headphones that meet cyclists’ needs better than the Suunto Wing.
The sound quality is the best I’ve ever experienced with bone conduction headphones, the build quality is top-notch, the battery life is more than adequate, and the LED lighting is a stylish premium detail designed with road safety in mind.
If pristine audiophile sound quality is your main criteria, consider the excellent Sony LinkBuds – or if you want to keep your ears alert to the world around you while enjoying the benefits of air conduction buds, try the Shokz OpenFits.
However, if you’re looking for the optimal balance of safety on your bike as you cycle through the sonic utopia, look no further than the Suunto Wing – it’s practically unbeatable.
Product
| Price | 169.00 GBP, 199.00 USD |
| Weight | 33.0000, GRAMS () – |