H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones

5 Responses to H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones

1. 

   SanjeevP on November 25, 2009 at 7:50 am

   As of february 4, 2010, there are nine reviews on this Amphibx large Armband on Amazon, three out of those nine people damaged their iPod in this Armband, and H2O Audio replaced the iPod of only one out of those three people. Assuming these reviews representative, your probability of losing your expensive iPod or cell phone or MP3 payer to water damage in this Amphibx Armband are one in three and chances of H2O Audio replacing that one in nine. So, there is more than in one in five probability of your completely losing your iPod in this Amphibx Armband

   According to the literature for this product, H2O Audio assures you that they will cover the loss of iPod to water damage. But here is what H2O Audio told me when I sent my water damaged classic iPod along with the Armband to the company:

   “During the examination and testing the engineering team did notice some dispersed indentation on the seal (black door frame to the lid). This is indicative of some object(s) or debris being caught between the door and the seal. This type of obstruction can lead to leak as the water-tight seal is never actually formed between the lid and the bladder…So unfortunately, this is a situation where it appears that the door was not closed properly or that it was accidently opened during use.”

   Fortunate for H2O Audio because they got more than hundred bucks from you. Unfortunate for you because you just lost several hundred dollars!

   My iPod Classic, inside this H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones, while swimming, suddenly stopped playing! The arm band leaked and water damaged the iPod, which H2O Audio refused to replace.

   For 14 years, I used Speedo FM radio, which has no screen and fits on the goggles. It worked well, the earphones rarely came out of the ear. But I wanted to listen to podcasts on my iPod while swimming.

   I reviewed all the choices for listening to MP3 audio while swimming. If you look at the Amazon reviews, the most popular is FINIS SwiMP3 v2 Waterproof MP3 Player. There are 124 reviews on Amazon as of February 4, 2010 and I scanned 80 of those reviews and no one complains of water damage to the MP3 player. The newer 1 Gb version of version of FINIS SwiMP3.1G Waterproof MP3 Player has 16 reviews and again not a single reviewer complaining of water damage. Compared to one in 3 users of this Armband damaging their iPod.

   But I wanted to use my iPod while swimming, especially listen to the podcasts and audiobooks on my iPod and belived H2O Audio when they said they stand behind their product and will replace the iPod if it gets water damaged inside their Amphibx Armband. After losing several hundred dollars I realized that they were not truthful. SwiMP3 is jus a basic MP3 player and lacks the sophistication of iPod.

   After losing iPod in this large Amphibx Armaband, I did buy SwiMp3. Although it does not have the user interface of iPod, it truly is waterproof. Based on my and others experience, I believe that SwiMP3 is really the only truly waterproof MP3 player – which is the most essential prerequisite for MP3 player to be used while swimming. As I learnt painfully, every thing else is irrelevant if the MP3 player is not waterproof.

   But here are all the choices I found for listening to music or audiobooks or podcasts wile swimming:

   1. Aquapac Waterproof Case Fits iPhone and Droid but is not very good quality and it is hard to water proof with headphones. Again there is potential of leak and water damage to your expensive MP3 player.

   2. H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones: Within 6 weeks it leaked and damaged my expensive iPod. Big loss. This Armband is also not easy to use. Not to say that H2O Audio Surge Waterproof Headphones constantly keep coming out of the ear, cause drag and have poor audio quality.

   3 Then there are goggle based solutions like H2O Audio ISH4-5A1 Interval 3G Waterproof Headphone System for iPod Shuffle 3rd Gen, Speedo LZR Aquabeat MP3 Player and Freestyle Audio 200SPT Soundwave Waterproof 2GB Blue MP3 Player Blue Bundle With Aquapac 916 Waterproof Headphones. But the reviews of all these products on Amazon are not very good.

   4. SwimMan makes waterproof 2nd and 3rd generation iPod shuffles. But they do not have screens and do not last long. Lot of users have complained that iPod Shuffles get damaged after few uses.

   5. FINIS SwiMP3.1G Waterproof MP3 Player is based on a completely different technology of listening through the bone. Everybody raves about the underwater sound quality of FINIS SwiMP3 v2 Waterproof MP3 Player. After damaging my iPod Classic in this Amphibx Arm Band I purchased SwiMP3 player. The audio quality is very good under water but outside the water you need ear plugs. Most important, there does not appear to be anything that can be damaged by the water. The player is small, low profile and does not cause drag. The main downside is that it has minimal controls with no screen. iTunes does not work with the SwiMP3 player but the free DoubleTwist software can make transfer playlists to SwiMP3 seamless like iTunes. Podcasts have to be transferred manually by drag and drop. For some podcasts, where the audio volume is not loud enough, you may have to use a free software called MP3 Gain to increase the volume. FINIS also makes a screen less unit with arm band FINIS SwiMP3 Surf.

   We all know that iPod is the best MP3 player and we would like to use it while swimming but I do not think it is yet technically feasible to make iPod water proof, notwithstanding the claims of companies like H2O Audio. Although I miss the screen, I believe that FINIS SwiMP3.1G Waterproof MP3 Player really the only water proof MP3 player, just like my old Speedo FM radio, and the audio quality is good. Based on my personal experience that is what I would recommend to a swimmer who wants to listen to MP3 audio while swimming. And definitely do not waste your money on this Amphibx arm band – you will even lose your expensive MP3 player.
   Rating: 1 / 5
   H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones
2. 

   M. Petruska on November 25, 2009 at 9:53 am

   Much improved from the hard plastic cases of the past.

   Would be 5 stars if it didn’t almost loose my ipod twice!!

   What you can’t see from the pics is that the actual waterproof case is seperate from the neoprene armband. Friction and a skinny piece of velcro hold the plastic case in the armband. Twice in the last 5 sessions this case has slid out of the armband. Not fun to have you ipod, or iphone dangling in the water by the headphone cord. My solution is to attach more velcro to the plastic sleeve.

   The other problem I have is that the latch and not lockable.

   The surge headphones that work with the the amphibx unit are pretty good, seals tightly in the ear and shuts off almost all ambient noise.

   Overall the product is definitely worth the money just be careful not to loose your stuff.
   Rating: 3 / 5
   H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones
3. 

   Ms. Piper Valentine on November 25, 2009 at 12:29 pm

   First off, this does not come with headphones, which confused me since the listing says with phones. The headphones cost another $60. This is a great option for listening to music while swimming. I tried the DiCapac system before this and although it didn’t leak, it wasn’t that easy to use. As for the other reviews, I think this must be redesigned since the reviewer said that is falls out – there is not way the ipod could fall out the way it is designed. I have only used it 3 times but it seems pretty leak proof. They also have a ipod replacement policy if your ipod is ruined, which is a pretty good deal and makes me feel like they are pretty confident in the product. It’s great to swim with and I highly recommend it. I ended up getting some waterproof headphones from amazon called the Freestyle Audio phones, they were $18 and though they aren’t the highest quality in the world, they have a loop that goes behind your ears that I think is essential while swimming, otherwise the earbuds just come out of your ears when you swim.
   Rating: 5 / 5
   H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones
4. 

   Mark_J on November 25, 2009 at 1:45 pm

   You will see this case reviewed very positively elsewhere, and the idea behind it (that you buy a case that will roughly fit an MP3 player of an approximate size, and be able to use it with multiple players, new generations of the Nano, etc) is intriguing. But it’s not as great as I was led to believe.

   The quality of the construction is really good. There’s a neoprene and rubber arm-band, which seems very well-made. Tucked inside is a separate, heavy clear plastic waterproof envelope that is connected to an airtight gasket. You slip your MP3 player through the gasket, connect a short headphone cord, and IN THEORY slide the MP3 player in place. No problem, right?

   Well, for the Nano 5G, there seem to be several issues (and based on the fact that the 5G is the same length as the 4G, these issues should occur there, too). First, the narrow rectangular gasket opening: Too short to slide the nano through sideways, you have to slide it through at an angle. Given that the waterproof envelope is none to big, and you have all that neoprene behind it, sliding it in and out is an adventure every time, and NOT the good kind of adventure. Feels like there’s a serious risk of applying too much pressure to the Nano’s screen, or scratching it, or whatever.

   I have attempted putting my 5G Nano in there five or six times, and I have yet to be successful at getting it all the way in and positioned correctly in the window. Even if I had, the “hold” switch on the top of the Nano would not be accessible in any way — so good luck if you have problems with “shake to shuffle” or if the plastic window accidentally depresses any of the controls. I have to believe that unless there’s some trick I’m missing here, putting the Nano in and out of the case to sync or charge it will be a tremendous pain.

   I really WANT this thing to work, but I’m on the verge of returning it.
   Rating: 2 / 5
   H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones
5. 

   Douglas Lorenz on November 25, 2009 at 2:03 pm

   I wanted an armband that was useful for running, biking, and the gym, but could also be used in the water on a kayak. This device seemed to fit what I was looking for. Unfortunately, there are a number of problems with the design.

   First of all, it is very difficult to get the iPhone in and out of this armband. The user needs to open a side hatch, plug a cable extender into the phone’s headphone jack, then stuff the phone sideways into the hatch. It then takes twisting and pushing hard, always with the fear that you will break the headphone jack in the process. Once in place, you snap the side hatch closed and the armband should be sealed and waterproof.

   Second problem: Once the iPhone is securely nestled in place, the phone’s main button becomes very difficult to access, requiring that you push the phone around inside of the case to make it more accessible. This is a short term fix, as when you move around, the phone will continue to move around inside of the case, making the iPhone button inaccessible again. Remember, for most of what you want to do with the iPhone, you will need to access that button at some point.

   Third problem: This armband is VERY tight on my upper arm. I am not an extremely large individual, so it makes me wonder who this was designed to fit. Because of the way the armband is designed, you need to thread part of the band through it’s secure loop first, then pull the whole thing up your arm, then twist the armband around to try and get it comfortable. I was never really successful at getting this thing on comfortably. The armband is also quite bulky, so I don’t see how women or smaller men would find it comfortable either.

   Fourth problem. As tight as everything was, the iPhone actually wiggles around a bit inside of the case, and sometimes when it wiggles the plastic screen of the armband touches the iPhone’s screen in such a way that makes the phone think that you deliberately touched its screen. This causes random things to happen, depending on what functions are displayed at that time. When running, the phone will bounce around more, and this problem will occur more.

   Fifth problem: The headphones that are pushed with this product are the H2O Audio Surge, which do NOT have a microphone. They are just stereo headphones. The headphones that come with the iPhone do work here, but they are not waterproof, and will probably be destroyed if you get them wet. Basically this means that if you want to go in the water, you won’t be answering the phone.

   I hope that someday someone will develop an armband that is able to achieve what H2O Audio attempted here. The idea is good, but the implementation needs some work.
   Rating: 1 / 5
   H2O Audio Amphibx Waterproof Armband for Large MP3 Players and Phones