MP3 players will come and go, but if you buy a good pair of headphones they should last you a lifetime — well, a good portion of it anyway. We name the headphones that rock our world.
Year after year, MP3 players have progressed from CD-based behemoths to today's sleek flash-based, video-playing variety. This annual evolution looks set to continue with the iPod Touch pulling the genre into the realm of PDAs, while the decline in flash-memory prices will one day make hard-disks a thing of the past.
So chances are, choose a great MP3 player today and within a year or two there'll be a newer, sexier and more capacious model enticing you to part with your hard earned. Buy a good set of headphones though and, assuming you treat them well and don't leave them on the bus, they'll be around for the better part of a decade, if not more.
But before you rush out to reward yourself with a new set of headphones we suggest that you check out our headphone buying guide to see what type, or types, of headphone best suit your needs. To help you along we've collected two each of our favourite earbud and over-the-ear headphones. We've also thrown in a set of Bluetooth wireless headphones for good measure.
One last thing to keep in mind: headphones are great presents for oneself but, a bit like sporting goods, they don't make great surprise presents. Everyone has their own personal tastes regarding audio — some prefer booming bass, others delicate mid and high tones. So, if you're planning on getting them as a present for someone, please discuss it with them first.
Shure E4c headphones 
Shure's E4c earbuds are simply the best in-ear headphones we've ever heard.
Creative Aurvana in-ear headphones
If you need lightweight, quality in-ear earphones and don't want to break the bank, check out the Creative Aurvanas, which match up quite well against the Shure E2cs.
Grado SR60
Grado's cheapest headphones belt out big sound with pint-size portable audio devices.
Sennheiser PXC-300
It packs almost the same performance as the Bose QuietComfort 2 in a much smaller package and at about half the price.
Nokia BH-501
Good quality Bluetooth headphones, as long as you don't mind it being very obvious you're wearing a Bluetooth headset — and a walking Nokia advert as well.
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