Philips plans to kill germs with your ears

The Philips SHQ4000 - we wish it was the name of a robot instead
The Philips SHQ4000 - we wish it was the name of a robot instead

Philips has launched a new range of sports headphones designed to keep you active and stop your ears dying from disease.

The new set consists of the in-ear SHQ1000 and the pair of washable options, the ear-clip SHQ3000 and neck-band SHQ4000 (we're assuming something terrible happened to the 2000 series - we may never talk of them).

While not the most attractive of monikers, all three have been injected with an anti-bacterial agent so when you sweat and bleed or cry into them (we manage all three on our 1km waddle around Regent's Park) the germs won't fester and give you disease.

Tap friendly

All three claim to block out unwanted external noise with different cap sizes to fit each ear, and all three are sweat and rain-proof, with the SHQ3000 and the SHQ4000 also waterproof, meaning you can clean them under a tap.

And for those of you that like to keep headphones in a pouch because, you know, you're that cool - you'll be set up with these three as all come with such an item. We know, Philips are spoiling you.

The SHQ1000 is the cheapest of the three at £19.99, the SHQ3000 will set you back £29.99 and the neck-band SHQ4000 coming in at £39.99. All three are available now, so run down to the shops - you know, in preparation.

Gareth Beavis
Formerly Global Editor in Chief

Gareth has been part of the consumer technology world in a career spanning three decades. He started life as a staff writer on the fledgling TechRadar, and has grown with the site (primarily as phones, tablets and wearables editor) until becoming Global Editor in Chief in 2018. Gareth has written over 4,000 articles for TechRadar, has contributed expert insight to a number of other publications, chaired panels on zeitgeist technologies, presented at the Gadget Show Live as well as representing the brand on TV and radio for multiple channels including Sky, BBC, ITV and Al-Jazeera. Passionate about fitness, he can bore anyone rigid about stress management, sleep tracking, heart rate variance as well as bemoaning something about the latest iPhone, Galaxy or OLED TV.