I can still remember the thrill of getting my first Walkman.  For those of you who are too young to know what a Walkman is, it was a portable cassette player about 10X the size and weight of an iPod nano and was the must-have musical accessory of the '80s.  The Walkman meant that I could enjoy music whenever and wherever I wanted and I loved every minute of it.

My favorite spot to listen to my tunes had to be on the long bus ride to and from school.  I would turn the volume up really loud in order to drown out all of the noise and chatter occurring on the school bus and just sink into my own little world.  Unfortunately, it wasn't too long after receiving my Walkman that I began noticing I couldn't hear regular conversation as easily as before.

Even as a child, I knew that the Walkman was causing my hearing to get worse, but it was just too tempting to keep listening to it super loud, since the music sounded much better that way.  Children aren't wise enough to trade long-term benefits for short-term gratification, as illustrated by my Walkman example.

That's why I'm thrilled to introduce the ETY Kids ek5 Safe-Listening Earphones for Kids from Etymotic Research.  These earphones are guaranteed not to exceed safe listening levels, so parents can rest easy, yet they're also designed to block background noise and provide high-definition sound quality, so children won't complain the volume is too low.  Keep reading to learn more!

Hearing loss is a real public health concern. And with the exploding popularity of digital music players and personal gaming systems used by children and young adults, the problem is anticipated to become worse.

With ETY-Kids earphones, parents who want to limit their family's exposure to damaging sound, but are unsure how much is too much, can be assured that they are doing their best to protect their family's hearing health. ETY-Kids earphones are designed for children ages 4-years-old and up and are also appropriate for anyone with heightened sensitivity to loud sound.

The main reason listeners of all ages turn up the volume is to block out distracting background noise. ETY-Kids earphones seal the ears so volume levels stay safer. With an adequate seal plus the safe sound output of ETY-Kids earphones, parents are assured their kids are listening safely.

ETY-Kids delivers 85%+ response accuracy, allowing listeners to enjoy crisp, accurate reproduction of their favorite music.  ACCU-Chamber technology acts as a 3-band equalizer to enhance response accuracy and smooth harmful response peaks, which results in clearer, more defined musical detail.

The ETY Kids ek5 earphones come complete with a 4-foot cable, assorted eartips, shirt clip, and storage pouch.  Since today's tech-connected kids live in a world filled with Blu-ray, surround-sound audio, life-like computer graphics, and 3-D movies, I would consider the ETY Kids earphones from Etymotic a must.  They are constantly bombarded by sound from television, toys, game consoles, music players, and in-vehicle entertainment systems and with the ETY Kids earphones, you can rest assured that their hearing isn't being compromised from prolonged exposure.

At first, I found it a little difficult to find a good fit with the included ACCU Fit eartips, but once I was able to get a snug fit, I loved how well the background noise was virtually eliminated.  If you are struggling with finding a precise fit, Etymotic even offers the option to receive a custom molded eartip.

These CUSTOM-FIT molds enhance your listening experience and provide a comfortable, secure fit which doesn't alter the exceptional sound quality of the earphones. Register your Etymotic earphone at etymotic.com/customfit to print out a CUSTOM-FIT voucher you can take to an audiologist, who will then take ear impressions for molds that will work with your Etymotic product.  Pretty cool, huh?  :cool:

If you have children that inundate themselves into the technologically advanced world of today, then a pair of ETY Kids ek5 Safe-Listening Earphones is a mandatory accessory to help protect their hearing.  Now you can relax knowing your children are listening at safe levels and they can still immerse themselves in a world of fun!

Disclosure:  I received the ETY Kids ek5 Safe-Listening Earphones from Etymotic Research to facilitate my review. No other compensation was received. This product review is based on my own personal experiences with this item and is completely honest and objective.