Headphones can be annoying little things. Either you invest in an expensive pair and protect them like you would a small child, or go cheap and expect them to break at any moment, depriving you of music on your trip to work.

If you're the sort who likes to take the latter strategy, then the Vibe Slick headphones might be just for you. Cheap at £24, they use a zip with the headphone cable embedded inside to stop you from damaging it with daily use. Any areas not protected by the zip are wrapped in fabric, keeping them safe also. Finally you have a reinforced 3.5mm jack which stops the inner cable fraying, a common occurrence. 

The zip element of the headphone is just that, a zip - as in you can adjust the gap between each earbud by moving it up and down. This is particularly useful for sports as it minimises the amount of bouncing around the headphones can do and, thanks to the plastic zip itself, stops any feedback you might get from it bashing against your chest.

As for sound quality, these aren't the best headphones we've ever heard, but for the price there isn't much wrong with them. The earbuds fit comfortably and you get a decent balanced sound, albeit with a slight emphasis on bass. Don't expect the kind of detail you would get from a more expensive pair, this is just about getting the sound into your ears, day in day out. These headphones are built to last.

A nice touch is the included remote and hands-free mic, which we tested and offered decent enough call quality. You can upgrade, and go for some of the other Vibe headphones which use things like ceramic housing for the earbuds, although we think the Slicks do a good enough job.

The Vibe Slick headphones come in a large number of colours, nine to be precise - some much more garish than others. We had the red offerings on test and they looked nice enough. We can't help but think all black would be the best choice, that or pink, definitely pink. If you do fancy a pair of the Vibes, you can grab them here.

 

Like the look of the Vibes? Let us know in the comments below ...