I was a little skeptical of the $329.95 Sennheiser Momentum Sport earbuds. Other earbuds I’ve tested with heart rate tracking were fiddly. The workout tracking could be well-intentioned but a bit hit-or-miss in practice. So, I was pleasantly surprised that the Momentum Sport buds delivered what was promised — a simple way to view real-time fitness metrics without sacrificing sound quality.
Most fitness buds have extra bass, a more secure fit, and an emphasis on durability. The Momentum Sport have that, plus an optical heart rate sensor and temperature sensor. The pitch here is that the ear is actually a more accurate place to gather this kind of data than the wrist (which is technically true!). It also integrates with the Polar Flow app, giving you access to Polar’s training analytics, voice guidance, and coaching. In some respects, it works a lot like a chest strap… albeit one you can stuff in your ears and that plays music.
As a runner, my checklist for fitness buds is a bit different than everyday buds. They need to stay put in my ears, a good transparency mode is a must, they can’t be crap on windy days, and a lil rain can’t wreck them. The Momentum Sport gets high marks across the board.
Earbud fit is always tricky, but the Sport buds are a solid choice for working out. The buds are on the larger side, and I have smallish ears, so I didn’t find them as comfy as my favorite running buds, the Beats Fit Pro. However, I took them on several runs, and not once did they fall out of my ear.
I’ve had issues in the past with heart rate tracking earbuds because of fit. Good contact with the sensor is crucial, so a bad fit could mean getting wonky results — or none at all. It negates the whole point of in-ear metric tracking: better accuracy. I didn’t have that problem here. That makes this a neat alternative if you practice some sports that aren’t conducive to smartwatches or find chest straps uncomfortable, especially if you like working out to music — you can theoretically wear one less wearable to get your data.
Transparency and the Anti-Wind modes were great on my outdoor runs. I could still easily hear cars whizzing around me, but strong gusts didn’t drown out my tunes. I also took them on a miserable, rainy run with no issue. That said, I’d still check the weather before runs. These are IP55, a bit better than the typical IPX4 you see on buds, but a torrential thunderstorm could be a bad time.
For fitness tracking, I dug that you’re not limited to a proprietary companion app. If you’re in Polar’s ecosystem, it fully integrates with the Polar Vantage V3 watch. Without a Polar watch, you can also link the Sennheiser Smart Control app with the Polar Flow app on your phone. Then, all you do is launch a workout from Polar Flow and select it as your heart rate sensor of choice. It worked well when I tried it, and if you don’t have a fitness app you like, Polar Flow is a pretty comprehensive one! The downside is you’re not going to be wearing these all day, so your recovery insights aren’t going to be quite as…
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