They DO breathe extremely well, which is great! I dont think it needs such thick silicon for protection because the WF-1000XM3 is pretty light . It held up nicely to the driving. I got these new via Amazon in the last few weeks so I cannot speak to the durability issues others have mentioned. We ordered (2) pairs of these headphones in the past 2 weeks - both had problems with the wiring. Cons: Need to purchased a QC 3. I suggest you order a full size larger then normal. Great earphones, very comfortable and I like the pit around the neck so I can take them out and quickly put them back in without them falling right down. The right ear bud cut out completely, after troubleshooting the issue comes from the head phone jack connection point. It sounds like a very big speaker.