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Headphones

Bose QuietComfort 45 Bluetooth Wireless Noise Cancelling Headphones

QuietComfort 45 Headphones Limited Edition

Available in black or off-white, the circumaural (over-ear) QuietComfort 45 headphones, with a simple, practical design that prominently displays the Bose logo on the sides. The fit is exceptionally comfortable, with plush earpads and an equally cushioned headband. I wore them for hours of testing and never felt uncomfortable pressure on the top of my head. The headphones have no IP rating and aren’t water resistant, but that isn’t expected.

Over-Ear Headphones

PROS

  • Best-in-class noise cancellation
  • Sculpted audio with rich bass and crisp highs
  • Exceptionally comfortable

CONS

  • ANC can’t be adjusted
  • Sound signature isn’t accurate for true audiophiles

Acoustic Noise Cancelling began with the original QuietComfort headphones from Bose. Tiny mics hidden in the earcups measure, compare, and react to outside noise, then cancel it with the opposite signal. Choose from Quiet Mode for full noise cancelling, or Aware Mode to let your environment in.

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In-Ear Earphones

Cambridge Audio Melomania 1+ Earbuds

Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 Plus

Cambridge Audio might be best known for its high-end audio equipment, but over the past few years, the British company has branched out into the world of true wireless earbuds. Its first offering was the Melomania 1, which are among the best wireless earbuds you can buy. However, the Cambridge Audio Melomania 1 Plus are a worthy upgrade, putting many other earbuds in the shade in terms of audio performance, battery life, and ease-of-use.

45 hour

While the design of the Melomania 1 Plus hasn’t deviated too far from its predecessors, there’s a clear step-up in terms of audio performance, with levels of detail and clarity that could rival some of the best over-ear headphones. As we listened to Normal Song by Perfume Genius, the earbuds eked out every last drop of detail with stunning clarity.

Earbuds

A helpful app, easy controls, and excellent connectivity just makes us love them even more. The only downside is that there’s no active noise cancellation. However, when these earbuds sound this good, we doubt you’ll miss it much.

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In-Ear Earphones

Sennheiser IE 900 Audiophile in-Ear Monitors

Earbud Headphones

If you’re an over-ear headphones aficionado, the Sennheiser IE 900 are the best in-ear headphones for trying out the smaller form actor – if you can afford them, that is. These pricey audiophile-grade earbuds deliver an incredible audio performance that’s testament to their great design.

lnnovative x3R technology combines German-made 7mm driver,triple-chamber absorber, acoustic vortex and membrane foil for an exceptional natural balanced sound.

It features a refined version of Sennheiser’s 7mm audiophile Extra Wide Band XWB transducer system, engineered to tighter tolerances and expertly tuned for even greater fidelity, and a unique triple-chamber absorber T3CA system. These advances produce high dynamics in a precise and controlled manner, so music stays distortion free and extremely transparent at any listening volume.

Sennheiser IE 900

Comfortable to wear for long periods of time, these are an expensive investment but a smart one if you’re passionate about the best sound quality at all times. They’re a dream for the true audiophile that never wants to miss a moment while listening.

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In-Ear earphones

NuraTrue – True Wireless Earbuds with Personalized Sound

Nuratrue

The NuraTrue are probably the most personalized wireless earbuds you can buy today – and some of the best-sounding, too. They’re the first true wireless earbuds from Australian audio brand Nura, following in the footsteps of its NuraLoop earphones, which rank just one position higher in this list and are some of our favorite wireless earbuds of all time.

Active Noise Cancellation

Listening to Princes’ Gang Gang Dance, the pulsating synths and driving, distorted percussion sounds as if it’s coming at you from every angle. As the bass line drops, with Tinchy Stryder’s attacking rap vocal coming in, the sound feels incredibly immersive, with a wide soundstage and plenty of detail.

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In-Ear earphones

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW Wireless In-Ear Headphones

Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW

These cubist, cool, refreshingly different Audio-Technica ATH-SQ1TW earbuds are clear proof that Audio-Technica is just… loving Audio-Technica right now. And why not? 60 years of hi-fi heritage is not to be sniffed at (yes, predominantly in analog audio rather than these little things, but what of it?) and Audio-Technica has earned the right to go its own way.

In-Ear Headphones

AT has not tried to emulate any other earbuds from competing brands here and we love the Tokyo audio outfit for it. These buds are available in no fewer than six delicious-sounding colorways (Caramel, Popsicle, Cupcake, Blueberry, Liquorice and Popcorn – try that for size, ice-white-only AirPods) and you’re getting Bluetooth 5.0, 20 hours of battery, a beautiful product that fits comfortably, on-ear controls that work well (including volume) plus a low-latency mode, a hear-through function and a sound that’s more expansive, clearer and generally better than anything else you can buy for this money.

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In-Ear earphones

Easily the best Samsung Galaxy Buds yet

Samsung Galaxy Buds 2 Pro

Samsung has finally turned a corner with its Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, which forego futuristic looks in favor of great 24-bit sound, head-tracked spatial audio and a design that fits comfortably.Reduce unwanted noise with Galaxy Buds2 Pro; They use Intelligent Active Noise Cancellation to quiet even the loudest outside sounds; Tune in to what matters most without being bothered by distracting sounds around you.

In Ear

Galaxy Buds2 Pro are earbuds designed to be even more comfortable than before and fit securely no matter what you’re doing; Whether for your work or workout, make all your moves comfortably. Keep the conversation going without taking out your earbuds; When your voice is detected, Intelligent Conversation Mode turns off Active Noise Cancellation, turns down the volume and puts your Buds in Ambient Mode.Turn every call into a high definition chat; HD Voice Technology separates your voice from surrounding noise, so you come in crystal clear even with the hustle and bustle around you.

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In-Ear earphones

Apple AirPods Pro 2

AirPods Pro 2

The Apple AirPods Pro 2 are excellent earbuds, offering improved audio performance and fantastic ANC in Apple’s comfortable and familiar AirPods-esque design. But they’re a much better choice if you have an iPhone than if you don’t.

The Pro 2 buds are a significant step up from the original AirPods Pro. Design changes are subtle, but audio performance is upgraded with new drivers and amplifiers. During our testing, we rated the sound on offer from the Pro 2 as excellent – there’s rich audio across genres and a wide and expansive soundstage. 

Wireless Earbuds

Battery life has had a boost. You get 6 hours from the buds with ANC on, and 30 hours from the charging case, which is now IPX4 water resistant—withstanding light showers and sweating – and has a speaker, handy if you lose them as you can activate a ‘Find My’ request.

We still rate the original AirPods Pro if you can find them at a lower price, but the Pro 2 are solid contenders in the crown for the best earbuds. ANC is top-tier and, if you’re an iPhone user, we’d even recommend the Pro 2 over the Sony WF-1000XM4s. Like the Sony buds, they’re excellent all-rounders, packing fantastic audio and style into a pair of buds you could happily wear all day. 

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Headset

Truly the AirPods alternatives for Android owners

Honor Earbuds 3 Pro

The Honor Earbuds 3 Pro are perfect for Android users looking for an AirPods-style build, AirPods-style features, but better-than-AirPods sound quality – if you can get your hands on them.

Honor has taken the shape of the pro-suffixed AirPods and added on-device volume control to the stems, a more customizable and enjoyable noise-cancellation experience, a new slick and easy app (as long as you don’t own an iPhone) and most importantly delivered a fuller, meatier bass, a more expansive soundstage and a better, more detailed sonic experience overall. And it has managed to do it all at a more palatable price point than Apple’s Pro alternative.

Earbuds

This is a resoundingly made-for-Android set of earbuds. Although no app is needed to scroll through the ‘noise canceling’, ‘off’ and ‘awareness’ profiles – you simply long-press either earbud – access to the Honor AI Space app unlocks four new profiles within noise-cancelling. Tap on ‘noise canceling’ within this Android-only app and you’re given a choice of four ‘modes’: ‘intelligent’, which claims to moderate the level of noise-nixing to your surroundings; ‘cozy’ which is described as suitable for quiet environments such as an office; ‘moderate’ for noisier environments; and ‘ultra’ for situations where constant noise-eradication is necessary, such as a plane. And very effective they are too. We stroll down a city street with ‘intelligent’ deployed and bus engines, constant cars, the general thrum of road activity is largely quashed and, crucially, not to the detriment of our music.

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In-Ear earphones

Soundcore by Anker Space A40 Adaptive Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds

Earbud Headphones

Enjoy Personal Space Anywhere.The adaptive active noise canceling on the Space A40 ably handles low drones, such as airplane cabin noise or HVAC units. It doesn’t completely remove it, but if you’re listening to music at a low level it’s enough to keep you focused in your own world. Within the Soundcore app you can choose between two Transparency modes, one full range and one that puts the focus on letting voices through if you need to have a quick conversation.

Soundcore

 

There are touch controls—single tap, double tap, and hold for two seconds—that can be turned on and off per control. They’re also fully customizable, assignable to volume, track controls, and for the two-second hold the added options of Ambient Sound Mode select, Voice Assistant activation, and Game Mode toggle.

Battery life

Throw wireless case charging on top of the features pile and the Anker Space A40 set a new standard for earbuds performance under $100.

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In-Ear earphones

The best earbuds that personalizes your listening experience

NuraLoop headphones

NuraLoop boils down the essence of the company’s first product, the Nuraphone, into a much more compact, rugged, and affordable package. The great news is, it doesn’t lose much in the process.

headphones

The star of the show in the Nuraloop headphones – and all products from this brand – is its adaptive audio technology. This is able to automatically determine a listening profile for users and then feeds them customized, well-balanced, lush sound as a result. During our tests, we were impressed by the sense of clarity and space, even at higher volumes.

earbuds

The headphones are ideal for providing listeners with an experience that feels personal rather than automated. They’re able to deal with a more robust lifestyle than many rivals too.

On top of this, features like active noise-cancelling, social mode, an IPX3 rating, Immersion mode, a great battery life, and the ability to attach an analog cable for 3.5mm headphone jacks makes this pair of wireless earbuds truly shine.

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