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I’ve had the Bose wired noise cancelling headphones for several years and do find they make long haul journeys much more comfortable.
My daily headphones could do with being replaced so I’m considering getting the new airpod pro if Apple puts out a new one later this year. Wanted to know how good the noise cancellation on this re plane journeys as they are much more space saving to travel with and I could justify the cost better if it means I only have to take these when travelling.
If people like them then I’ll make use of the convent garden offer now to get discounted apple gift cards in advance of launch.
Also does anyone know if the employee website allows use of apple gift card, might grab some airtags too after reading good reviews here.
I bought the nothing (ear 1) noise cancelling in ear headphones, they work great, just as good as my AirPods, if not better imo.
There a bit different to look at with being see through, and people are often asking me about them.
In fact, I was so impressed by the in ear headphones, I went and bought the new phone from nothing they brought out two weeks ago and very happy with that too.
- This reply was modified 55 years, 4 months ago by .
I’m curious what real battery life is like.
The noise cancellation is very good for in ear earphones. I didn’t get on with the silicone tips they used (they kept falling out of my ears) but bought the Comply memory foam tips to replace them with and made them an infinitely better fit and noise cancellation improved further.
Battery life – they last about 4 hours on a single charge but if you put them back in the case they charge up quickly (20 minutes in the case will fully charge them) and with the case will do somewhere between 20 and 24 hours.
Apologies for a semi thread hijack (feel free to overlook) but I’m a recent wired to wireless noise cancelling earphones ‘convert’ and what I’ve noticed on my first ever of pair of Bose QC earbuds is an audio-to-video lag depending on latency. What I mean is that if I play a regular YouTube video, it’s perfectly fine, but if I put on a graphics heavy game, or connect them to a laptop and play a 4GB video file, there’s noticeable lag between the video and the audio.
Is this a known thing for wireless earphones, or did I just pick the one pair that has this issue?
A further slight hijack – if you currently own AirPods Pro bought in 2020 and are experiencing issues with sound (like crackling), take them to the Apple Store and they will likely replace them for free for new ones. There is a known manufacturing issue which they acknowledge – we managed to get three pairs replaced, which should mean a couple more years of not needing to buy new ones!
Overall I think they are great and, given they will hopefully last some four years in total, also great value. Although you can’t rely on there being issues with new ones, of course!
A further slight hijack – if you currently own AirPods Pro bought in 2020 and are experiencing issues with sound (like crackling), take them to the Apple Store and they will likely replace them for free for new ones. There is a known manufacturing issue which they acknowledge – we managed to get three pairs replaced, which should mean a couple more years of not needing to buy new ones!
Overall I think they are great and, given they will hopefully last some four years in total, also great value. Although you can’t rely on there being issues with new ones, of course!
Had exactly this issue and saw the announcement from Apple about the programme to replace. Took them to John Lewis who sent them off to Apple. Confirmed the fault but said they were also water damaged which invalidated everything (even the extended warranty with JL).
Despite the fact they have never been outside and only used for light work in the gym but mostly for listening to music on the laptop I got nowhere with a complaint.
I have Bose QC20i’s, QC35 II’s and Airpod Pros. The Airpods in my experience are wildly overpriced and failure prone. I have just had my 7th pod replaced having bought the initial set pretty much on day 1 of release, thankfully directly from Apple which makes replacing them slightly less painful. 6 of those were for the buzzing/crackling, the latest was due to inconsistent ANC, which I still have (detailed below).
To be clear, each time I have taken them to the store, they have tested and confirmed that they have failed. This is with zero abuse of them, not dropped, not soaked and always kept clean (wiped after use).
Quality wise, the QC20’s win for me but obviously have a cable. It is widely agreed that with each firmware release, Apple have made the ANC worse on the airpods. Also I think I am now up for having the latest ones replaced too. I am typing this whilst using them now with ANC on and can only just hear the tapping of the keyboard and yet can hear the birds outside tweeting as clear as day.
If I were buying now and wanted wireless, I would be looking very closely at the Sony WF-1000XM4’s. For plane travel, I always use my QC20’s.
Had exactly this issue and saw the announcement from Apple about the programme to replace. Took them to John Lewis who sent them off to Apple. Confirmed the fault but said they were also water damaged which invalidated everything (even the extended warranty with JL).
Despite the fact they have never been outside and only used for light work in the gym but mostly for listening to music on the laptop I got nowhere with a complaint.
This is textbook Apple & I’ve had it a couple of times before. Twice with known issues on laptops (2 different generations) a battery issue & a keyboard fault. CS reps took them away for a few minutes for testing & came back highlighting tiny cosmetic scratches that he said could be evidence of them being dropped/damaged.
Similar with an iPhone when I tried to avail of the reduced price battery replacement after the throttling issue – 1 of the water sensors was partially activated when the only possible cause was using phone outside in standard British weather, certainly never submerged.
Despite all products being fully functional bar the known faults I was refused a repair unless I paid obscene amounts to essentially swap my items with another previously returned/repaired one. Doubtless they would then use my phone/laptop to scam the next person who dared to ask them to fix a manufacturing fault.
It’s Ryanair tactics from a supposed “premium” brand who can see I’ve spent thousands with over the years. I loathe myself for continuing to give them my business but once you’re embedded in their ecosystem it’s hard to extricate yourself!
This is textbook Apple & I’ve had it a couple of times before. Twice with known issues on laptops (2 different generations) a battery issue & a keyboard fault. CS reps took them away for a few minutes for testing & came back highlighting tiny cosmetic scratches that he said could be evidence of them being dropped/damaged.
Similar with an iPhone when I tried to avail of the reduced price battery replacement after the throttling issue – 1 of the water sensors was partially activated when the only possible cause was using phone outside in standard British weather, certainly never submerged.
Despite all products being fully functional bar the known faults I was refused a repair unless I paid obscene amounts to essentially swap my items with another previously returned/repaired one. Doubtless they would then use my phone/laptop to scam the next person who dared to ask them to fix a manufacturing fault.
It’s Ryanair tactics from a supposed “premium” brand who can see I’ve spent thousands with over the years. I loathe myself for continuing to give them my business but once you’re embedded in their ecosystem it’s hard to extricate yourself!
Interesting, I really have never had this issue – they’ve happily fixed/exchanged various products for me, always free of charge and without Apple Care. Maybe I’ve just been lucky!
I have AirPods Pro, AirPods 3, and QC35. They all serve a different purpose: Most of the time I use the AirPods 3, on public transportation the AirPods Pro, and on planes the QC35. The ANC of the AirPods Pro does not work well on planes (like every in-ears) and they are not comfortable enough for hours on a plane. The best thing of the QC35 is that they are both wireless and wired. But I would probably go XM4 next.
The noise cancelling headphones produced by Bose, Sennheiser and Sony are vastly superior in noise cancelling performance to airpods, or indeed any in ear headphones I’m aware of. I believe Shure make some very expensive in ear ones that may have better performance, but the price point was silly when I checked. If you want comfort and performance then Apple is not the answer.
I’d also add, the sound quality of the audio (often forgotten when ANC is usually the main thing being discussed) of the ApP’s is also decidedly average. I am no audiophile but my ENACFIRE E18’s from Amazon (about £30 as I recall) sounded far, far superior. No ANC, dodgy bluetooth connection etc.. let them down, but then, what can you expect at the price point. The comparison though was night and day, sound quality wise.
Does anyone here use the Apple headphones? How do you rate them?
Apologies for a semi thread hijack (feel free to overlook) but I’m a recent wired to wireless noise cancelling earphones ‘convert’ and what I’ve noticed on my first ever of pair of Bose QC earbuds is an audio-to-video lag depending on latency. What I mean is that if I play a regular YouTube video, it’s perfectly fine, but if I put on a graphics heavy game, or connect them to a laptop and play a 4GB video file, there’s noticeable lag between the video and the audio.
Is this a known thing for wireless earphones, or did I just pick the one pair that has this issue?
@Geoge K: no tech expert here. But I believe it is a known thing. Several youtubers I follow have said that they travel with a pair of wired headphones to edit their videos as during editing the lag is not obvious, but that small lag is more obvious when you actually watch the video. It does not appear to be brand dependent or anything.
I have AirPods Pro, AirPods 3, and QC35. They all serve a different purpose: Most of the time I use the AirPods 3, on public transportation the AirPods Pro, and on planes the QC35. The ANC of the AirPods Pro does not work well on planes (like every in-ears) and they are not comfortable enough for hours on a plane. The best thing of the QC35 is that they are both wireless and wired. But I would probably go XM4 next.
Thanks, this is very helpful. I have an older QC which can do ANC without the wire but that function seems a bit doggy these days, could be gotten old. Don’t fly as much as I used to so wanted something more for daily use and occasional plane journey.
Sony WF-1000XM4’s
Thanks, my Bose QC ANS function seems a bit doggy, wouldn’t turn on very well last time. Will take a look at sony.
I have the Sony ones which replaced my trusty qc35ii. I still have them and have just replaced the cups from a size and heat perspective I much prefer the small Sony headphones. Sound is pretty good and noise cancelling is good enough for me on planes, trains and the tube. Sound quality is pretty good to. Things I miss are the ability to have 2 devices connected at the same time.
I don’t have AirPods feel overpriced to me but on conf calls all the people on the office that use them get an awful lot of background noise compared to pretty much any other brand.
That’s a really good point too. I had to move away from my Airpods on conference calls, people couldn’t hear me properly and I work from home in a silent room.
I have the Sony ones which replaced my trusty qc35ii. I still have them and have just replaced the cups from a size and heat perspective I much prefer the small Sony headphones. Sound is pretty good and noise cancelling is good enough for me on planes, trains and the tube. Sound quality is pretty good to. Things I miss are the ability to have 2 devices connected at the same time.
I don’t have AirPods feel overpriced to me but on conf calls all the people on the office that use them get an awful lot of background noise compared to pretty much any other brand.
Hi, can I asked about the 2 devices point. So one of the thing I hate the most about a pair of cheaper wireless headphones I have is that it does not seemlessly allow me to switch devices, so would like to know how that works with sony.
One of the biggest gripes I have seen on forums is how bad Airpods are at device switching, so do be aware of that.
Been looking for some reasonably priced Bluetooth headphones ( not in-ear type ) and seen decent reviews for the Sennheiser HD250BT. Anyone used these ?
One thing that concerns me is that it mentions Bluetooth APTX & AAC for the headphones, but on my mobile phone ( which has almost antique status – from 2016 ) its Bluetooth 4.1, A2DP – so not sure if that would work. Will try pop in Richer Sounds next time im in the big city and hope they got a pair i could try out.
I own the Airpods Pro and will say that for the size they produce immersive sound and impressive noise cancellation performance. They can’t block sound as well as a large pair of over-ear headphones but they are a lot more comfortable to wear on a plane while lying on your side with your head on a pillow! They are also a lot lighter and less bulky if travelling light is important to you. Also, in my experience, switching between two devices is seamless and automatic. The problems start if you try and pair them to more than 2 different devices…
@captaindave , the HD250BTs are listed as What Hi-Fi’s best wireless over-ear phones at that price point. They should also be backwards compatible with the older Bluetooth standard on your phone but, as you say, there is no substitute for an in-person demo test.Finally and generally, the over-ear Airpods Max have amazing sound quality and are fantastically well-made. I love mine but admit that £500 is a lot to pay for a pair of headphones!
Thanks @GG. The balance between performance and less bulky is why I was interested in them.
The Airpod Max would be £400 if you have 10 Amex with the convent garden offer and buy 10* £50 gift card. Or have a lot of the Monese gift cards 😂. £400 still way more than I want to pay, and still bulkier than I would like.
…what I’ve noticed on my first ever of pair of Bose QC earbuds is an audio-to-video lag depending on latency.
I’ve given up on Bluetooth headphones/earbuds for everything except listening to audio / music only. Anything where the audio needs to sync to video (eg in-flight movies) or monitoring while recording musical instruments etc is no-go – too much latency. I think more modern head/ear-phones have less latency (although my latest Sennheisers are only 2 years old), but you’re then still at the mercy of whatever device / IFE etc is sending the signal.
I just got myself a pair of SoundMagic E80C wired earbuds to use on the plane – very impressed with them so far. A lot better than the £35 price tag wound suggest.
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