Best Over the Ear Headphones

Wireless headphones let you listen to podcasts or music anywhere, without the necessity of running an audio wire to your device. These headphones are great for use in public transport, in the office or at home.

Wireless over-ear cans are available in a variety of styles and noise cancelling capabilities. They usually come with a stylish storage case.

Soundcore Life Q30

A major upgrade over the Soundcore Life 2 from late-2018, these over-ears appear better, feel stronger, and are generally more polished. The hinges are tighter, and the soft cups are a bit larger. They are still largely made of plastic, but they're more polished. You can switch the 3.5mm cord with a high quality USB-C cable to make use of them with mobile Hi-Res as well as stationary players. They also feature two microphones built-in, which work well in our tests for FaceTime, Skype, and Microsoft Teams calls.

The Soundcore app has a wide selection of EQ presets that can be saved and bluetooth headphones wireless adjusted to listen to podcasts or music in the style that you like. This is the thing that sets these headphones apart from other ANC headphones and the Soundcore app is extremely easy to use.

When ANC is turned on, the Q30's 40mm drivers effectively cut out almost all ambient noise and make for very pleasant listening. The Q30's sound signature is natural, bluetooth headphones Wireless however it lags a little on the treble. Some might not be a fan of the bass response (we had better results with the Bass Booster Equalizer). However, you can easily fix this with the Soundcore app, as there's an eight-band equalizer that can help you tweak.

The left earcup features a power button and a pairing button and USB-C charging port. The right ear cup features play/pause, and volume up/down buttons. Double-clicking these buttons lets you skip tracks or repeat the previous one. They also have the ability to speak, so you can ask to switch the mode or set an alarm. The right earcup can also be covered by your hand to enable ambient mode, to allow you to hear what's happening around you without removing the headphones.

The Q30 headphones offer a long battery life. In our tests with ANC turned on, the Q30 ran for almost an hour longer than its rivals. This leaves plenty of time to prepare for long flights or working for a long time. The USB-C cable included allows you to quickly recharge the batteries. You'll also get an alert when your battery is getting close to empty.

Focal Bathys Wireless

Focal's Bathys wireless headphones uk are a set of powerful over-ear headphones that feature active noise cancellation and Bluetooth playback. They're designed to be an elite, high-end headphone that are ideal for listening to music and podcasts on the go but also sound amazing when used for home use by audiophiles too. They're more expensive than similar headphones but their superior sound quality is the main selling feature.

The Focal Bathys are packaged in a compact, attractive white box with a fabric finish. It includes all the accessories you'll require. There's a fold-flat headphone carry case, USB-C to USB cable, 1.2mm SE cable and an audio adapter.

The battery's capacity is 600mAh, which will last for a whole day of listening to music casually. They also come with an audio input that you can connect wired. When connected wirelessly, they're paired via Bluetooth and you can manage their functions via an app (now named Focal and Naim likely in line with their English sister brand Naim's products that are network-aware) or using the dedicated button on the left ear cup that scrolls between ANC profiles such as'silent','soft' 'transparent' and 'full'.

The app allows you to change various settings, including the brightness of the LED as well as EQ presets that include a "music' profile that sounds brighter and more neutral than other presets and also their battery duration. You can also choose the ANC mode and level and select an 'acoustic environment setting to alter the sensitivity to simulate the sound of the headphones in a different room.

The Focal Bathys have bass-rich, rich sound profiles that delivers extra energy, impact and warmth to your favorite tracks. In the end, instruments and vocals are pushed back into the mix, and sound muffled, while details like cymbals and vocals are somewhat less prominent than you might expect on some other headphones. They're also not as effective at active noise cancellation when contrasted to other headphones with higher-end technology like the Sony WH-1000XM5 or Apple AirPods Max.

Sony WH-1000XM5

Sony has earned a reputable reputation for its headphones, and the WH-1000XM5 headphones are no exception. It is at the top of the'mainstream' over ear headphone market and borders the luxury lifestyle segment in which brands like Apple, Montblanc, Bang & Olufsen and Montblanc are located. The XM5s are costly however, if you are able to find them, there's not a better pair of wireless headphones.

The XM5s are loaded with features to help listeners and, in certain instances, automate tasks that they'd otherwise have to handle manually. Sony's DSEE Extreme engine (which upscales compressed music to close to high-res) is available, as is support for Bluetooth's LDAC technology. This lets high-quality audio be streamed with bitrates that are higher than Bluetooth. It also has a built-in microphone for making calls hands-free.

The XM5 headphones aren't any different from the previous generation of headphones from WH, in terms of noise cancellation. They're among the best-performing cans for removing the continuous drones that can be heard in underground and train carriages. The XM5s do a great job of separating listeners from traffic noises of busy streets and airports, too.

Sound quality is also excellent. The XM5s aren't quite as precise in the lower frequencies as the XM4, but there's a greater sense of clarity and openness also. The bass in Rage Against the Machine’s Bullet in the Head shows off the Sonys power and clarity, without affecting the music. Similar to Massive Attack's brooding Angel shows off the XM5s ability to produce tight and precise bass notes.

Battery life is excellent with up to 30 hours of listening time when ANC is active and 40 hours if off. This is enough to cover a weekend getaway or several days' heavy use.

The XM5s aren't waterproof or dust-proof. Sony recommends not sweating in them or wearing them in the rain. This might not be a problem for a lot of people, but it might be a problem for those who spend a lot of time at the gym or lives in a city that is rainy.

Apple AirPods Max

Apple AirPods Max is a pair of wireless headphones over-ear that feature Bluetooth Headphones wireless technology and noise cancellation. Apple designed dynamic drivers measuring 40mm with a neutral audio profile that focuses on mids and highs without going too loud. This makes them ideal for movies and music. They also have higher fidelity than most other headphones.

The headphones are lightweight and feel comfortable on your head. The ear cups are made of memory foam and covered with a woven fabric. They fit comfortably on the ears without pressing on the sides of the face. The ear cups can also be flipped and rotated to accommodate different head shapes. The spring-loaded hinges feature a solid but not overly strong clamping force, which ensures that the ear cups remain in place throughout listening sessions.

A small button at the the right earcup allows you to switch between noise cancelling modes. There's also a button that can be pushed, like a jog-dial, similar to the digital crown on the Apple Watch, that you can turn to adjust the volume and press once, twice or thrice for playback controls. Pressing and holding the button invokes Siri. The buttons are well-placed and simple to use, however I was disappointed that there wasn't the power button that could switch off the headphones when they are not in use. The headphones go into standby when removed from your ears, or if they are placed in their case. They only come back into use when you place them on your head.

Another cool feature is spatial audio, which utilizes the gyroscopes and accelerometers in the AirPods Max and your iPhone or iPad to figure out where you're moving, then repositions sounds to make it seem like they're coming from those locations. This creates a cinema-like experience with videos and movies recorded in Dolby Atmos, 5.1 or 7.1. Only iOS devices can be used to listen to the spatial audio.

The AirPods Max are a decent pair of headphones, but I'd feel a bit ripped off entering an Apple Store and spending $549 on them if I knew they'd be beaten in a year by the new model. The AirPods Pro have more advanced features and a better battery life, making it difficult to justify the cost for most people.