Best Over the Ear Headphones

wireless headphones uk headphones allow you to listen to music or blue tooth headphone podcasts anywhere, without the need to run an audio cable from your device. They're an excellent choice for public transportation, at work, or at home.

Wireless over-ear headphones can have an elegant design and superior noise cancellation. They typically come with a stylish storage case.

Soundcore Q30

A major upgrade over the Soundcore Life 2 from late-2018 The new over-ears look better, feel sturdier and are generally more polished. They're still mostly made of plastic, however the hinges are more secure and the soft protein leather cups are larger. You can even swap the 3.5mm cable for a better USB-C version to make use of them with stationary Hi-Fi systems and mobile Hi-Res players. They also feature dual built-in microphones, which are great in our tests for FaceTime, Skype, and Microsoft Teams calls.

The Soundcore app has a huge variety of EQ presets that can be customized and saved to listen to music or podcasts in the way you prefer. The Soundcore app is easy to use and makes these headphones stand out.

When ANC is turned on the Q30's 40mm drivers effectively cut out almost all ambient noise, and provide an extremely pleasant listening experience. The Q30's sound signature is natural, however it lags it is a bit treble. Some may find the bass response lacking (we have had better results using the Bass Booster EQ). It is possible to fix this with the Soundcore App, which includes an 8-band Equalizer.

These headphones have a power button and pairing button on the left earcup as well as an USB-C port to charge. The right ear cup has play/pause, and volume up/down buttons. Double-clicking these controls lets you to skip tracks or replay previous ones. You can also make use of voice commands to instruct for a change in mode or set alarms. You can also cover the right ear cup with your hand to activate ambient modes, so that you can hear everything around you without having to remove the headphones.

These headphones have a fantastic battery life. The Q30 was able to last for a full hour in our tests when ANC was on than the other models. This gives you plenty of time for a long flight or working for a long time. The USB-C cable included allows you to quickly charge the batteries. You'll also receive an alert when your battery is about to run out.

Focal Bathys Wireless

Focal's Bathys Wireless are a set of high-quality headphones for over-ear use that offer both active noise cancellation and Bluetooth playback. They're designed to be a pair of premium, high-end headphone that are ideal for listening to music and podcasts on the go, but are a great choice to listen to audiophile music at home too. The headphones are a little more expensive than other headphones, but their superior sound quality is the reason they stand out.

The Focal Bathys come in a small attractive white box with a textured finish. It contains all the accessories that you will need. The package includes a fold-flat headphone carrying case, USB-C to USB cable, 1.2mm SE cable and an audio adapter.

They're powered by a good 600mAh battery that will get you through a whole day of listening to music and have an audio input for wired use. When they're wirelessly connected, they're connected via Bluetooth and you'll be able manage their functions via an app (now called Focal and Naim which is probably in line with their English sister brand Naim's network-aware audio products) or via the dedicated button located on the left earcup which scrolls between ANC profiles like'soft','silent transparent', and 'full'.

The app lets you modify various settings, such as the brightness of the LEDs, the EQ presets (including the music profile, which sounds brighter and neutraler than other profiles) and the battery life. You can also choose the ANC level and mode and set an 'acoustic environments' to adjust the sensitivity in order to simulate the sound of the headphones in a different acoustic room.

The Focal Bathys feature an incredibly bass-rich sound that adds more punch, impact and warmth to your favourite tracks. In the end, vocals and instruments are nudged back into the mix, and can sound dull, while details like cymbals and vocals are slightly less prominent than you'd expect on other headphones. They're not as efficient in active noise cancelation when contrasted with other headphones that have more advanced technology such as the Sony WH-1000XM5 or Apple AirPods Max.

Sony WH-1000XM5

Sony has a stellar reputation for its headphones and the WH-1000XM5 is not an exception. It's located at the top end of the mainstream over-ear blue tooth Headphone market, edging into the luxury lifestyle sector where to buy wireless bluetooth headphones brands like Bang & Olufsen, Apple and Montblanc hang out. This means that the XM5s are expensive in cost, but when you can afford it, there are more superior wireless over-ear headphones out there.

The XM5s come with features to help listeners and, in certain cases, automate tasks they'd otherwise have to do manually. Sony's DSEE Extreme Engine (which upscales music compressed to near hi-res), as well as Bluetooth's LDAC Technology, are all included. That allows for streaming of high-quality audio at bitrates that are higher than standard Bluetooth. It also has a built-in microphone for making hands-free phone calls.

Like the previous generation of WH headphones the XM5s excel in noise cancellation. They're among the top-performing headphones to block out the constant drones found in underground and train carriages. The XM5s do a great job isolating listeners from the noise of airports and busy streets as well.

The sound quality is also top-quality. The XM5s aren't quite as detailed in the low frequencies as the XM4, however, there's a greater sense of clarity and realism as well. The bass in Rage Against the Machine's Bullet in the Head shows off the Sonys strength and clarity without affecting the rest the music. The XM5s also have the ability to provide precise and accurate bass notes on Massive Attack's Angel.

Battery life is also very good, providing up to 30 hours of listening with ANC active and 40 hours when it's turned off. This is plenty to last for a weekend getaway or a few days of heavy use.

The XM5s aren't dust or water resistant. In fact, Sony recommends that you avoid sweating on them or take them out in the rain. This may not be a major issue for most people, but for those who spend long hours in the gym or live in a rainy area this could be a big issue.

Apple AirPods Max

Apple AirPods Max is a pair of wireless headphones over-ear that come with Bluetooth technology and noise cancellation. They feature 40mm dynamic drivers designed by Apple with a neutral audio profile that concentrates on the highs and mids while not going too loud on either end of the spectrum. They are ideal for movies and music. They also have better sound quality than many competing pairs of headphones.

The headphones are light and feel comfortable on the head. The ear cups, which are made of memory foam covered with woven fabric, sit comfortably over the ears they do not place pressure on the sides or the forehead. The ear cups can tilt and rotate to accommodate different head shapes. The spring-loaded hinges feature a solid but not overly powerful clamping force, which ensures that the ear cups stay in place during listening sessions.

A small button at the the right earcup lets you toggle noise cancelling modes. It also has a pushable like a jog-dial, similar to the digital crown on the Apple Watch, that you can twist for volume control and press once twice or three times for playback controls. Pressing and holding the button invokes Siri. These buttons are well-placed and easy to use, but I was disappointed that there wasn't an option to switch off the headphones when not in use. The headphones are put into standby mode when removed from your ears, or when they are put in their case. They will come back into use when you put them on your head.

Another great feature is spatial audio, which uses the gyroscopes and accelerometers in the AirPods Max and your iPhone or iPad to determine the direction you're going, and then repositions the sound to make it seem like they're coming from those locations. This creates a cinema-like experience with movies and videos made in Dolby Atmos, 5.1 or 7.1. The only drawback is that spatial audio requires an iOS device to be used and it won't allow you to enjoy it on other devices.

The AirPods Max is a decent pair, but I would feel a bit ripped off when I spend $549 at an Apple Store knowing that the next-generation model will be better in the next year. AirPods Pro are more expensive however they offer superior battery life and more advanced features.