Noise-cancelling headphones

Written Jul 13, 2023, tagged under post,headphones,noise-cancelling,review

I've mentioned in that past that I find noise-cancelling headphones pretty essential for work. For quite a few years I relied on a pair of Bose QuietComfort QC25 over-ear headones, which are definitely good. More recently, after some old in-ear Bluetooth headphones died of old age, I bought some new headphones, and these are the subject of this blog post.

The headphones in question are known by the snappy moniker of EarFun Air Pro 3 (not an affiliate link). I should start by saying that what I'm about to say is purely based on my own experience, without any kind of encouragement one way or the other - I'm just passing this on as they've been rather good for me! There are a few features that have played a big role here, which I'll describe below.

Let's start with noise cancellation. For a start, this feature is actually very good for listening - very roughly in line with my Bose over-ears, which really surprised me. Furthermore - and in contrast with the Bose ones - the microphones are also extremely effective for the person on the other end of a conversation. Apparently I sound very clear, and ambient noise is very well suppressed. I sometimes work in a public space at a local gym, with kids screaming around me, and gather that people I'm talking to are unable to detect this noise at all. This is in stark contrast to the Bose in-cable microphone, which is omnidirectional and has no noise cancelling capability so picks up every little noise around me.

Noise cancelling can be switched off, or indeed "run in reverse", so that ambient sounds are amplified and easier to hear. When walking to a coffee counter, I just switch them into this ambient mode, and can then speak to people around me without difficulty.

Another killer feature for me is that the headphones can connect to two devices at the same time. This lets me connect to my laptop (for work Zoom calls etc) and also my phone (for personal calls, music etc). The only thing to be aware of is that sometimes my work calls get muted if someone phones my mobile - one to watch out for! Planning ahead pays here.

Battery life is great: the headphones themselves are fine, and the case is also good and they charge quickly, so overall with periods of not wearing them during the day I have never had them fail on me so far.

They're pretty comfortable for me - more than the Boses, I would say, which put pressure on your ears which can get annoying after extended use. They are good for sport too, eg at the gym / running.

Sound quality is perfectly acceptable - not the best I've owned, but very far from the worst. This is the only area where the Boses win out. There is an EQ capability in the associated app, and maybe that would help. If the Boses are five-star headphones then these are perhaps four or so. The Bluetooth link is also solid - they support the more recent high quality codecs etc. The range is also unusually good for my laptop - I can literally go upstairs in my office and have them still just about work.

So in summary, these are great for working. I run my favourite mynoise.net website through them, switch on noise cancellation, and can then get on without being distracted with what's around me. I can make and take calls, and then have them going on a train home, all without stress. At around £70 ish, it would feel churlish to complain!

Photo by kyle smith on Unsplash