The latest pair of headphones from Bang & Olufsen are the Beoplay HX. They are placed in the ear, cancel out noise and offer up to 35 hours of truly impressive battery life. The headphones are launched in black today for $ 499 (£ 499 / € 499), but there is a white model coming in late April, followed by a white and brown version in May.
For $ 499, Beoplay HX is among the most expensive wireless noise-canceling headsets available. But this is not unfamiliar territory for Bang & Olufsen: the previous Beoplay H9 headsets cost exactly the same – and this is the company that also sells a $ 800 pair of Bluetooth headsets.
The battery life of thirty-five hours outperforms virtually all competitors (and increases to 40 hours if you turn ANC off). The $ 549 AirPods Max are valued in just 20 hours with ANC enabled, while our preferred $ 350 Sony WH-1000XM4 choice can last up to 30 hours. Others, such as Sennheiser Momentum 3 Wireless or Shure Aonic, are rated for 16 hours and 20 hours, respectively.
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In addition to battery life, the other thing you get for $ 499 is build quality. The Beoplay HX ear cushions are made of sheepskin with a memory foam interior, while the headband uses cow leather and mesh fabric in its construction. The headphones themselves feature an aluminum disc encased in a recycled plastic case and the arm sliders are also made of aluminum.
The rest of the Beoplay HX specifications are typical. There is a USB-C port for charging, a 3.5 mm connector for wired connections, buttons on the left and right earphones and also touch controls on the right side. The headphones support Bluetooth 5.1 and, for codecs, you get aptX Adaptive, AAC and SBC. Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair are included to facilitate pairing with their respective platforms. And yes, the headphones come with a 3.5 mm cable in the box, unlike the AirPods Max.