Review: The Top 5 Wireless, Noise-Canceling Headphones

A good pair of headphones has become a must-have accessory, yet only in recent months have wireless noise-canceling headphones finally hit the big leagues. Battery life is finally long enough for them to be convenient, sound quality is finally good enough for them to develop an audience, and brands have managed to craft cans that don’t look like they belong in a 1980s recording booth.

When we decided to review these five pairs, our criteria were pretty specific: We selected headphones that are all wireless, feature active noise cancellation (ANC), are on- or over-ear, and fall in the $300 to $500 price range. Included are the Bang & Olufsen H8, the Beats Studio Wireless, the Definitive Technology Symphony 1, the Samsung Level Over, and the Sennheiser Momentum Wireless. These are top-tier consumer headphones that are meant to deliver great audio in any situation and look good doing it.