Best headphones for Father’s Day
Apple AirPods Pro
Even if they don’t sound as magical as you’d hope a $249 model would, the Apple AirPods Pro still manage to be a great pair of true wireless earphones with noise cancellation. That’s largely due to their winning design and fit, improved bass performance and effective noise canceling. They’re an excellent choice when you want to make a call or listen to music during your workout. Yeah, they’re expensive at $249, but the good news is you’ll use them so much you’ll probably wear the battery down — it does degrade over time and isn’t replaceable — and have to buy a new pair in 18 to 24 months if you don’t lose them first.
Sony WH-1000XM3
Sony’s WH1000XM3, the third generation of Sony’s excellent wireless noisecanceling headphones, has a more comfortable fit and features even better performance than its predecessor, perfect sound quality for listening to music. With a strong battery life, these overear wireless headphones are currently our toprated pick for noise canceling, edging out the Bose Noise Canceling Headphones 700, which are more expensive. While these list for $350, these overear headphones frequently get discounted for closer to $280. And it’s doubly important to seek out that discount: With a nextgen version of this pair of wireless headphones having already been spotted on Twitter, we expect the XM4 successor to arrive later this year.
EarFun Free
What’s most impressive about the EarFun Free is the features: Bluetooth 5.0, both USBC and wireless charging, and full waterproofing (IPX7), according to the earbuds’ specs. Do they sound fantastic? Not quite, but these Bluetooth headphones sound pretty good. They don’t have the clarity of higherend true wireless earbuds that cost $150 or more, but they do have plump bass and enough detail to avoid sounding dull. They’re also pretty solid for making calls. An excellent value at less than $50.
These Cnet staff members contributed to this report: David Carnoy, Jim Hoffman and Laura K. Cucullu. For more reviews of personal technology products, visit www.cnet.com.