| Cult of Mac

Bang & Olufsen’s pricey new ANC earbuds borrow AirPods Pro design

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Nice stems on those. But $400 nice?
Nice stems on those. But $400 nice?
Photo: Bang & Olufsen

Danish audio legend Bang & Olufsen has struck out in a new yet familiar direction with its latest true wireless earbuds, the Beoplay EX. It’s the company’s first set of earbuds with stems, which makes them look a lot like AirPods Pro.

As a premium offering, Beoplay EX boasts all of the expected features, like active noise cancellation (ANC). The buds also claim top-notch sound and demand a high price for it — $399, considerably more than AirPods Pro and other major contenders.

Leak of flagship Sennheiser ANC earbuds reveals upgrades and price

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Sennheiser's new Momentum 3 True Wireless Earbuds popped up on a shopping site early.
Sennheiser's new Momentum 3 True Wireless earbuds popped up on a shopping site early.
Photo: Sennheiser/Lufthansa WorldShop

A while back, German audio powerhouse Sennheiser began teasing the April release of its new, top-tier Momentum True Wireless 3 earbuds. But then retailer Lufthansa WorldShop went ahead and (briefly) posted a detailed listing for the new buds ahead of Sennheiser’s official, and yet to come, release.

So now we know a bunch of the new buds’ specs as well as pricing details.

Enjoy big bass and 20 hours of playback with Audio-Technica’s new earbuds

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Twenty hours of playback between charges? Not bad.
Twenty hours of playback between charges? Not bad.
Photo: Audio-Technica

One of the impressive features of the growing number of moderately priced, high-quality earbuds on the market is just how long playback lasts between charges. That’s in part because the case where you store them also charges them. But Audio-Technica just rolled out a new set of earbuds that really moves the needle on battery life.

The company’s new ATH-CKS50TW Solid Bass Truly Wireless Earbuds claim up to 20 hours of continuous playback on a single charge, or 50 hours counting the case’s charge. All that, plus the new buds feature low latency and active noise-cancellation (ANC).

Belkin seriously challenges AirPods Pro with its new ANC earbuds

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Belkin's new ANC earbuds look like they match up pretty well with AirPods Pro.
Belkin's new ANC earbuds look like they match up pretty well with AirPods Pro.
Photo: Belkin

Building on other versions of ANC earbuds released in 2021, Belkin rolled out its new SoundForm Immerse Noise Cancelling Earbuds in Las Vegas this week — and they promptly became a CES Innovation Award 2022 Honoree.

The new buds challenge aging champ AirPods Pro, due for a revamp, not only with hybrid active noise cancellation (ANC) with Hear-Thru mode, but they work with Apple’s vast Find My network. And they flaunt a number of premium features.

Belkin introduced other products at CES, too, of course.

Yobybo X-Boat Pro ANC earbuds: If the buds fit, (maybe) wear them [Review]

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The Yobybo X-Boat Pro earbuds come with a USB cable and a sleek
The Yobybo X-Boat Pro earbuds come with a USB cable and a sleek "open" charging case.
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac

I think it was a Kickstarter campaign that first drew my attention to the Yobybo X-Boat Pro noise-cancelling earbuds, “the first open-casing true wireless stereo headphones with LDAC,” the company said, referring to Sony’s hi-res codec. Well, while the sleek “open” case is super-cool and the buds’ sound is vibrant, some earbuds just aren’t for everyone.

Nothing’s new black transparent earbuds look totally badass

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Nothing's new
Nothing's new "Black Edition" Ear 1 buds retain the cool transparent design.
Photo: Nothing

Nothing released its first Ear 1 earbuds in late summer 2021 with a partially transparent design, a cool transparent case, good sound quality, active noise cancellation (ANC) and wireless charging. Now the company’s rolling out the new Ear 1 “Black Edition,” which retains the interesting design and tech elements in a cool new look.

And Nothing, created by OnePlus founder Carl Pei, added the product is now carbon neutral and you can buy the product — still $99 — with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. So there’s that.

Get AirPods Pro-style noise cancellation for just $32 with these bargain earbuds

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For Black Friday, these $32 earbuds are normally $250.
Skip AirPods for these black friday wireless earbuds for $32.
Photo: Cult of Mac Deals

You don’t have to shell out for AirPods Pro if you’re looking for a nice pair of noise-canceling earbuds. xFyro Active Noise Canceling AI-Powered Wireless Earbuds deliver the clarity and comfort of Apple’s earbuds. But they only cost $31.99 (regularly $250) when you use the coupon code BFSAVE20 during our extended Black Friday Sale.

These earbuds check all the boxes for less than $100 [Review]

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EarFun's Free Pro 2 wireless ANC earbuds offer a comfortable fit and good sound at an affordable price point.
EarFun's Free Pro 2 wireless ANC earbuds offer a comfortable fit and good sound at an affordable price point.
Photo: David Snow/Cult of Mac

In my recent review of Earfun’s Air Pro 2 wireless active noise cancellation (ANC) earbuds, I said they packed good enough features — sound quality, active noise cancellation, comfortable fit —  to be worth their affordable price tag. With the new EarFun Free Pro 2 wireless ANC earbuds, that’s even more the case. Especially because the same high quality comes in an even smaller package.

AirPods 3 are the best earbuds in Apple’s lineup [Review]

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AirPods 3 with Funko
With AirPods 3, Apple proves it can create a magical experience, even in a tiny package.
Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac

AirPods are arguably one of Apple’s most popular products. Over the last five years, the wireless earbuds have become so common that it’s hard to go anywhere without seeing someone wearing them.

And now, with the third-generation AirPods, Apple has improved them in almost every way. That makes the latest AirPods one of the best, if not the best, all-around earbuds you can get.