The eight-hour battery life (with another 16 in the case) compares favourably to the likes of the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II (our favourite noise-cancelling earbuds, below) and the AirPods Pro 2 (our favourite Apple earbuds, also below), though it is worth mentioning that the five-star Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 3 boast slightly more endurance. Our more comprehensive how to choose the right pair of headphones article can help guide you on your wireless headphones journey.

Bowers and Wilkins PX Headphones connecting to Windows 10 Bowers and Wilkins PX Headphones connecting to Windows 10

In terms of sound quality, Bluetooth headphones have made huge progress in recent years, closing the gap between the sonic capabilities of wireless and wired models. The introduction of higher-end wireless headphones such as the Apple AirPods Max and Mark Levinson No.5909 have pushed wireless performance further than ever before.It's a shame there's no support for high-quality wireless audio codecs such asLDACoraptX HD, nor is there wireless charging or Bluetooth multipoint. But we don't think this is the end of the world when you consider that these classy buds ooze such sophistication in the design, sound and ANC departments. Speaking of noise-cancelling, the Bose are at the top of their game. They can automatically adjust the amount of ANC on offer so your music isn’t drowned out by particularly loud noises and the effect is deeply impressive. As for sound, it's balanced and neutral and overflowing with fine detail – not far off the Sonys above at all. Yes, the WF-C500 can be bettered for battery life (they offer 20 hours from the buds and case combined), but you’ll be hard-pushed to find a more comfortable pair. You can buy greater outright scale of sound, though you won’t encounter a more complete control app. Some alternatives are a punchier and more ‘exciting’ listen, but very few strike a more convincing sonic balance.

Best wireless headphones 2023: Bluetooth - What Hi-Fi? Best wireless headphones 2023: Bluetooth - What Hi-Fi?

Speaking of which, one issue when using wireless headphones with a TV is lag – the delay between what you see on the screen and what you hear. This is due to latency: the time it takes the sound to travel from the source to the headphones. But Bluetooth standards and codecs have steadily improved latency and squashed most of the issues, so headphones and TVs today (and from the past few years) shouldn't have any problems. TheAirPodsand AirPods Pro earbuds have typically been one step behind the class-leading competition, particularly when it came to sound quality. They’ve been good-but-not-great wireless earbuds; lovely to use for iOS users but never quite reaching the sonic heights established by the toppairsin this crowded and popular category. If you’re on a very strict budget but want a decent set of over-ear wireless headphones then you won’t do better than the What Hi-Fi? Award-winning Sony WH-CH720N.Inside there’s a new 8.4mm Dynamic Driver X, which doesn’t sound quite as rich or full in the bass but clarity and detail are class-leading, with top-notch musicality and timing. Sony has sacrificed a little bit of the fun that was so appealing in their predecessors, but they’re an improvement in almost every other respect. When we saw the official pictures of the XM5, we were more than a bit surprised. We wondered whether it was a wise move to give one of Sony’s biggest success stories in recent memory, the WH-1000XM4, a major redesign.But it's paid off!