Best wireless headphones for the office

Following the end of Covid-19 restrictions and lockdowns, many South African businesses called for their employees to return to the office, and some may find it difficult to adjust to the higher noise levels.

MyBroadband compared five of the best Bluetooth headphones — for a range of budgets — for the office. Each model listed features noise-cancellation capabilities and a battery life of 24 hours or more.

For ranking purposes, we looked at Amazon reviews and used their star ratings out of five to find some of the best options available in South Africa.

We settled on the Jabra Elite 45h, Anker Soundcore Q35, Sony WH-1000XM4, Sennheiser Momentum 4, and Bose Quietcomfort 45 wireless headphones.

The table below summarises the battery life, Amazon review rating, and price for each of the five headphone models listed in the article.

Notably, while being the cheapest option, the Jabra Elite 45h on-ear headphones have the second-highest claimed battery life of up to 50 hours.

The only set of headphones compared that beats it is the Sennheiser Momentum 4, which costs R6,255 compared to the Jabra Elite 45h’s price of R1,799.

The most expensive headphones — Bose’s Quiet Comfort 45 — have the worst claimed battery life of the lot at 24 hours.

However, despite having the shortest battery life, the headphones match Sony’s WH-1000XM4s regarding Amazon review ratings with a score of 4.7 out of five — the highest of the models compared.

Five of the best-rated wireless headphones for the office are listed and briefly described below.

Bose Quiet comfort 45 (4.7/5) — R8,990 (Takealot)

As the name implies, Bose’s Quietcomfort 45 headphones focus on ANC capabilities and a comfortable fit.

Users can switch the Acoustic Noise Cancellation — as Bose terms it — between its Quiet and Aware modes, with the former acting as full noise cancellation and the latter letting some background noise through when needed.

Bose advertises the headphones as having a 24-hour battery life, and while this is the shortest of the headphones listed, it should be plenty to get you through one or two work days without needing to plug them in.

The headphones have an overall rating of 4.7 out of five based on 8,554 Amazon reviews, 82% of which gave a five-star rating.

Sony WH-1000XM4 (4.7/5) — R5,399 (Takealot)

Sony introduced a new sound processor with its WH-1000XM4 over-ear headphones — the DSEE Extreme engine.

The new processor provides several benefits, including audio upscaling for compressed tracks and its Edge-AI technology analyses music to produce a more accurate sound.

The headphones are advertised to last up to 30 hours on a single charge, meaning users will likely only need to charge it once during their work week.

The headphones have an overall rating of 4.7 out of five based on 43,649 Amazon reviews, 83% of which gave a five-star rating.

Anker Soundcore Q35 (4.5/5) — R2,679 (Takealot)

Anker’s Soundcore Q35 headphones can be considered mid-range in terms of pricing for the devices listed.

However, they boast an impressive battery life of up to 40 hours and feature multi-mode noise cancellation, allowing users to choose between transport, outdoor, and indoor settings.

Anker says the Soundcore Q35 was designed with comfort in mind and can be worn all day due to its lightweight build and memory foam-padded earcups and headband.

The headphones have an overall rating of 4.5 out of five based on 6,542 Amazon reviews, 70% of which gave a five-star rating.

Jabra Elite 45h (4.4/5) — R1,799 (Takealot)

The Jabra Elite 45h headphones is the cheapest of the models listed and is the only on-ear pair included in the list.

They boast the second-highest battery life of the lot at up to 50 hours and pack advanced 40mm speakers for great audio quality.

Notably, the headphone has passive noise cancellation and not ANC. They are relatively light at 160g and have a Bluetooth range of up to 33 feet (10 metres).

The headphones have an overall rating of 4.4 out of five based on 1,186 Amazon reviews, 65% of which gave a five-star rating.

Sennheiser Momentum 4 (4.1/5) — R6,255 (Takealot)

Sennheiser’s Momentum 4 headphones, while being on the higher end of the price scale, have the longest battery life of up to 60 hours and offer impressive ANC capabilities.

The company says its ANC system automatically adapts to ambient noise to provide clear audio in noisy environments. At the same time, its transparency mode lets some outside noise through for situations where wearers must be aware of what’s happening around them.

Sennheiser’s Momentum 4 headphones features a lightweight build with deep cushioning on the ear cups to make them as comfortable as possible to wear for long periods.

The headphones have an overall rating of 4.1 out of five based on 428 Amazon reviews, 62% of which gave a five-star rating.

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