The headphone market continues to grow in terms of references, but also to improve in quality. It is no longer rare to find devices with active noise reduction and high-end audio offerings for less than 150 euros, or even more affordable.
Wireless headphones have become the norm and the audio market continues to include more and more brands and products, at all price points. Sony, Apple, Bose and Sennheiser monopolize the top of the basket with cutting-edge headphones, but which easily exceed 300 euros, or even skyrocketing prices for the most cutting-edge audio competitors.
A more affordable segment nevertheless steps up its game to now offer references for less than 150 euros which have serious arguments to put forward such as increasingly frequent active noise reduction, improved audio quality and a careful design. All at the cost of some concessions which persist (absence of multipoint, call quality due to lack of numerous on-board microphones, transparency mode sometimes non-existent, small transducer and often made of plastic, no wireless charging of the case…).
Here are 5 excellent quality models for less than 150 euros
· Nothing Ear(a)
New to Nothing, the Ear(a) are the brand’s entry-level headphones. And yet, they have serious arguments in their favor for less than 100 euros. Like their Nothing Ear counterparts, the Ear(a) are distinguished by a transparent and quite futuristic design, right down to the rectangular case.
The sound quality is there and the sound is well balanced and detailed, with even automatic adjustment depending on the song listened to. We like music that cuts off as soon as you remove at least one earphone and resumes as soon as you put it back. In addition, the application is rich in settings (equalizer with presets and customization), but also with the possibility of reinforcing the bass. The call quality is also surprising.
Available in black, white or yellow, they are pleasant to wear and provide fairly notable passive insulation. But that’s nothing compared to the surprisingly good active noise reduction (ANC) at this price. It is quite formidable, particularly in transport, sometimes even giving the feeling of being too cut off from the surrounding world. It must be said that it is possible to choose its intensity from three levels and even set it to adaptive mode. Transparency mode is also available
To be choosy, we can criticize the Nothing Ear(a) for an honest autonomy but nothing more because of the ANC (around twenty hours with the case, but the fast charge to recover 5 hours of listening time in 10 minutes ) and touch controls that require a good pinch, especially if you do two or three to access other functions (next song, previous, volume control, ANC). But the copy at this price is already more than perfect!
Also recently announced, the Nothing Ear are the 2024 version of the brand’s high-end model. To justify a slightly higher price (150 euros), we find ceramic transducers rather than plastic which will make the sound even clearer and more precise. There is also the possibility of using chatGPT from the headphones provided you have a Nothing smartphone.
The Nothing Ear and Ear(a) are available from May 4.
Sennheiser CX True Wireless
If you like Sennheiser sound, you will not be disappointed by this entry-level model from the brand. This has opted for “button” formats similar to its high-end Momentum, but in a more compact format. They remain pleasant to wear and hold well in place.
The CX True Wireless broadcast a very detailed and ample sound, which will delight fans of soundstages with a little more bass.
We like the four sizes of tips offered to adapt perfectly to each ear size, the customizable touch controls are easy to use. However, there is no active noise reduction, but the passive cancellation is already effective and the autonomy is there (up to 27 hours with the case charges).
Sony WF-C700N
The Sony quality guarantee is one of the advantages of the WF-C700N headphones, which offer very good bass and midrange. We appreciate the possibility of adjusting the audio quality with the equalizer of the very complete companion application. Sony has not neglected active noise reduction which is very honorable. The WF-C700N already has silicone tips that provide excellent passive isolation.
If you like “ball” headphones that fit in the pavilion, you will be able to enjoy pleasant comfort, with headphones that are more compact than the WF-1000XM and quite light (4.6 g). But, like comparable models, after several hours, the pressure ends up being felt. We appreciate the excellent autonomy capable of reaching 10 hours per earphone by deactivating the ANC (8h30 with it). They are also IPX4 certified to resist sweat and raindrops. They benefit from Fast Pair pairing with Android.
On the other hand, on calls, the voice is not always well captured, especially if the environment is a little noisy. The giant pill-shaped case fits well in the hand or in a pocket (and the magnetic earbuds don’t fall out easily!).
Motorola Buds+ with Bose
Motorola has entered into a quality partnership with Bose to offer, in addition to its new Edge 50 Fusion, Edge 50 Pro and Edge 50 Ultra, very good quality wireless headphones for less than 150 euros. Quite elegant, pleasant to wear in the ears and equipped with good tactile controls, the Buds+ rely on very good sound quality, especially with home smartphones. They offer spatial audio and head movement tracking to reinforce immersion, but also sound lossless with compatible audio streaming services.
Huawei FreeBuds 5i
If Huawei shines less than a few years ago in the smartphone market, the Chinese brand continues to hit hard in the earphone market. Alongside its original and more expensive models like the FreeClip or more advanced ones like the FreeBuds Pro 3, Huawei has the FreeBuds 5i in its bag. These wireless headphones offer excellent wearing comfort, pleasant and dynamic audio quality, and benefit from multiple tactile controls by tapping or sliding on the stem for the volume. Everything can be personalized in the application in terms of settings, but unfortunately not for audio quality.
The small round case fits in the palm of the hand and benefits from charging via USB-C cable. No wireless charging to report, a common thing at this price. We find an honest noise reduction, without being sparkling, but which has the merit of existing. It will simply perform less well in really noisy environments. A low latency mode optimizes audio for gaming or watching videos.
