Dyson announced its second pair of headphones today, and the company’s first attempt is a pretty strange one. Dyson ZoneDyson’s previous iPhones focused on combining air purification and noise-canceling headphones in one product, but this time around, Dyson is ditching the Bane mask and going all-in on customization.
New $499.99 OnTrac headphones feature replaceable ear cushions and The ear cups can be completely customized in style in a way that other manufacturers can’t. We’ve seen Apple’s AirPods Max with silicone covers and stickers on them time and time again, and we know people want to add their own personal touch to their headphones.
The OnTrac’s foundations (headband, rotating gimbal arm, controls (with joystick)) are very similar to the Zone. The headband has three prongs, each of which houses a battery cell, while the middle prong is your standard soft head cushion. Where Dyson has put some flair is in the outer cap.
The headphones come in four different colorways. You basically pick the color of the headband; pretty much everything else can be customized later. “CNC Aluminum” is a gray finish with bright yellow ear cushions. “CNC Copper” features a purple headband with matching ear cushions and shiny copper ear cups. “Ceramic Cinnabar” has a pale red (almost pink) headband, matte ear cups of the same color, and dark ear cushions. And “CNC Black Nickel,” as the name suggests, is all black and has a more subdued look than the rest of the lineup.
Of all the things I saw at the New York presentation, the CNC aluminum is what caught my eye the most. The silver and yellow combination gives off a fun audiophile vibe. The OnTrac ear cushions are made of foam, and Dyson offers a total of seven colors for the ear cushions and seven different outer cups. The caps come off with a simple twist, but it only takes a few tries to remove them. They come in both metallic and matte options, and are priced at $49.99 a pair. The colors can be mixed and matched to create some pretty crazy combinations. According to Dyson, “there are over 2,000 customizable color combinations for the outer caps and ear cushions.”
So the aim here is a level of customisation never before seen. But that’s not enough to justify $500 headphones, which is why Dyson claims OnTrac uses an eight-microphone system to deliver “best-in-class” noise cancellation, and, as with the Zone, you can monitor ambient noise using a companion smartphone app.
Battery life is another plus: The headphones can last up to 55 hours on a single charge, well ahead of Apple, Bose, and Sony, but just short of 60 hours. Sennheiser Momentum 4They also feature active noise cancelling and wear detection, so music will automatically pause when you take the headphones off.
OnTrac features 40-millimeter drivers that “reproduce frequencies from 6Hz to 21,000Hz, providing deep sub-bass that you can feel and clear treble at the top end of the frequency range.” These speakers are also angled towards the ears for a more direct audio delivery. You can also listen wired using a 3.5mm to USB-C adapter, but there is no separate headphone jack. As for Bluetooth codecs, OnTrac supports SBC, AAC, and The little-known LDHC It delivers higher quality wireless audio. Unfortunately, the latter only works with select phones from Motorola, OnePlus, Nothing, and a few other brands, but not Samsung or Google products.
Dyson includes a foldable carrying case with the OnTrac can, but it only provides limited protection and leaves plenty of room for water and dirt to get in, so it’s something to keep in mind.
Dyson clearly has no intention of giving up on the headphone market after a very unconventional first attempt. I think the OnTrac headphones make a lot more sense to appeal to a wider audience. They have the same “I’ve never seen headphones like these before” feel as the Zones, but without the “I’ll never be seen in public wearing them” feel. I’m very interested to see how these headphones turn out if you take away the unique style and focus on sound quality and ANC. Can they really hold up to the bigger competition? More on that soon.
For now, here are some more photos for those of you who aren’t planning on buying an OnTrac but would still like to take a closer look.
Photos (except lead image): Chris Welch / The Verge
