If your biggest concern in headphones is air filtration, the Dyson Ontrack isn’t for you. In fact, the new over-ear headphones don’t filter air at all. At least, in that respect, it marks a significant change from its predecessor, the Dyson Ontrack headphones. zonehas fascinated and baffled the tech world with its combination of music playback and particle filtration.
The device is, in its own way, a logical extension of Dyson’s existing product lineup, tying it directly into its home air purification systems. Whatever criticisms may be hurled at the Zone, no one would argue that the product at the very least stands out from the sea of similarly-minded over-ear headphones.
“Dyson’s audio engineering mission is to preserve the artist’s sound waves intact and without interference,” said chief engineer Jacob Dyson, who made Zone a hobby project. “We wanted to create headphones that people would cherish, be excited about and be proud of. With more than 30 years of experience in aeroacoustics, we know the physics of sound inside and out.”
Given the years and money that went into developing the Zone, Dyson’s decision to transfer that R&D to a more standard pair of headphones makes sense. After all, the Zone offered good audio quality, but with so many better options on the market, not many people are going to spend $700 on a pair that’s solely meant to be used as headphones.
OnTrac is less expensive, but at $500, it’s still pretty pricey compared with top-of-the-line offerings from the likes of Bose ($429), Sony ($399), Apple ($449) and even newer entrant Sonos ($449) — the last two in particular aren’t exactly known for low prices.
What you get for $5000 is a 40mm speaker driver with a frequency range of 6-21,000 Hz and active noise cancellation that can cancel out up to 40dB of sound, while the battery life is an astounding 55 hours with ANC on. If true, this is best-in-class performance that could last you a few round-the-world flights.
The OnTrac maintains a large industrial design that’s in keeping with Dyson’s other products, and the ear caps and pads are available in a variety of metal finishes and colors, which will cost you another $50.
