2019-09-01_TechLife

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E82.0trulywirelessearphoneslookgorgeous.

Thecaseis a pebble-shaped,leatherenrobed

designthatwouldn’tlookoutofplacein a

jeweller’s window. Lift the lid and a metal

lining wraps around the middle of the case to

protect your valuable assets. On the back is a

USB-C based charging port for wired

charging purposes.

There’s also the all-important addition of Qi

wireless charging support. Thanks to this, the

Bang & Olufsen E8 2.0 true wireless earphones

are truly wireless in more than just the

listening way. Simply place the charging case

on a Qi charging pad and you won’t have to

worry about using its supplied micro USB

cable to charge. Bang & Olufsen sell an official

charging plate, but you can easily use any Qi

based one and it’ll work.

The earphones themselves look good and

skip any awkwardness that can arise from

smartphone.

Oncepaired,therightbuddictatesvolume,

play/pauseand skip track functionality. The

left bud allows you to activate the ambient

noise mode which pauses the music and helps

you to hear outside sounds without having to

remove the bud – perfect for when trying to

cross a road while wearing them, for instance.

Audio quality is undeniably excellent. It was

the case with the Bang & Olufsen E8 2.0’s

predecessor and it continues to be the case

here. Tonal balance is suitably neutral with

everything sounding just how we like. The

bass is just right with loud tracks sounding

punchy, with more delicate music still

sounding a delight. If used to cheaper

earphones, you’ll find yourself feeling like

you’re rediscovering beloved music from

before, thanks to its rich tones.

It’s the kind of quality that could ruin you

app.It mightnotbease ectiveasa trulyactive

noisecancellationsetofearphonescan

provide,butit’sclose.

Clearly aimed at those that want their

accessories to look as good as they sound, it’s

hard to not find these earphones appealing.

[ JENNIFER ALLEN ]

4

Bang&OlufsenBeoplayE 82. 0

AWORTHYFOLLOWUPTOTHESUPERBORIGINALS.

OFFERINGGREATDESIGNaswellasgreat

audioperformance,wewerefansoftheB&O

BeoplayE8beforetheywererevised. Now,

they’rea bitmoreexpensivethanbeforebut

they’realsofarmoreappealingtoowiththe

additionofwirelesscharginganda fewother

extrabells andwhistles.

We’llcuttothechase– theBang& Olufsen

E8 2 0 t l i l h l k

buttonsstickingout.Theysimplyhavea

touch-sensitivepadoneachbudwhichgives

you allthe controlyou needwhile retaining

theirstylishlooks.Indeed,setupwasa breeze.

Yo uknowhowallBluetoothpairingshould

onlytakea matterofa secondortwobutthat’s

notalwaysguaranteed?Theseearphones

actuallydidtake hardlyany timetopair with a

th

forlesserearphones.

Theonlyrealissuehereis there’snoactive

noisecancellationdespite rivalslike the Sony

WF-1000Xofferingsuchfeaturesforless.

However,the Bang& OlufsenE82.0truly

wirelessearphonesareprettygoodat blocking

outbackgroundnoiseviaitsTransparency

featurewhichcan befurthertweakedinthe

It i ht t b ff ti t l ti

TES

TBEN

CH

RADA

R

4

BANG & OLUFSEN BEOPLAY E8 2.0

$399

http://www.bang-olufsen.com

CRITICAL SPECS

20 – 20,000 Hz frequency; Omnidirectional

microphone; Electro-dynamic, 5.7mm speakers; 107 dB

SPL +/-3 dB, ref 1 mW @ 1 kHz sensitivity; 16 Ohm

impedance.

WINNER

APPROVED

AWA RD