T3 - UK (2021-07)

JULY 2021 T 3 85

Best of the best

A stereo pair of

attractive, compact

bookshelf speakers.

The left-hand

one contains the

connections and

DACs and Class

D amplifiers, and

the right one is a

wired slave.

£749, kantoaudio.com

BLUESOUND PULSE

FLEX 2I

More than a

Bluetooth speaker,

with Wi-Fi and

Ethernet included

this is more like a

portable Sonos. It’s

AirPlay 2 compatible,

and works with

streaming services

and internet radio.

£299, bluesound.com

ULTIMATE EARS

MEGABOOM 3

The best waterproof

speaker – it even

floats – offers 20

hours of battery life

and a hefty sound

that’s perfect for

outdoor parties.

It works great for

kitchen audio

duties, too.

£169, ultimateears.com

SONOS MOVE

A Sonos speaker

that’s been

ruggedised, and had a

battery and Bluetooth

added, so you can

use it anywhere.

Clever software

automatically

optimises the sound

to its location.

£399, sonos.com

AUDIO-TECHNICA

ATH-M50XBT

Long battery life and

sound that’s closer

to the more neutral

tones of hi-fi cans

(though still with

a slight extra kick

of bass), plus great

comfort levels, make

these ideal for losing

yourself in music.

£179, audio-technica.com

SOUNDMAGIC S20BT

Truly impressive buds.

Connectivity is rock

solid, and Bluetooth

5.0 means that

they’re futureproofed.

25 hours of battery

life is also great for

the price. A well-

made, effective and

engaging option.

£40, soundmagicheadphones.com

OPTOMA NUFORCE

BE SPORT 4

Designed for the

gym, you might

think these wouldn’t

sound very good.

But you would be

incorrect. They’re

very musical with

well-weighted

bass and excellent

noise isolation.

£100, optoma.co.uk

AKG Y4 00

These AKGs are

minimalist and light,

but still feel solidly

built and comfortable.

They offer impressive

scale, excellent detail,

and a very naturalistic

attitude towards

the whole of the

frequency range.

£110, uk.akg.com

BOWERS & WILKINS PI7

Some of the very best

wireless earbuds.

They have exceptional

sound, but there are

no compromises here.

Everything about the

audio is exactly what

you want, and you’ll

love to wear them day

in, day out.

£349, bowerswilkins.com

APPLE AIRPODS PRO

Youwould be foolish

to discount Apple’s

buds. Battery life

may be on the short

side, but with noise

cancellation and a

whole raft of audio-

enhancing features

you get an immersive

musical experience.

£187.99, amazon.co.uk

MASTER & DYNAMIC MW08

Using custom 11mm

Beryllium drivers,

the MW08s are very

clearly focused on

delivering high-end

audio performance,

which is precisely

what these stylish

buds do for 12 hours

on a charge.

£279, masterdynamic.co.uk

CAMBRIDGE AUDIO MELOMANIA 1+

High-end sound for

a pretty incredible

price. With drivers

made of miracle

substance graphene,

the Melomania 1+ are

uniformly excellent.

And their battery life

is also right up there

with the very best.

£120, cambridgeaudio.com

BLUETOOTH

SPEAKERS

BLUETOOTH

HEADPHONES

TRUE WIRELESS

HEADPHONES

Find the lowest prices at:
t 3 .com/bestbluetooth

Find the lowest prices at:

t 3 .com/bestwireless

Find the lowest prices at:

t 3 .com/besttruewireless

KANTO TUK