Dyson's Unusual Air Purifier Headphones Are Ready For Release, But They Aren't Cheap
Dyson's wild noise-canceling headphones that also come with an air purification system are actually going on sale. It won't be easy to get them though, as the futuristic cans will be "available for pre-orders by appointment only." Plus, there's that $949 asking price, which makes the AirPods Max look like a bargain despite being one of the most expensive (and, to be fair, really good-sounding) mainstream products of its kind.
Aptly named Dyson Zone, these pricey headphones will go on sale in China next month, while enthusiasts in the UK, US, Hong Kong, and Singapore will get them in March. In case there was any skepticism, these headphones don't really cut any serious corners. Dyson claims they can last up to 50 hours on a single charge. If you also want to breathe in purified air while grooving to the music, the battery life comes down drastically to just 4 hours. Thanks to fast charging via a USB-C port, the depleted batteries can be juiced up in three hours.
On the audiophile side of things, the Dyson Zone promises noise cancellation worth 38 decibels, thanks to an 8-mic array that keeps analyzing surrounding audio waves at a frequency of 384,000 times per second. Dyson is also touting ultra-low harmonic distortion and a wide soundstage by covering frequencies between the 6Hz and 21,000 Hz bands. Audio output is handled by 16mm drivers, assisted by a custom EQ and advanced signal processing. Thankfully, that visor can be detached to make them look more normal.
It's not just all about air purifying
Each earcup on the headphones comes with a compressor spinning at over 9,000 rpm to suck in air and passes it through a dual-layer filtration system. The electrostatic filters are said to block particles as small as 0.1 microns in size. Dyson is also using a potassium-enriched carbon compound to neutralize acidic gas molecules like oxides of Nitrogen and Sulfur. In doing so, the bad smell emanating from sources like sewers and underground tubes is also kept at bay.
The companion app keeps monitoring the level of Nitrogen oxides, while the onboard accelerometer analyses head motion to adjust the airflow. As for the filters, they are said to last up to 12 months, but if the pollution levels are high in a certain area, they will expire more quickly. The purified air is then passed through a channel built into the visor, leading to the user's mouth and nose. Dyson is claiming a 99% percent efficiency at filtering out pollutants in the listed size range.
When the visor is lowered, the headphones automatically activate conversation mode, which stops the music playback and air purification. It's nothing new, as the likes of Sony WH-1000 XM5 use hand gestures for it, but it's a thoughtful addition from Dyson. The company says it developed over 500 prototypes of the Zone headphones over a period of six years before it finally nailed down the final design to strike a balance between comfort, audio output, and filtration efficiency.