One of the biggest headphone trends in recent years has been the rise and rise of Active Noise Canceling (ANC) headphones. They’re brilliant! I can’t imagine flying without a pair because they’re so good at cutting out the low-frequency rumble of jet engines. A pair of ANC headphones can considerably reduce the stress levels caused by the noises experienced when flying. Currently, the market is dominated by the likes of Bose and Sony, but other brands are catching up fast with new models. Of course, not everyone wants a large pair of headphones clamped over their ears; many people prefer lightweight, true-wireless earbuds but these rarely offer ANC.
Urbanista, the trendy Swedish lifestyle headphone brand, has just announced that it is entering the noise-canceling market with its first pair of true wireless earbuds to incorporate active noise cancelation. “So what?” you might ask. What’s so special about that? Unlike ANC headphones, squeezing in the digital signal processing required to produce really good noise cancelation isn’t all that difficult in a pair of headphones. There’s usually room enough for all the circuitry, plus there’s space on the outside for positioning multiple microphones to sample the sounds for canceling. There’s even enough area left over to accommodate the larger battery that the ANC headphones require.
True wireless earbuds, on the other hand, are a totally different proposition. They are limited by their tiny size. If you want to design a really good pair of active noise-canceling earbuds, you need to use cutting-edge miniaturized electronics, make enough room to incorporate external noise-sampling microphones, and have enough space to accommodate the larger battery needed to run the whole show. That’s a big ask in terms of design and technology.
Urbanista has risen to the challenge and announced its brand-new London ANC earbuds. All Urbanista earbuds are named after European cities, and London is a great choice for a pair of noise-canceling earbuds, being one of Europe’s noisiest and busiest cities with the constant roar of road traffic, the grind, and squeal of double-decker buses, plus the constant rumble of Tube trains. If these earbuds can cancel out the cacophony in London, they can cancel out noise anywhere.
Although I don’t yet have a sample of the Urbanista London to review, I thought I’d give a quick heads-up on what we can expect from this latest pair of earbuds from Sweden. Urbanista claims that the London earbuds are packed with style and creativity, inspired by the UK’s vibrant and diverse capital city. At launch, the Urbanista London will be available in Midnight Black, Rose Gold, White Pearl, and Dark Sapphire finishes. Each pair comes with a sleek and color-matched charging case. With an IPX4 waterproof rating, these earbuds should be able to shrug off the grey, rainy streets of London, along with the noise.
Using the latest 5.0 version of Bluetooth with support for SBC and AAC audio codecs, these new earbuds will happily pair with either Android or iOS devices. There’s support for Google Assistant and Siri, plus dual noise-canceling microphones offer the ability to make calls using both earpieces, unlike some models that revert to just one earpiece when making voice calls. Built-in touch controls offer volume adjustment as well as control of the music in the form of pause, play, and stop commands. With a full battery charge, the London earbuds can play for up to five hours, plus there are an additional four full extra charges in the storage case for topping up between listening sessions. Indicator LEDs on the front of the case let the user know how much charge is left, while recharging can be carried out in around an hour using a USB-C cable or any Qi-certified wireless charging pad.
We can expect to see the Urbanista London arrive towards the end of May and I hope to have a pair to review soon. I’ll let you know how I get on and whether these new true-wireless earbuds can rival the big beasts in the active noise-canceling jungle.
Pricing: Urbanista London noise-canceling earbuds will be available from 25 May, priced at $149 / £129 / €149.
More info: www.urbanista.com
Key Features:
● Active noise canceling (ANC)
● Built-in ear detection sensors
● Ambient Sound Mode
● Wireless charging in one hour under any Qi-certified pad
● Slim, color-matched charging case carrying 4 full charges
● 4 indicator lights showing battery capacity
● IPX4 protection from splashing water at any angle
● Bluetooth 5.0
● Silicone earbuds in different sizes
● Four colors: Midnight Black, Rose Gold , White Pearl, and Dark Sapphire
● Volume and music control
● Voice control (Siri and Google Assistant)
● Stereo phone calls
● Full iOS, Android and Windows compatibility
