Headphones with Microphone Soundcore Space One

I have previously owned a pair of (at the time) much more expensive Bose noise cancelling headphones, and so my experience of these headphones comes in comparison to those.First are the pros: the sound quality is very good! For every-day use, watching YouTube, listening to podcasts, watching TV, they perform very well. I liked the app that accompanies these headphones which offers a simple method to apply basic audio changes to fit your personal tastes. For example, out of the box they sounded a bit bass heavy, which was adjusted. I also was pleasantly surprised by their looks; the blue is a really nice choice of colour, and although the plastic can make them feel a bit cheap, even in comparison to other plasic headphones, it's not something I think about after ... MoreI have previously owned a pair of (at the time) much more expensive Bose noise cancelling headphones, and so my experience of these headphones comes in comparison to those.First are the pros: the sound quality is very good! For every-day use, watching YouTube, listening to podcasts, watching TV, they perform very well. I liked the app that accompanies these headphones which offers a simple method to apply basic audio changes to fit your personal tastes. For example, out of the box they sounded a bit bass heavy, which was adjusted. I also was pleasantly surprised by their looks; the blue is a really nice choice of colour, and although the plastic can make them feel a bit cheap, even in comparison to other plasic headphones, it's not something I think about after weeks of testing. I also experienced the ANC to be surprisingly good! It filters out the majority of the noices that any user would want, and I liked the feature that placing a hand on one side changes it to a Transparency mode, allowing me to hear the outside world again.I think for their price they are a great choice, although I am only comparing this to my old pair of sound cancelling headphones.Moving to the cons, the only time I have found the ANC to not worl well was when cooking. The steam affects the sensors to the point where I just took them off until I was finished. My next suggestion for change is in the button design. There is no easy way to see if they are on or off, unlike my last pair which had a switch. This sometimes leads me to not charge them when I should, and often accidentlly leave them on. The battery power, however, was really great! They last a long time, perfect for being on-the-go.Overall, a solid set of more budget friendly ANC headphones which have become my new go to for being out and about!

Absolutely Astonishing For the Price.

After receiving these, I was immediately blown away even as it came fresh from the unopened box. For the price, these headphones have a lot of features that you would normally expect on a premium end headset like the WH-1000XM series or Senheiser Momentum series. Right out of the box it was like it immediately conformed to my ear shape and head. I wore it for 4 hours and eventually forgot I was even wearing it as it only weighs about 258 grams. I was especially blown away by the audio despite it being at this price range. The bass, however, was a bit lackluster but its an easy fix with the custom EQ settings on their app they have. The app itself is quite well thought out and perfect as it has widgets (if your phone supports widgets) that make it all the more ... MoreAfter receiving these, I was immediately blown away even as it came fresh from the unopened box. For the price, these headphones have a lot of features that you would normally expect on a premium end headset like the WH-1000XM series or Senheiser Momentum series. Right out of the box it was like it immediately conformed to my ear shape and head. I wore it for 4 hours and eventually forgot I was even wearing it as it only weighs about 258 grams. I was especially blown away by the audio despite it being at this price range. The bass, however, was a bit lackluster but its an easy fix with the custom EQ settings on their app they have. The app itself is quite well thought out and perfect as it has widgets (if your phone supports widgets) that make it all the more convenient to tune to your needs. Another thing about the audio is that it supports LDAC which is incredible. The sound quality quadruples when I have it on but it does make the battery drain faster which is exacerbated if you have ANC on as well. However, this is non-issue as i haven't even went down to 50% yet despite me using it for a day and a half. One thing that is an issue to me (may just be me) is the sound leakage. I was not expecting this much sound leak from these headsets. That is to say, the leakage isn't objectively horrible that people within a 1 meter radius can hear you blasting metal. I'd say that if I were in a conpletely silent room, like a classroom where everyone is quietly doing their work, the people beside me would probably hear it despite it only playing my music at around 50 decibals. This might just be me as I'm transitioning from earbuds to headphones. My earbuds (skullcandy mod) have virtually 0 sound leak so I'm not sure what an acceptable amount of leakage would be for these headsets. That said, if anyone knows how to minimize sound leakage without drastically reducing the volume, I would love to know.In summary, these headsets are wonderful and I highly recommmend to get these while they're still on sale/for future sales. They are budget friendly and have premium features which you would only see on $200+ headsets.

Affordable Hi-Res Audio & Active Noise Cancelling

These headphones are not the first Soundcore or Anker product I have owned. I have a set of Soundcore earbuds and a few of their charging cables. Like Anker’s other products, these headphones are a reasonable price and an excellent value for the performance they offer.Pros1. Solid build quality and comfortable to wear. The hinges that allow them to fold for storage are tight and there is no squeaky plastic sound when adjusting them or wearing them. Plastics are nicely textured with a subtle design. I am bald and the headband is nicely cushioned for wearing for longer periods. My wife and daughter have braids and they said they fit well with no pulling from hair getting caught in hinges and plenty of adjustment.2. Active noise cancelling (ANC) is effective and ... MoreThese headphones are not the first Soundcore or Anker product I have owned. I have a set of Soundcore earbuds and a few of their charging cables. Like Anker’s other products, these headphones are a reasonable price and an excellent value for the performance they offer.Pros1. Solid build quality and comfortable to wear. The hinges that allow them to fold for storage are tight and there is no squeaky plastic sound when adjusting them or wearing them. Plastics are nicely textured with a subtle design. I am bald and the headband is nicely cushioned for wearing for longer periods. My wife and daughter have braids and they said they fit well with no pulling from hair getting caught in hinges and plenty of adjustment.2. Active noise cancelling (ANC) is effective and has a lot of adjustments to fit your use – allowing you to pick different levels, use an adaptive setting that adjust with background noise, and a few options to allow audio pass through for conversations or awareness (like walking on a street). With full noise cancelling on at moderate volume – all background noise and most conversations are blocked out (I have actually missed people talking to me completely with the volume up).3. Physical buttons for volume, noise cancelling mode changes, play/pause, and power/pairing which are far more reliable than touch controls that some headphones have.4. Good sound quality with high quality audio over Bluetooth (LDAC) support and a lot of audio adjustments via the Soundcore app. The app offers an audio test to help you set your equalizer settings – which is cool, but I still had to make some tweaks to the equalizer to get the bass where I wanted – overall volume and clarity are good.5. Excellent battery life. I have not had to recharge them yet, but in the 5 days I have owned them, I am averaging around 2% per hour of listening with LDAC and noise cancelling enabled (this is in line or a little better than the 40 hours provided by Anker in the specs with these features enabled – it is 55 hours LDAC and ANC off).6. Wired operation (with an included 4ft headphone cable) is available for devices that don’t support Bluetooth and you can even use it as a headset for calls via the wire.7. Works well as a headset and even has a wind noise reduction option via the Soundcore app. I didn’t test this in a windy place, but phone calls I took while wearing them around the house were clear on my end and people on the other end said I sounded as good or better than when using my cellphone.8. Wearing detection works great to pause playback if you take the headphones off (once you configure it in the app).Things to Consider1. The Soundcore app is excellent, but also required to get the most out of these headphones. Default audio settings are just adequate, and these really work better with the equalizer available in the app. You also have to use the app to enable hi-res audio and wearing detection. Just make sure to disable any default equalizers in your phone audio settings to avoid conflicts with the app's equalizer (I was getting some weird reverb from having my Motorola’s default Dolby audio enhancements on with the Soundcore equalizer).

Best Budget ANC Headphones

Just so people are aware, Soundcore is Anker's line of audio products. Anker came into the scene seemingly out of nowhere as a prominent figure in the electronics and accessories market over the past few years. I'd put them on par with more established companies like Belkin and Mophie at this point. I've been purchasing their gallium nitride (GaN) technology power bricks and cables for ages now and have been fairly happy with my purchases. This is actually my first Soundcore product and I'm honestly surprised at how well it does compared to my other active noise cancelling (ANC) over-ears. I quite literally own all the mainstream ANC headsets by Sony, Bose, and Apple and TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION THE PRICE, this is a great option.Sound quality could be better - ... MoreJust so people are aware, Soundcore is Anker's line of audio products. Anker came into the scene seemingly out of nowhere as a prominent figure in the electronics and accessories market over the past few years. I'd put them on par with more established companies like Belkin and Mophie at this point. I've been purchasing their gallium nitride (GaN) technology power bricks and cables for ages now and have been fairly happy with my purchases. This is actually my first Soundcore product and I'm honestly surprised at how well it does compared to my other active noise cancelling (ANC) over-ears. I quite literally own all the mainstream ANC headsets by Sony, Bose, and Apple and TAKING INTO CONSIDERATION THE PRICE, this is a great option.Sound quality could be better - particularly with the richness of the sound itself and the overall soundstage/fullness of the sound itself. However, you can make it sound better when you tweak the settings through the Soundcore app. The app also lets you play around with the noise cancelling, which was surprisingly good and honestly on par with much more expensive options. I would say this would be a GREAT gift for high school/college-level students and even for those who just want something affordable with ANC. I tried them on a 3-hour domestic flight and it did a phenomenal job of drowning out the standard cabin noises, including a crying toddler! I never got to test out the full capacity of the battery but this thing is rated for 40 hours with the ANC on and 55 hours with the ANC turned off, which is entirely very impressive.I wouldn't recommend these for those who want to use these primarily for phone and conference calls as the microphone isn't particularly great. I don't know if it's the noise reducing microphones or what but the people I spoke with mentioned that I didn't sound all that clear, if anything a little "distant" from the mic itself. Overall, though, a great budget option for people seeking a reasonably-priced, ANC-compatible b/t headset.

Easy setup, versatile, very comfortable

I’ll say right at the outset that this is a very nice pair of headphones. Besides the excellent sound quality, the features that stand out most to me are that they are very comfortable, feeling very light on my head, and that they can be connected both with a Bluetooth connection or with the more traditional audio cable. So I can use them both with my phone or tablet, both of which have Bluetooth which allows me to dispense with a cable, and with my desktop computer, which does not have Bluetooth but has a traditional headphone jack on the front panel.Out of the box, the headphones were charged to about 50% of capacity. When you put them on your head and then turn them on, a little voice states the state of charge. If used with the audio jack, they do not need to ... MoreI’ll say right at the outset that this is a very nice pair of headphones. Besides the excellent sound quality, the features that stand out most to me are that they are very comfortable, feeling very light on my head, and that they can be connected both with a Bluetooth connection or with the more traditional audio cable. So I can use them both with my phone or tablet, both of which have Bluetooth which allows me to dispense with a cable, and with my desktop computer, which does not have Bluetooth but has a traditional headphone jack on the front panel.Out of the box, the headphones were charged to about 50% of capacity. When you put them on your head and then turn them on, a little voice states the state of charge. If used with the audio jack, they do not need to be switched on to use as the power for the speakers comes through the cable like it always has.To use Bluetooth, you simply switch them on. They go immediately into pairing mode, then find them on your phone’s Bluetooth setup page, connect, and you’re good to go. I had no trouble listening to any audio I chose. Also, once paired, if the phones are switched off and put away, when turned back on, they automatically pair with the same device if it’s in range.There is, of course, and app for these phones, and it allows customization of the sound experience. By this I mean that there are three audio settings, normal, noise-canceling, and transparent, and they do what their names suggest. The transparent setting makes it easier to carry on a conversation with someone with the phones still on your head but the sound mutes somewhat. The phones are also smart enough to know when you remove them from your head, and they automatically switch off.Along with the headphones themselves, in the box are two cables, an audio cable and a USB-C to USB-2 cable. The latter connects to the headphones on the USB-C side, and the former connects to a USB-2 charger to charge them. No charger is included, just the cables. There is also a nice cloth carry bag with a cinch-string closure.All in all, as I said, this is great pair of headphones that should serve most any need.

Fantastic headphones for a great price

I have a set of Anker Soundcore Life Tune XR and I wanted to get a new headphone set for my kids. Since I've enjoyed the Soundcore line, I thought the Soundcore Space One sat a decent price point for features.I've been playing around with the Anker Soundcore Space One for a few days and have enjoyed them. In the box, you get the headphones, a drawstring bag instead of a case, a 3.5 mm to 3.5 mm headphone cable and a short USB-A to USB-C cable for charging.The headphones themselves seem constructed very well. On the left ear cup there is the power button which also doubles as the Bluetooth button, a Noise Cancellation button, the USB-C port and the headphone jack. The headphone jack is a change over my Soundcore Life Tune XR which had it on the right ear cup. The ... MoreI have a set of Anker Soundcore Life Tune XR and I wanted to get a new headphone set for my kids. Since I've enjoyed the Soundcore line, I thought the Soundcore Space One sat a decent price point for features.I've been playing around with the Anker Soundcore Space One for a few days and have enjoyed them. In the box, you get the headphones, a drawstring bag instead of a case, a 3.5 mm to 3.5 mm headphone cable and a short USB-A to USB-C cable for charging.The headphones themselves seem constructed very well. On the left ear cup there is the power button which also doubles as the Bluetooth button, a Noise Cancellation button, the USB-C port and the headphone jack. The headphone jack is a change over my Soundcore Life Tune XR which had it on the right ear cup. The newest physical feature is the inclusion of a sensor inside the left ear cup that detects if the headset is on your head. There is a protective film over the sensor that you need to remove if you plan to utilize this sensor. The right ear cup on the Space One just has the volume rocker button and a play/pause button.As I picked up the Space One headphones, I could tell there was less motion available than my Life Tune XR. The ear cups on the Space One swivel vertically with about 10 mm of travel whereas the Life Tune XR has about 14.5 mm of travel. The front to back rotation for both sets seem to be the same, however the Space One seems to have a little more friction.Pairing to my phone was easy. It pairs just like any other Bluetooth device. In order to change the sound profile, button function and establish a sound listening volume you need to use the Soundcore app on your mobile device. Some might find it disappointing, but the Space One does not have NFC for pairing as the Life Tune XR has.Sound has been impressive right out of the box. I find the Soundcore Signature Audio profile gives a nice clear treble and bass was nice and emphasized. There are several audio profiles to choose from, but I came back to the Soundcore Signature profile. There is also a HearID Sound. It takes a couple minutes to set up, but it conducts its own audio test and provides an equalizer curve that is customized for your hearing.There are 3 mics with AI algorithm that helps others hear you. The other person couldn't tell I was on a headset, but I felt a little isolated with the noise cancelling on, which I feel is normal.Bluetooth connection was nice and strong. I could walk to the other side of my house with a few walls in between and I didn't drop a single note.I can wear these headphones for several hours and I didn't feel fatigued. They are quite comfortable.There were two aspects that disappointed me with these Anker headphones. First is the power on/off control. To turn on and off, you need to hold the button a few seconds until the LED indicator changes or, if you have the headphones on, wait until you hear an audio prompt, I found that to turn on may be about 3 seconds, but to turn off is more like 6 seconds. I much prefer Bose's implementation with a slide switch with a Bluetooth toggle. The second aspect is that you cannot charge and listen via Bluetooth at the same time. This disappointed me greatly. If I am running low on battery, I want the ability to charge while I'm still listening so have less interruptions. As soon as you plug in the USB-C power, Bluetooth and noise cancellation shut off. The only solution I've found for continued listening while charging is to use an audio cable. Just make sure you find long enough power and audio cords to do your work comfortably.Battery life is advertised at 40 hours with ANC on and 55 hours with ANC off. You also get 4 hours of play time with 5 minutes of charging. In my short testing, it seems to live up to the advertised hours.Overall, I will probably stick with my Life Tune XR while my kids take the Space One. I like having more travel motion in the ear cups and slightly easier movement. At this price point, I wouldn't be surprised if I decided to pick up another set just to have a comfortable wireless headphone set at my office and just throw them in a drawer for whenever I want some music.

Fantastic sounding headphones and a great value

The SoundCore by Anker Space One wireless headphones comes with the headphone itself, a carry bag, an instruction pamphlet, a short USB-C charging cable and a 3.5 mm AUX audio cable.Setup was very easy. As with most modern devices these days, you just download the SoundCore app and click on “Add Device” and it will find your headphones and allow you to customize them to your preference. In my case, it also detected a new firmware was available and updated my headphones.With the app, you can enable/disable features such as “Touch to Enable Easy Chat” where by touching the left earpiece, it lowers the music volume and disables Active Noise Cancellation so you can have a conversation with someone. There is also a beta feature where you can enable the headphones to ... MoreThe SoundCore by Anker Space One wireless headphones comes with the headphone itself, a carry bag, an instruction pamphlet, a short USB-C charging cable and a 3.5 mm AUX audio cable.Setup was very easy. As with most modern devices these days, you just download the SoundCore app and click on “Add Device” and it will find your headphones and allow you to customize them to your preference. In my case, it also detected a new firmware was available and updated my headphones.With the app, you can enable/disable features such as “Touch to Enable Easy Chat” where by touching the left earpiece, it lowers the music volume and disables Active Noise Cancellation so you can have a conversation with someone. There is also a beta feature where you can enable the headphones to automatically detect when you are talking so it automatically lowers the volume.The app allows you to customize how some buttons (such as the Noise Control button) works and allows you to customize the Active Noise Cancellation settings and have access to an EQ or use one of their 22 EQ presets.I found myself liking the default “SoundCore Signature” preset and didn’t feel the need to adjust the EQ at all. There is also an option to customize the sound according to the results of a hearing test. Overall, I found the app to be easy to use and offer a lot of features.The headphone is light and feels very comfortable. This is my first non–gaming headphone and I was immediately surprised and impressed by how well it handles playing music compared to my gaming headphones.For me, the sound quality is fantastic. I think it provides the best sounding bass compared to my other headphones. I think the bass is punchy and distinct and not muddy or overly boomy like some of the other headphones I’ve tried.The midrange is very precise, detailed, and crisp. Vocals and instruments come out very clear to me. I can hear details in songs that I didn’t hear before. The headphones also provide a wide and immersive soundstage.Active Noise Cancellation also worked really well too. While wearing these headphones typing on my computer I couldn’t hear the keyboard clicks. Battery life is also great. After using these headphones for almost 2 hours, the battery was still practically at 100%.Overall, I can easily recommend these headphones. It is comfortable and lightweight. The sound quality is excellent. The battery life is superb. It has very good active noise cancellation and I also appreciate the flexibility with being able to use these headphones both wirelessly and in wired mode.For the price, I think it punches way above its weight and compares favorably with more expensive headphones. It’s a fantastic value.

Great Sound and Excellent Noise Canceling!

I gave these five stars because of the price, features, and sound quality. I have lots of over the ear headphones ranging from $30 to $400. Even those these are on the cheaper they have a lot of features and sound very good. These will not replace my $400 headphones, but these will be used for travel and other places I don’t want to take expensive headphones.When I first got these and hooked them up to my tablet I was a little disappointed with sound and bass. Then I realized I needed to download their application to fine tune/setup the headphones. Once I downloaded the app, the headphones received an update that drastically changed the sound of the headphones for the better. The app is very easy to use and allows you to customize some of the buttons on the ... MoreI gave these five stars because of the price, features, and sound quality. I have lots of over the ear headphones ranging from $30 to $400. Even those these are on the cheaper they have a lot of features and sound very good. These will not replace my $400 headphones, but these will be used for travel and other places I don’t want to take expensive headphones.When I first got these and hooked them up to my tablet I was a little disappointed with sound and bass. Then I realized I needed to download their application to fine tune/setup the headphones. Once I downloaded the app, the headphones received an update that drastically changed the sound of the headphones for the better. The app is very easy to use and allows you to customize some of the buttons on the headphones, change the equalizer, and learn more about the device. I like that the equalizer allows you to customize your own, pick from multiple preset ones, or use the app to create a perfect equalizer for your ears.The headphones themselves are not flashy (which I love) and the controls are easy to use. On the headphones you have power, volume up/down also controls skip forward or back, play pause also can be used for answer and hangup phone call, and noise canceling (cycles through the three modes). If you place your hand over the left speaker it mutes the music and turns off noise canceling to allow you to hear the environment around you. Once you take your hand off the music plays and the noise canceling turns back on. These headphones also have a feature that if you take off the headphones it will pause whatever is playing. I had a little trouble with this feature as it worked sometimes but not always.The sound on these headphones is full and rich. I listen to all different types of music and these headphones play everything with ease. The noise canceling does a great job as I couldn’t hear anything penetrating in from noisy environment I tested them in. Even if you do not have anything playing the noise canceling works pretty well if you just need a quiet moment.I also like the fact that these headphones use Bluetooth or can use an AUX cable as well. It’s nice to have that choice if your device has a headphone output. Battery life has been stellar as well, I used them for about 8 hours watching tv at a moderate level and only used 10% of the battery. So these will last a long time on a single charge. They are also very comfortable to wear and did not cause my ears to get hot like other ones have.Overall these are a solid buy considering the functions and sound quality at the price point. The headphones also came with a carrying bag, charging cable, and an aux cable. The carrying bag is nothing fancy but nice to be able to keep cables and headphones all in one place.

REALLY TAMES THE NOISE

These soundcore Space One noise cancelling headphones are top notch. I will begin by saying that they come well packaged in very sturdy packaging. What I found inside the packaging other than the soundcore headphones was a quick start guide, carrying bag, USB -C charging cable and an AUX cable to use when Bluetooth isn’t available. Inside of the packaging was everything needed to get started listening uninterrupted.Getting the Space One headphones setup was very easy. The first thing I did was turned on the space one headphones. Once turned on the soundcore headphones were already in pairing mode. I then went to settings on my cellphone and was able to connect to them instantly. Once connected I downloaded the soundcore app and the app picked up that my phone was ... MoreThese soundcore Space One noise cancelling headphones are top notch. I will begin by saying that they come well packaged in very sturdy packaging. What I found inside the packaging other than the soundcore headphones was a quick start guide, carrying bag, USB -C charging cable and an AUX cable to use when Bluetooth isn’t available. Inside of the packaging was everything needed to get started listening uninterrupted.Getting the Space One headphones setup was very easy. The first thing I did was turned on the space one headphones. Once turned on the soundcore headphones were already in pairing mode. I then went to settings on my cellphone and was able to connect to them instantly. Once connected I downloaded the soundcore app and the app picked up that my phone was connected to the Space One headphones. The app then prompted me that I had an update waiting and the update was installed in under two minutes.Through app I am able to control if I want noise cancellation, normal mode or transparency. I also have the option to turn on wind noise reduction or customize the sound effects to my liking. The app comes preloaded with 22 different sound effects. What blew me away was that the app conducted a hearing test and was able to set the equalizer to a setting that was perfect for my listening enjoyment. The app is a must for these Space One headphones.Listening to music with these soundcore Space One headphones is just simply amazing. The bass emitted from them is hard hitting, but pleasant to the ears. The bass does not overpower the music. The treble is crisp and lends to hearing instruments clearer than I’ve heard in a long time. The music is clear, but the voice coming through is amazing. It’s been a while since I’ve had a set of headphones that put the music front stage like the Space One headphones.The active noise cancelling ability of these soundcore headphones is simply the best. It really tames the noise around me. When you in a house with 3 kids and need some quiet time to think or work, the Space Ones have you covered. I am able to catch a few moments of quiet after a hard day’s work to listen to a podcast or some good music to let the day go with these headphones. Although if you see something going on or your significant other is trying to carry on a conversation with you, just go into transparency mode. In this mode I can turn down my music, have it in the background and carry on a conversation.All in all, the soundcore Space One headphones are a must. They are well priced and sounds as good if not better than those much more expensive ones. I 100% recommend these for anyone wanting a good set of high-quality headphones. I will be using mine on the daily.

Very happy with these!

After going purchasing and returning two other pairs of different wireless headphones I finally settled on these. My old, cheap pair of headphones were falling apart and I needed a new pair. I tried a couple other cheap ones at first but found them to be incredible uncomfortable, so I figured I would try paying up for something better quality.After having these for several weeks I can say I am really enjoying them. As far as comfort, it took me a minute to get used to the headband, but now I have no problem with comfort, and the headband has a decent amount of cushion/padding.The sound quality is decent. It's not professional studio quality but it gets the job done. I really like how they fold up and the headband adjustment is very smooth and satisfying.What I ... MoreAfter going purchasing and returning two other pairs of different wireless headphones I finally settled on these. My old, cheap pair of headphones were falling apart and I needed a new pair. I tried a couple other cheap ones at first but found them to be incredible uncomfortable, so I figured I would try paying up for something better quality.After having these for several weeks I can say I am really enjoying them. As far as comfort, it took me a minute to get used to the headband, but now I have no problem with comfort, and the headband has a decent amount of cushion/padding.The sound quality is decent. It's not professional studio quality but it gets the job done. I really like how they fold up and the headband adjustment is very smooth and satisfying.What I really found to be cool was the app you can download to use with these. I wouldn't normally mess with that kind of tech-y extra feature like an app but I was curious so I downloaded it and found it to be really neat. You can manage connections (you can have two simultaneous connections at at time), personalize audio equalization, and pick between 3 settings: noise cancellation, normal, and transparency. The last setting lets in the noise around you in case you need to hear your surroundings. As someone who has never had noise cancellation I found this to be really cool. However, if apps aren't your thing, I don't think the app is required to use these headphones. You can toggle the noise cancellation on and off with a button on the headphones.Another thing I thought was great is that they do come with an aux line-in, in case you want the option for wired headphones. Which I do appreciate since, of course, there is a small delay with bluetooth/wireless, so when I'm doing video editing it's better to have wired headphones.