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See Top Ranked Closed-Back HeadphonesSony WH-1000XM3 (2018) vs Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8 (2018)
Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018)
Excellent
Reddit: Loved
See our analysis
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018)
Decent
Reddit: LovedSee our analysis
Analysis:
The Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018) sets the bar for all other Closed-Back Headphones at the $220 price point. The Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018), however, is merely passable at that price.
The Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018) has done great in quite a few roundups from some of the most highly trusted sources available, such as Tom's Guide, SoundGuys, Laptop Mag, and CNET, which perform high-quality in-depth testing. It got awarded the "Best Sony headphones overall" title by Tom's Guide, "Best ANC" by SoundGuys, and "Excellent sound paired with great noise cancelling" by Laptop Mag in their respective roundups. Earning that much praise from such respected sources is undoubtedly an impressive accomplishment.
As for the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018), it wasn't able to earn a top spot in any roundups from trusted sources that conduct their own hands-on testing. Nevertheless, it managed to impress reviewers at Techradar, PCmag, and Wirecutter (NYTimes) enough to make it onto their respective shortlists.
Our direct Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018) vs. Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018) comparison of their review scores has shown that, out of sources that tested both Closed-Back Headphones, PCmag and Techradar preferred the Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018), whereas Lifewire seemed to like both equally.
We also looked at which sources liked these products best and found that the Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018) got its highest, 10, review score from Tech Advisor, while the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018) most impressed reviewers at Lifewire, which gave it a score of 9.4.
Finally, we also compared their review scores to the rest of their competition - the Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018) earned an average review score of 9.0 out of 10 points and the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018) received an average of 8.5, compared to the 7.4 average of Closed-Back Headphones in general.
Tech. Specs Comparison
Sony WH-1000XM3 (2018)
$231
Bang & Olufsen Beoplay H8i (2018)
$303
Noise-cancelling
Yes
Yes
Wireless
Yes
Yes
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Sentiment analysis from Youtube reviewers
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Sentiment analysis from Youtube reviewers
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No Data
Significantly higher than average expert review score
7.5
Overall Avg. for Closed-Back Headphones
9.0
Avg. Review Score
Score
Higher than average expert review score
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Find the best product and price, effortlessly.
Discover deals on the best products
We do the research. You save the money.