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Ultimate Wireless Headphones

I live in an urban environment and as such I am often walking, into and out of cars, buildings, etc and so I frequently listen to music on my headphones. I also travel work my work and some of those flights can be very long. As such I want to have noise cancellation to my headphones. I also want to increase the usability of my current headphones. The cord can be annoying but I also can't take calls on them or control music playback. I want all of this without compromising the fidelity of the playback. I want my cake and eat it too... but what does that look like? I did an extensive brainstorm and this is what I came up with. To date nothing like this exists but I think in the next year or two we'll have something close.

Base Functionality
Comfort

NO Not Applicable
POOR Uncomfortable to wear for any period of time
GOOD Comfortable for up to 3 hours
BEST Comfortable for long periods of time (i.e. 10 hours or more)

Build Quality

NO Not Applicable
POOR Weak reliability, materials, hinges and interconnects
GOOD Good reliability, materials, hinges and interconnects
BEST Extremely reliable, durable materials, hinges and interconnects

Battery Life

NO No batteries
POOR less than 20hrs
GOOD 20-29hrs
BEST 30hrs or better

Wireless Connection Quality

NO Not applicable
POOR No aptx; too many dropouts
GOOD Aptx; very few dropouts
BEST Aptx HD/lossless; very few dropouts

Local Storage / Buffering

NO No local storage or buffering capability
POOR Not applicable
GOOD RAM buffer to prevent dropouts
BEST Large RAM buffer and NV storage/caching

Security

NO No security provision whatsoever
POOR Password required to bluetooth/NFC pair
GOOD remote lockout (based on bluetooth connection) + password
BEST Location (GPS) and remote lockout in case of theft or loss + remote disable + password

User Experience
Initial Setup

NO Not Applicable
POOR Frustrating or lengthy
GOOD Bluetooth, 3m
BEST NFC; very fast and easy (i.e. <30s)

Recharge Speed

NO No batteries
POOR >3hrs (10-90%)
GOOD 3hrs or less (10-90%)
BEST 30m or less (10-90%)

Wireless Recharge

NO No wireless recharge
POOR Not applicable
GOOD Not applicable
BEST Wireless recharge supported

Materials

NO Not Applicable
POOR Any materials
GOOD Great looking product
BEST Absolutely premium materials all around

Antimicrobial / Anti Dirt

NO Not Applicable
POOR Dirt absorbant materials
GOOD No dirt absortant materials
BEST Anti microbial / anti dirt coating

Situational Awareness

NO No situational awareness capability present
POOR 1 of 3: Automatic on/off when removed/worn + autopause gesture + environmental awareness
GOOD 2 of 3: Automatic on/off when removed/worn + autopause gesture + environmental awareness
BEST 3 of 3: Automatic on/off when removed/worn + autopause gesture + environmental awareness

Music Playback and Call Controls

NO Controls are missing
POOR Button controls
GOOD One or two large touch pad; thoughtful UX
BEST Gesture based controls; thoughtful UX

Volume Controls

NO Controls are missing
POOR Button controls
GOOD One or two large touch pad; thoughtful UX
BEST Gesture based controls; thoughtful UX

Siri / Google Assistant

NO No assistant present in the device
POOR Assistant present but must press a button first
GOOD Assistant present and activates with keyword
BEST Assistant present and activates with keyword and does not need smartphone

Audio Fidelity
Music Playback

NO Not Applicable
POOR Poor fidelity
GOOD Good fidelity; some weaknesses but none that are too annoying
BEST Excellent fidelity; no weaknesses; although audiophile quality not required

Ear Compensation

NO Does not contain ear compensation
POOR Weak or flawed compensation
GOOD Good compensation
BEST Excellent compensation

Noise Cancellation

NO Not applicable
POOR <10dB across the spectrum
GOOD <20dB across the spectrum; loud noise limiter (env and speaker)
BEST >20dB across the spectrum; loud noise limiter (env and speaker)

Microphone

NO Does not contain a microphone
POOR Poor fidelity, no noise/background rejection
GOOD fidelity, some noise/background rejection
BEST Excellent fidelity, excellend noise/background rejection

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