Latest news with #CambridgeAudio
WIRED
5 hours ago
- Business
- WIRED
Gear News This Week: The Repairable Fairphone 6 Arrives and Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked Is Up Next
Plus: Dell officially replaces the XPS brand, Cambride Audio budget buds, and an HDMI buying boon. Courtesy of Cambridge Audio; Dell All products featured on WIRED are independently selected by our editors. However, we may receive compensation from retailers and/or from purchases of products through these links. The sixth generation of Fairphone arrived this week, featuring a modular design built to last from ethically sourced components in a climate-conscious way. It has been a couple of years since its predecessor, the Fairphone 5, and the Fairphone 6 is refreshingly smaller and lighter. It boasts a 6.3-inch OLED screen with a 120-Hz adaptive refresh rate, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor, and a 4,415 mAh battery that Fairphone says is good for up to two days. You also get a 50-megapixel main camera with a 13-MP ultrawide lens and a 32-MP selfie camera. Fairphone says the new device is made with more than 50 percent fair and recycled materials, including cobalt sourced through the Fair Cobalt Alliance, fair gold, silver, and tungsten, and recycled aluminum and rare earth metals. The Fairphone 6 is 100 percent e-waste neutral, made in factories powered by 100 percent renewable energy, by people paid a living wage. The Fairphone 6 is an Android phone with Google Gemini onboard, but the Fairphone Moments feature enables you to hit a physical switch for a minimalist mode with a pared-back interface and just five apps. Fairphone has always gone for a modular design to make repairs and upgrades easier, but this time, it includes a swappable accessory range with a case, card holder, lanyard, and finger loop. Despite the modular design, the Fairphone 6 has an IP55 rating. The Fairphone 6 comes with a five-year warranty, software support until 2033 (eight years is more than any other Android manufacturer promises), and a guarantee of seven major Android OS upgrades. Sadly, it's still not officially sold in the US, but you can buy one for £499 in the UK or 599 Euros on the continent. If you are interested and live in the US, there's a de-Googled version of the Fairphone 6 running e/OS, coming in August. Too bad it costs $899. — Simon Hill Dell Kills the XPS Brand XPS is finally dead. Oh, you didn't hear? Dell announced the sweeping rebrand earlier this year, but perhaps its most iconic laptop branding hasn't changed in the past six months. No new XPS models have come out, so the laptop line has been cruising along. But now, Dell's ambitious (and sometimes downright confusing) rebranding efforts have reached XPS, the beloved laptops that have been setting the standard for premium Windows laptops for many years. In place of what would've been the new Dell XPS 14 and XPS 16, the company is launching the Dell Premium 14 and Dell Premium 16. It doesn't roll off the tongue quite the same. Aside from the name, this is a modest upgrade over last year's models. The new laptops use the latest Intel chips (Core Ultra 200H series) and Nvidia's RTX 50-series graphics. Intel's new chips claim to provide better battery life—up to 27 hours on the Dell Premium 16—whereas the RTX 5050, 5060, and 5070 will improve the graphics. The Dell Premium 14 starts at $1,650, which is $50 cheaper than what it launched at last year. Meanwhile, the Dell Premium 16 will only launch with the RTX 5070 model, with other configurations to come later. While the designs remain as sleek as ever, the fact that both models start with only a 1920 x 1200-pixel resolution screen feels crazy at that price, especially when stretched out on a 16.3-inch screen. Let's not forget: The 14-inch MacBook Pro has a lower starting price and comes with a high-resolution Mini-LED screen on all models. Prices tend to fluctuate, though, and I'm happy Dell is keeping these creator-based machines with discrete graphics options around. I'll hopefully be testing them soon, but for now, let's pour one out for XPS, an iconic PC brand that's been around since the early 1990s—one of the last holdouts from a wildly different era in technology. — Luke Larsen Solos' New Smart Glasses Embrace AI Smart glasses are taking off in various forms, but Solos sees them as wearable AI devices. Both its new models, the AirGo A5 and the AirGo V2, offer access to an AI assistant. The AirGo A5 relies on audio, with built-in speakers and microphones enabling you to access SolosChat to reply to messages or pose queries. You can also use them for calls or to listen to music and podcasts. The more interesting AirGo V2 packs a 16-megapixel camera and a more advanced version 3.0 of SolosChat that combines ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, and DeepSeek to identify objects, translate text, and provide the answers you need. Like the Ray-Ban Meta glasses, you can also use them to snap photos and shoot videos hands-free. To compete with the best smart glasses, the AirGo V2 will have to improve considerably on the original Solos AirGo Vision glasses, which had a very poor quality camera and were downright clunky. Solos has also released an SDK and is partnering with companies like Envision and Deutsche Telekom to develop useful AI-driven apps to make AI smart glasses more useful and appealing. The Solos AirGo A5 costs $249, with preorders starting in August. The AirGo V2 glasses will cost $299 but aren't expected to launch until the end of the year. — Simon Hill Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 Are Compact and Affordable Wireless Buds Courtesy of Cambridge Audio If you are looking for a pair of wireless noise cancelling earbuds at the more affordable end of the market, British hi-fi brand Cambridge Audio has just thrown a new contender into the mix with its Melomania A100. Following on from last year's M100 buds, the A100 offer a more compact and lightweight design, but with plenty of the brand's hi-fi heritage still built in. The A100 borrow things like the Class AB amplification from its CX and EX Series to help power the buds' 10mm Neodymium drivers, and have a seven-band adjustable EQ for tweaking sound to your taste. The buds also provide all manner of ways to get your music to them in the best possible quality, including support for LDAC and aptX Lossless and Adaptive, and Cambridge's proprietary DynamEQ looks to keep things sounding exciting, even at low volumes. There are also touch controls here, IPX5 waterproofing and Bluetooth 5.4 multipoint for connecting to two devices. As far as battery life goes, you'll get 6.5 hours of ANC playback from a single charge, and up to 28 more hours from the case—plus three hours playback from 10 minutes on charge. That's down a few hours down on last year's model, but the price reflects that. You'll be able to pick these up now in the UK and Europe for £119/€139 and they will be available in the US a bit later in 2025 in for $149. — Verity Burns Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked Gets a Date Nothing is set to debut its flagship Nothing Phone (3) early next week in London, but in the following week Samsung will take the stage in Brooklyn to take the wraps off its latest folding phones and smartwatches. This week, the company announced the official date for its second Galaxy Unpacked event of the year—July 9—with the keynote to begin at 10 am ET or 7 am Pacific. As usual, it will be livestreamed. We're expecting to see the Galaxy Z Fold7 and Z Flip7 folding smartphones, along with the Galaxy Watch8 series. Samsung already lets you reserve the device now, and in return, you'll get $50 in Samsung store credit and a chance to win a $5,000 credit for Samsung's store. HDMI Cables Get Clearer HDMI 2.2 isn't something that most people need to worry about right now; it's the upcoming video display standard that will likely be utilized by professionals first. Still, it's worth noting that you will be able to tell which cables are HDMI 2.2 compatible thanks to a new 'Ultra96' label on all cables. This label is designed to tell buyers that it supports the full 96 Gbps bandwidth HDMI 2.2 is capable of. First revealed at CES 2025, the new standard will be slow to roll out at home because there isn't any 96 Gbps video for anyone to stream from anything, but support for up to 16K resolution (4K is the current standard) leaves a lot of breathing room down the line. — Parker Hall
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Cambridge Audio's acclaimed streaming amp gets an impressive audio upgrade
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Quick Summary Cambridge Audio has revised its award-winning Evo 150 streaming amplifier to deliver what it says is an even more open, engaging and enjoyable audio experience. It'll be available from July for £1,999 / €2,399 / $3,299 (about AU$4,142). When Cambridge Audio launched the Evo 150 streaming amplifier in 2021 it attracted a host of five-star reviews. Now there's a new version that promises to be even better. The Evo 150 SE – the SE is short for Special Edition – is the result of 100s of hours of choosing, tweaking and improving components, claims the firm. And according to chief technical officer Matt Dore, it has "pushed the boundaries of what to expect from Class D amplification". The Evo 150 SE has 2 x 150W (at 8 ohms) of Hypex NCOREx Class D amplification, which has then been tuned by Cambridge Audio itself. It's built around the fourth generation of the firm's StreamMagic system, which enables you to stream directly from Connect, TIDAL Connect, Amazon Music, Deezer, Qobuz, Roon Ready, UPnP and Internet Radio over Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Wireless connectivity includes Bluetooth aptX HD, AirPlay 2 and Google Cast, and it's fully compatible with Google Home, AirPlay and Roon multi-room systems. There's HDMI ARC for your TV, as well as a moving magnet phono stage, RCA and balanced XLR inputs, two optical digital inputs, a coaxial digital input, and USB audio / USB media. That then feeds into the system's ESS SABRE ES9018k2m. There are two sets of speaker outs, a subwoofer out and pre-outs that enable you to use the amp as a pre-amp or solely as an audio source. And you can add the firm's Evo CD transport for your disc collection. As a nice touch, the design is 12-inches by 12-inches to match a vinyl record sleeve, and there's a 6.8-inch colour screen that you can switch between modern information deliver and old-school virtual VU meters. There's a choice of two magnetically attached side panel designs too, in real wood or "modern industrial chic". The Cambridge Audio Evo 150 SE will be available from July 2025 at and approved retailers. It'll come with a recommended price tag of £1,999 / €2,399 / $3,299 (about AU$4,142). That's the same as the original Evo 150.
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Cambridge Audio Reveals Award-Winning Evo 150 Special Edition Streaming Amplifier
The new Cambridge Audio Evo 150SE is a special edition of the company's award-winning mini streaming ... More amplifier. It's been a busy month for the classic British brand Cambridge Audio. Not only has the company launched a brand-new pair of wireless earbuds and a smart corporate rebrand, but it's also announced a major update to its highly regarded Evo all-in-one streaming amplifier. The new and enhanced special edition of the award-winning Evo 150 has been designed and engineered in London. The Evo 150SE offers powerful amplification and runs on the StreamMagic platform. The whole caboodle is contained in an elegant and customizable case. All users need to do is add a pair of speakers. 'Evo 150 has been a very special product for Cambridge, merging true hi-fi sound with lifestyle-friendly aesthetics and convenience in a way that has really resonated with listeners. For this special edition, we've pushed the boundaries of what to expect from Class D amplification – an even more musical, emotive listening experience in a design that has been further refined,' says Matt Dore, Chief Technical Officer of Cambridge Audio. All the Cambridge Audio Evo 150SE needs is a pair of speakers. Half-Century Of Heritage Cambridge Audio started as a boutique audio business based in London. Its first product was the groundbreaking P40 amplifier, which was unveiled way back in 1968. Since then, Cambridge Audio has been making hi-fi separates and the Evo 150 SE is the latest to join the range. Designed, engineered at the company's London HQ, the Evo 150SE is tuned to deliver an emotive sound, with clarity, resolution and a sense of rhythm. To create the amplification, Cambridge Audio worked closely with Hypex to produce the NCOREx 'Tuned by Cambridge' Class D amplifier technology. The amplifier is highly efficient and compact, but still manages to maintain the signature sound that Cambridge Audio is known for. The new NCOREx 'Tuned by Cambridge' module delivers 150W per channel into 8Ω, which means it can drive all but the most demanding of speakers. The Evo 150SE from Cambridge Audio has Hypex NCOREx Class D amplification officially 'Tuned by ... More Cambridge" and offering 150W per channel into 8Ω. With this special edition, improvements have been made to the entire audio signal path to tweak the sound further. After hundreds of hours auditioning many different component variations, as well as improving the quality of the vital components, Cambridge Audio has made the Evo 150 SE sound more detailed, open and engaging. Comprehensive Connections The new Evo 150 SE is built around Cambridge Audio's 4th generation StreamMagic platform for seamless and stable streaming across a wide range of music streaming services, radio stations and digital audio file formats. The new StreamMagic can stream Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Amazon Music, Deezer, Qobuz, Roon Ready, UPnP and Internet Radio using either Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Cambridge owns and develops the StreamMagic platform and develops new features and services in-house so that the ecosystem is regularly improved with extended functionality. The Evo 150SE may be small, but it is bristling with inputs and outputs. For maximum wireless flexibility, the Evo 150 SE also has options to stream wirelessly with Bluetooth aptX HD, Apple AirPlay 2 and Google Cast. To share music across devices all around the home, the unit is fully compatible with Google Home, Apple AirPlay and Roon multi room systems. All The Right Connections As well as wireless connectivity, the Evo 150SE has plenty of wired inputs. There is HDMI ARC for connecting to a TV, a moving-magnet (MM) phono stage for a hi-fi turntable, plus RCA line input and balanced XLR inputs for handling the analog sources. In addition, there are two optical digital inputs, a coaxial digital input, USB Audio and USB Media sockets for further digital options that are passed to an ESS SABRE ES9018k2m DAC. Adding a subwoofer to the Evo 150Se is simple thanks to a dedicated sub out. There are also pre-outs for using the Evo 150 SE as a pre-amp to feed a power amp such as the Cambridge Audio Edge. Two pairs of speaker outputs enable the use of dual listening zones, for a secondary set of speakers in another room or even an outside area. There is a matching Evo CD transport to go with the Evo 150SE. The Evo 150 SE can be paired with the Evo CD, a dedicated compact disc transport that's designed to match the build and sonic quality of the main unit. The Evo CD integrates with the Evo 150 SE, making it easy and convenient to breathe life back into a CD library. While all the functionality of the Evo 150SE can be accessed using the StreamMagic app and the HDMI ARC connection enables simple volume control through a TV remote, there is a dedicated remote control supplied for ease of use for anyone in the room. A Timeless Look The original Evo 150 won a Red Dot Design Award for its timeless look and clean lines, as well as its minimalist retro-modern look from designer Ged Martin. The Evo 150 SE refines the design with enhancements and an update. The Evo 150SE has the bold new Cambridge branding and ships with two swappable side panels including ... More the wood version shown here. The compact footprint of this all-in-one streaming amplifier is 12 inches square, which is the same size as the sleeve for a vinyl LP. However, despite its small size, the unit still manages to house a 6.8-inch color screen, which can be switched between a purely functional look or one with a dash of retro-chic style. Other options include a clock display, album artwork, info on the current track or even a pair of virtual VU meters. There are two side-panel designs with the Evo 150 SE and they magnetically attach to the casing and are easy to swap over. There's a choice of classic real wood or modern industrial chic, so users can switch things around to match their mood or décor. The Cambridge Audio Evo 150 SE is available from July 2025 at as well as approved retailers. The price will be $3,299 / £1,999 / €2.399.
Forbes
2 days ago
- Forbes
Cambridge Audio's Melomania A100 Wireless Earbuds With Hi-Fi Sound Quality
The new Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 wireless earbuds are available now. One of the most popular British audio brands, Cambridge Audio, has been making waves on the British hi-fi scene for more than half a century. Today, the London-based brand celebrates its next 50 years with the launch of a new pair of true wireless earbuds: the all-new Melomania A100. These new wireless earbuds have been designed to deliver Cambridge Audio's award-winning signature sound in a compact and comfortable form factor. The A100 have been tuned and acoustically optimized by the brand's London-based engineers and they use the same Class AB amplification found in Cambridge Audio's award-winning CX and EX Series of amplifiers. The Melomania A100 uses 10mm diameter, precision-tuned, dynamic Neodymium drivers. Cambridge Audio says these latest drivers have been tuned to produce a deeper bass with richer mids and clear highs that meld together to deliver a high-fidelity listening experience. The Melomania A100 support the hi-res LDAC and aptX Lossless audio codecs over Bluetooth. They are also are the first to use Cambridge Audio's proprietary DynamEQ technology which ensures details remain intact and balanced even when the user is listening to music at low volume levels. The new A100 wireless earbuds from Cambridge Audio feature Class AB amplification and custom tuned ... More Neodymium drivers. A full charge of the A100 earbuds provides up to 11 hours of continuous listening time. The designers say that comfort is at the center of the physical design of the earbuds and the company claims it's made a lot of effort to ensure the shape of the earbuds makes them comfortable to wear, even after a lengthy listening session. Thanks to the use of lightweight and premium materials as well as a wide choice of silicone tip sizes, these earbuds are designed for long-lasting wearability and an ergonomic fit. The Melomania A100 stow away in their charging case when not in use and it holds extra power for topping up the earbud batteries. The case sports three white LEDs on its front panel giving instant feedback of battery level. To squeeze the Cambridge Audio signature soundscape into such as small pair of wireless earbuds, the company's engineers used hi-fi grade Class AB amplification to power the 10mm Neodymium drivers. The result is increased warmth and more musicality than would be available from off-the-shelf drivers using regular Class D amplification. To provide high-quality processing of the digital signals, Cambridge Audio chose Qualcomm's dual-core 240MHz Kalimba digital signal processor. This offers more refined sound processing and lower distortion levels as well as more clarity than most chipsets. There is support for LDAC, aptX Lossless and aptX Adaptive Bluetooth audio codecs, as well as the more usual AAC and SBC. The Cambridge Audio A100 are available in white or black and come with a range of high-quality ear ... More tips for maximum acoustic isolation. The A100 are the fourth pair of Melomania earbuds from Cambridge Audio. The Melomania range is something of a personal quest adn challenge for the company's chairman, James Johnson Flint, who has been pursuing the Holy Grail of a perfect-sounding pair earbuds for half a decade now. The development of the A100 is the culmination of Johnson-Flint's efforts and the use DynamEQ technology to keep the music perfectly balanced, even at lower volume levels, is something he is particularly pleased with. By subtly adjusting bass and treble through the volume curve, the A100 ensure that every track can sound its best with a full and natural tone, no matter what the listening level. Like any good pair of wireless earbuds, the Melomania A100 have Active Noise Cancellation which uses a hybrid combination of Feed-Back and Feed-Forward ANC. There are external microphones for monitoring outside ambient sounds, plus interior microphones monitoring the ear canal to sweep up any noise making it through the acoustic seal of the ear tips. The result is more unwanted sound blocked out. Out of the box, the A100 earbuds are tuned to provide the classic Cambridge Audio sound signature. The A100's transparent and natural presentation is how Cambridge Audio believes music should be heard. However, people have personal preferences and hear music in different ways. For this reason, the A100 earbuds also offer a range of options for customizing the sound. A full charge of the A100's storage case and earbuds can provide up to 40 hours of continuous ... More playtime. Users can shape the sound signature of the A100 to suit their preferences using the new Melomania Connect smartphone app. It's possible to fine-tune the tone using a 7-band adjustable EQ. There are also six EQ presets tailored for different genres of music. Users can create their own EQ profiles and then save them for total control over the listening experience. To customize the A100 further, the Melomania Connect app includes a feature that can remap the touch controls on each earpiece to suit the user. When wireless earbuds first launched more than 10 years ago, they would often play for between and hour or two before they needed to be recharged. Today we expect much better and a full charge of the A100 provides up to 11 hours of continuous playback with the ANC turned off. That figure drops to 6.5 hours with ANC turned on, which is still long enough for a flight from London to New York. It's also sufficient juice for a 9-to-5 work shift and something spare for the commute home. The ultra-compact charging case can hold enough power for up to 28 hours of listening time. Incidentally, a fast-charging function means a quick 10-minute charge of the A100 can provide another three hours of playback time. This is a handy feature if you've not used the earbuds for a while and are just about to go out for a run. The new A100 earbuds are one of the first products to bear the new Cambridge Audio branding. The Melomania A100 are built around Bluetooth Version 5.4 and support Multipoint Connectivity so two devices can connect at the same time. Why would you want to do that? Well, you could be listening to music or watching a movie on your personal smartphone but need to take a phone call on your business phone. With Multipoint Connectivity you can instantly switch between devices without any interruption. For phone calls or video meetings, the A100 uses no fewer than six microphones for picking up the user's voice loud and clear. Advanced cVc noise isolation technology filters out unwanted and noisy background sounds to boost call clarity. The Melomania A100 earbuds mark a new era for Cambridge Audio because they bear the company's new branding and work with the redesigned Melomania Connect app. The A100 are also launching alongside the Cambridge Audio's new Evo 150 SE streamer amp which is also controlled by the refreshed StreamMagic app. Cambridge Audio's Melomania A100 earbuds are available from and Amazon across Europe and Asia. The price is $149.99 / £119 / €139 but the A100 won't be available in the U.S. until later in the year.
Stuff.tv
2 days ago
- Stuff.tv
I tested the Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 noise-cancelling earbuds and while excellent they make this one key compromise
Stuff Verdict Excellent value for money, the A100 are an engaging listen with very good options and controls. The downside is that you can get better just a little further up the ladder. Pros Engaging sound Decent noise cancelling Competitively priced Very compact Cons Not great with wind No wireless charging Battery life has been reduced Introduction Cambridge Audio's Melomania series has been a refreshing alternative to the mainsteam true wireless earphone illuminati. The company may still be known for its hi-fi separates but last year's Melomania P100 over-ears were an absolute triumph, which I still turn to at home. The design might not have been to everyone's tastes but the audio quality was great and you can't argue with 60 hours of battery life with the noise-cancelling turned on. You can now pick them up for less than $200/£200 and that is an absolute steal. However, things have been a bit patchier for Cambridge's forays into true wireless buds. These new A100s build on last year's M100s with a more compact design and footprint. But can they also further banish Cambridge's mistakes of the past? Some early Melomania buds such as the 1+ had software flaws and were difficult to use consistently. The move to the A100s from the M100s is an interesting one. Cambridge has told me that 'A100 will replace M100 as stocks run down' but these are quite different buds from the M100s. Notably they are more compact as I said, but the big compromise is that they have shorter battery life as a result. That's made palatable by the price point, which clocks in at $150/£119//€139. Things are pretty competitive around this price point – the AirPods 4 are only a little more expensive. Sony's LinkBuds S are similarly priced, while the original Bose QuietComfort Earbuds cost aroud $20 more. All are serious competitors. How we test headphones Every pair of earphones and headphones reviewed on Stuff is used for a minimum of a week's worth of daily listening. We use a playlist of test tracks made up of multiple genres to assess sound, and use our years of experience to compare to other models. Manufacturers have no visibility on reviews before they appear online, and we never accept payment to feature products. Find out more about how we test and rate products. Design: plasticky but not cheap The buds are made from smooth plastic but they don't feel cheap and sit in the ear nicely. Indeed, they're instantly comfortable – I found there was no jostling to ensure comfort and I really enjoyed wearing them, which I can't say for a lot of earbuds. The case, too, has a quality to it. It certainly doesn't have the lid flexing you find on so many true wireless bud boxes. There are indicator lights on the front to show battery life (and for pairing), a USB-C port at the rear (there's no wireless charging) and a pairing button on the base. The A100s anre available in both black and white. They come with medium ear tips pre-fitted, but there are two other options in the box for small or large ear canals. Specs: plenty on offer, but battery life worse than before Hardware-wise there's a huge amount on offer from the A100s, which support a wider range of codecs than many rivals – LDAC, aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive, AAC and SBC. Thanks to Bluetooth 5.4 there's also multipoint support for connecting to more than one device. These aren't rugged earbuds of course, but there is IPX5 water resistance so you'll have no problem in even serious rain showers. The reduced battery life from the M100s is an interesting facet of these headphones. The M100 offered 52 hours battery life in total with the case and up to 16 hours in the buds with ANC off. Despite the reduction, the A100 still offer quite hefty playback times – a total of 39 hours, 11 hours for the buds with ANC off and 6.5 hours with ANC on. The ANC seems a little more power hungry than rivals, then, but it's not absolutely crazy. We bet you wouldn't notice the compromise in overall battery life of the case and buds, especially if you're coming from a pair that only offers three or four hours. There is a fast charging feature that will gives you up to three hours of playback from a 10-minute charge. Perhaps my favorite feature of the A100s is transported over from previous Cambridge buds. And it's that the default controls are excellent and clear to use. Single taps on a bud will cycle between noise cancellation, transparency and ANC off. And there's a clear voice indication to tell you so – no mystic beeps that you're supposed to be able to interpret. A double tap gets you to your voice assistant. Sound quality: impressively good The quality of these buds is excellent when listening to either music or podcasts and they genuinely do sound more expensive than they actually are. Noise cancelling is fine for the price – certainly we couldn't hear details of conversations happening quite close to us even when the music wasn't at a particularly high volume. However, I felt wind resistance was poor when out and about and I certainly can't recommend them on this regard. This also causes problems for voice calls when you're on the move, which is a shame. However, general voice quality is good and that's something that has obviously been worked on with a six microphone array present. The transparency mode is OK, but I found I preferred to turn the noise cancellation off if I needed to be aware of anything else. It will be useful for city walks and other situations where you need to stay aware of your surroundings though. Cambridge's own DynamEQ tech is designed to keep music balanced even at low volumes and I found it does a pretty good job of it – as you can see below you're able to enable or disable this within the app. There's also a 7 band equalizer in the app to fine-tune the EQ to your own preferences should you desire. App and settings: much improved Cambridge Audio has significantly improved its Melomania app this time around and for the A100s there are a huge amount of options you can choose as well as doing the basics (such as changing the level of noise cancellation) and checking in on battery life. There's an equalizer as we mentioned above, while you can also enable or disable wear detect (so they pause when you remove then) as well as enable modes for different times – sleep or gaming. You can also choose when they power off. Indeed the only time I felt disappointed by the app experience was during the pairing process as it took a while to recognise the earbuds once they were paired with my phone. But in general use, it's an excellent companion even though I was using a pre-release version to test the A100s. Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 verdict Obviously there are better noise cancelling buds out there – but they tend to be more expensive than the A100s. And so for an everyday pair of buds that don't cost a small fortune they're undoubtedly worth the outlay. At this price point there's a serious list of challengers though. The noise cancellation is fine for general noise, but can't cope with wind gusts at which point it's hard to hear your music. However, in a standard environment they're an engaging listen and can boast of quality that is beyond their size and cost. There are compromises – hence my four star rating – but they also earn our Recommended badge as I have enjoyed listening to them a great deal, and so will you. Stuff Says… Score: 4/5 Excellent value for money, the A100 are an engaging listen with very good options and controls. The downside is that you can get better just a little further up the ladder. Pros Engaging sound Decent noise cancelling Competitively priced Very compact Cons Not great with wind No wireless charging Battery life has been reduced Cambridge Audio Melomania A100 technical specifications Drivers 2x 10mm Neodymium drivers ANC Yes Bluetooth version Bluetooth 5.4 Codecs supported LDAC, aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive, AAC and SBC Durability IPX5 Battery life 6.5 hours ANC on (buds), 39 hours (with case) Dimensions 152x76x23mm, 72g (case) 9.4g/ 0.33oz (buds, each)
