Bowers & Wilkins is updating their Pi5 and Pi7 true wireless headphones. These Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 have improved sound quality and battery life.
In the spring of 2021, Bowers & Wilkins launched their first true wireless headphones. In particular, the brand simultaneously announced two models: Pi7 and Pi5. Today, the company is introducing new versions of both headphones, models with the S2 suffix, as the brand is accustomed to doing with its redesigned but not entirely new products. While not completely redesigned, the Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 offer some very useful improvements.
Bowers & Wilkins updates its Pi5 and Pi7 true wireless headphones
The Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 boast five hours of battery life on a single charge. What’s better than the four hours offered by the Pi7 and Pi5. Fast charging gives you two hours of battery life in fifteen minutes, while the wireless charging case offers 16 hours of additional battery life for the Pi7 S2 and 19 hours for the Pi5 S2. Therefore, both devices can be charged wirelessly, but the Pi7 S2 case is also equipped with wireless audio relay technology, which allows you to connect to an external audio source and transmit sound to headphones. This is not new on the market, but a very handy feature. Bowers & Wilkins also explains that it has improved the antenna design on its Pi7 and Pi5 to increase Bluetooth range, which now reaches up to 25 meters.
Sound quality and battery life have been improved in these Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2.
The main difference between the two models is the sound quality. Pi7 S2 supports aptX Adaptive with 24bit/48kHz streaming from compatible devices and services. The 9.2mm dynamic drivers, combined with proprietary digital signal processing technology, deliver higher sound quality than what the Pi5 offers with standard aptX and CD quality. The Pi7 S2 also has an additional microphone for each earbud, which should improve its performance during phone calls. And while both models feature Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), the Pi7 S2 has an adaptive setting that automatically analyzes your surroundings to fine-tune your audio “for the best listening experience without interruption.”
Bowers & Wilkins Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 are available now, replacing Pi7 and Pi5. The $399 Pi7 S2 comes in black, white, or navy blue, while the $299 Pi5 S2 comes in light gray, dark gray, and purple. A green variant of the Pi5 S2 is expected to arrive later in the spring.