Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Update 04/12/2019: Used these headphones on two international trips and they were awful. I read a few reviews regarding the headphones freezing or not recognizing motion. This issue occurred for me and only a reboot could fix them, but not immediately. These have to be the most expensive mistake I've made. On a 737 Max 8, the cabin is quite insulated, so the headphones were unnecessary and when I tried them, they didn't add much to the experience. On a 777, which is much noisier, they helped slightly, but they still suffered from the rainfall sound effect - wherein some sounds are not cancelled, as much as they are reprocessed and chopped up into pieces of sound, like raindrops hitting a solid surface. I received a firmware update during my journey and applied it. I didn't notice an improvement or any new issues. The firmware update did not have a change log to highlight what they were updating or resolving. After switching between the Bose QC35 and Sony 1000XM3's, the Surface Headphones don't fit as well (the ear cups are too small), sound as good, last as long between charges, nor are they lighter or any other thing that these should have been. Don't buy these headphones, unless you just want something that looks cool. Update 12/02/2018: I will heretofore refer to Noise Cancellation as NC. After using these headphones on two cross country flights, I can definitively state that the noise cancelling is extremely mediocre. On an MD-88, with NC on maximum, the engine noise sounds like rainfall. Quite annoying when you expect silence or close to it. On an 767-432(ER), the engine noise is muted, but still quite noticeable. The Bose QC35 and Sony 1000XM3 exhibited no issues and were quite comfortable. ------ Original Review ------ I recommend against purchasing this product. It's half baked. It's interesting to read how much time they spent on this product, but couldn't figure out that no one wants to use Cortana or that 10 hours of battery life is laughable. Maybe with 5 more years of research, they will create something that could compete with the other headphones in it's price range. I hope someone from Microsoft reads this and understands that no one wants to be hamstrung by a terrible app or to sign away all of their data and privacy to update their headphones to the latest firmware. Please get a clue. I don't have to deal with these annoyances with my Bose or Sony headsets. Pros: -Comfort -USB C connector and cable (a long cord!). -'Interesting' cord storage Cons: -Not as comfortable as I had hoped. I needed to reposition them multiple times during the flight. -BATTERY LIFE IS AWFUL. Lower than any unit in it's price range. -Noise cancellation is average, on par with Plantronics PLT 8200 series (I believe these headphones are based on their tech). Nowhere near the Bose QC35 or Sony 1000XM3. -Case is huge, with no clip or hook. -Headphones are noticably heavier than their competition. -Cortana software requires linking your email account and access to all data on phone. -Sound quality is average, really average. Requires app to adjust EQ. -No aptX or any other HQ sound codecs. -Pairing by holding down the power button is doesn't work well. Worked sporadically. Create a dedicated button, if need be. I would like to see a pairing button and a separate power button. -The color scheme could be better. The black color used on the new surface pro would have been a superior choice. Missing -Reasonable battery life. -Good/effective noise cancelling (only ok for an office environment and NOT for planes). -A voice prompt to confirm your settings; i.e. turn the dial, verbal volume or noise cancelling level prompt. -HQ audio codecs. -The ability to turn off Cortana always on feature - hopefully that will improve battery life).