Dyson OnTrac review: Dyson just got serious about headphones

Dyson launching a pair of noise-canceling headphones – without an air purifying mask attachment, that is – wasn’t on my bingo card this year. After the dystopian Dyson Zone ’s meh reviews, I thought the brand best known for vacuums and hair tools might retreat from the audio category. But now that the company has launched the Dyson OnTrac, and I’ve had the chance to test it out, I’m convinced it should’ve been Dyson’s debut headphones instead of the Zone.

That said, Dyson OnTrac arrives when there are more premium headphone options than ever, so how does Dyson expect to justify a $499 price tag? For one, the OnTrac has a modular design, so you can tailor the outer ear cap and earcup color combinations to fit your style. It’s also a beast in terms of battery life, lasting 20-30 hours longer than some of the other best headphones on a full charge. The active noise cancelation (ANC) performance is awesome, and as someone who cares about ear health, I appreciate how the companion MyDyson app can alert users to potentially harmful noise levels both internally and externally.

I can’t say I’m as impressed with the controls, and some specs seem outdated when you consider the high price. You can definitely get several of our top-rated noise-canceling headphone picks for less. Otherwise, you can read more about the biggest pros and cons in my full Dyson OnTrac review below.

Dyson OnTrac Cheat Sheet

• What is Dyson OnTrac? Wireless, noise-canceling headphones.
• How much does Dyson OnTrac cost? The OnTrac headphones cost $499.
• What is the Dyson OnTrac release date? July 18, 2024.
• Dyson OnTrac vs. Dyson Zone? The Dyson OnTrac are more “traditional” headphones while the Dyson Zone have a built-in air-purification system, complete with a detachable mask.
• How long is the Dyson OnTrac battery life? The Ontrac headphones last up to 55 hours.
• How much do Dyson OnTrac accessories cost? Pairs of swappable outer ear cups and ear cushions cost $49 each.

Dyson OnTrac specs

Dyson OnTrac Review: The ups

Industrial, yet customizable design

The Dyson OnTrac are, unmistakably, a Dyson product. The headphones follow the company’s industrial, modular-looking design language. It turns out they literally are modular, featuring removable outer caps and ear cushions that can be swapped for a collection of different colors and finishes Dyson sells for $49 each alongside the Ontrac. Depending on the combination, you can have headphones that look anywhere from sleek and sophisticated to bright and playful.

I think some people will find this is a little gimmicky, but it’s something I personally haven’t seen before in headphones. Who doesn’t love the option to personalize something they’re probably going to be wearing out in public? Plus, as a little easter egg, inside each ear cap you’ll see a map of the interior hardware.

It’s also worth mentioning that I love the case. Essentially, it’s two shells attached on both sides with some kind of spandex material. It’s protective, but lies completely flat for convenience. Although it doesn’t completely envelope the headphones, it’s sizable enough to keep them safe.

Impressive battery life

Dyson engineered the OnTrac batteries into the headband, and from what I understand, this wasn’t easy to pull off – especially not in a way that doesn’t cause overheating or make the parts pressing down on your head too heavy. There are three headband cushions, with the two on the sides holding the batteries and the top one simply providing comfort. The side cushions are noticeably more rigid than the top cushion, but generally speaking, I was able to wear the headphones for hours at a time with no complaint.

I tested the OnTrac for a week, and not once had to charge the cans up, even with 6-7 hours of listening during each work day. Dyson advertises up to 55 hours of playback with ANC enabled, which blows away pretty much any headphones you’d compare the OnTrac to in terms of price range.

Excellent ANC and bass performance

The Dyson OnTrac uses eight microphones to sample external sounds 384,000 times a second and, from my experience, really effectively counters ambient noises. There’s been a lot of construction happening around my apartment recently, and I literally couldn’t hear any of it while using the OnTrac. Dyson claims the OnTrac can counter up to 40 decibels of noise, which is plenty in terms of maintaining ear health. You can see how much external noise you’re exposed to in the companion MyDyson app, as well as set up alerts when the internal noise is beyond safe listening levels.

With the world tuned out, listening to music across a variety of genres, I could appreciate the OnTrac’s deep bass profile. Don’t get me wrong, the layering as a whole is strong, but there’s something especially sophisticated about the bass. During Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Backseat Freestyle,’ I could feel low frequencies subtly vibrating in my body. This was without enabling the Bass Boost EQ mode (one of three custom EQs you can assign within the MyDyson app.)

If anything, I’d say vocals aren’t as pronounced as I typically like, but overall I’m impressed with the OnTrac’s sound and noise-canceling performance.

Dyson OnTrac review: The downs

Controls need work

Controls are my biggest complaint with the Dyson OnTrac. First, there’s no hands-free voice assistant, unlike you’ll find on most other headphones. I also don’t like the little joystick on the right earcup that you use to control basically everything with playback. It’s really small, and even with my small-ish fingers I struggled. I kept accidentally pausing my music when I mean to change the volume.

Then, to switch between ANC and passthrough, you need to double-tap the side of either cup. Except when I just used one finger, it didn't work. I hit the side with most of my hand twice in order to hear the little swoosh that indicates you’ve switched modes. It’s a little aggressive for my liking, if I’m honest.

I will say the saving grace is the auto-pause and auto-play head detect feature works really well, though the rest of the controls? Not great.

Bluetooth 5.0

The Dyson OnTrac use Bluetooth 5.0, which is an older codec that most companies taking wireless audio seriously have long pushed past. I know it sounds a little nitpicky, but there are benefits to newer codecs like Bluetooth 5.3 and Bluetooth 5.4. With the OnTrac, I felt like the distance before the headphones and my playback source lose connection is really short. Moving around my apartment, I couldn’t get too far from my phone before the music started skipping.

If you check the specs, you’ll find the newer codecs in pretty much all premium earbuds and headphones out these days. I’m just a little confused that for the high price, there’s an outdated codec.

Dyson OnTrac Review: Verdict

For me, there are a good number of headphones I’d buy before spending $500 on the Dyson OnTrac. The premium-feeling Sonos Ace are $50 less and have a voice assistant, while our top recommendation, the Sony WH-1000XM5 , are full-featured and $100 more affordable. But the OnTrac’s design, from the cool customization and great case, show a lot of care went into making this product. People who are design-minded and can appreciate those kinds of things might really enjoy the OnTrac as their next noise-canceling headphones. It’s also really hard to beat the convenience of 55 hours of battery life.