Dyson OnTrac review

Dyson’s first entry into the headphones space looked something out of a Cyberpunk game. They were big, colourful, and had a built-in air purifier covering your face. Now, the brand is back with another iteration, called the Dyson OnTrac.

While they are relatively sober, they are still big, shiny, and promise great audio experience. With a price tag north of Rs 40,000, they are as premium as some of the other products usually associated with the brand. So, are these new headphones worth your attention and hard-earned money? Let’s find out in our Dyson OnTrac review.

Dyson OnTrac design

The moment you get the headphones out of the box, it’s near impossible to miss their size. These headphones are big, and you’ll feel the size when holding and wearing them. They are also a tad on the heavier side, and at 451 grams tip the scale when compared to some of the rival headphones.

ALSO READ: Dyson OnTrac headphones first impressions

If we are being honest, the headphones do remind us of the Dyson vacuums. They feature an in-your-face design with unique colours, and look something out of a sci-fi movie. The unit we are reviewing is the CNC Copper, which is a unique colourway in itself. But there are three more options to choose from, which include CNC Aluminium, Ceramic Cinnabar, and CNC Black Nickel.

The headband features a three-part cushion that sits comfortably on your head, and it has just the right amount of clamping to not feel uncomfortable. The ear cushions, while big, envelope your ears and are comfortable to wear for long hours. Even after long hours of usage, there was no fatigue.

Dyson OnTrac customisations

While the design and colour options standout among the sea of other headphones, the default choices may not be to everyone’s liking. But instead of compromising on the style, Dyson offers a huge variety of customisation options, and in our books, this is where Dyson earns a brownie point. Can you imagine changing the look of a Sony or Bose headphones if you’re bored of the usual black and white colourways?

You can either change the ear cap or the cushions, and it is as easy as a twist and lock/unlock. Dyson says that with all the options on offer, there are over 2,000 variations you can opt for. And depending on your personality, you can deck the headphones in colours that range from classy to garish. It’s important to note that these additional accessories will be a separate purchase, and cost as much as Rs 4,900 for a pair.

Dyson OnTrac app

To make the most of the headphones, the brand advises users to download the companion MyDyson app on their smartphones. This app not only helps with the pairing process, but once connected, the app home screen gives an overview of the headphone and its settings.

You’ll be able to see the noise cancellation levels, equaliser mode, and a basic guide to using the headphones as well as all the accessories that one can buy. But my personal favourite feature is Sound Exposure.

As the name suggests, this section shows how much sound you’re being exposed to – in real-time. It’s fascinating to see the ebbs and flows of the sound levels of what you’re listening to. You’ll also be instantly alerted to any sudden or harmful peaks in sound levels. It’s quite interesting, and something that you don’t get with any other headphone brand.

Dyson OnTrac audio performance

Now to what is every headphone’s bread and butter – the audio performance. The OnTrac’s design maybe bold and loud, but the sound is anything but. I was surprised by how clean and balanced the sound was no matter what I listened to.

Listening to Jordan Critz’ piano-heavy Starry Night, Nina Simone’s Sinnerman or any soulful Bollywood track left us with a warm and fuzzy feeling. The vocals are clear and there’s good instrument separation, which was very evident on Sinnerman.

The headphones are however slightly low on the fun quotient. My go-to track to check the bass prowess of any audio product is Gustavo Bravetti’s Babel. While you can feel a bit of the bass, it misses out on the sheer oomph that this track offers. Let’s just say, this music track has sounded much better on some of the rival headphones.

The other feature walking talking about is noise cancellation, which is top-notch and on par with other high-end headphones. The feature easily drowned the sound of our noisy office neighbours or the constantly honking rickshaw driver, while I was blissfully listening to an audiobook.

Dyson OnTrac key features

Among the highlight features of these Dyson headphones is the outstanding battery life. I’ve been using the headphones for over two weeks now, and have barely made a dent into the battery levels.

During this time, I’ve tested the headphones to listen to music, watch OTT content, and that too with the ANC switched on. This is a boon for frequent fliers who can’t do without a pair of headphones on their journeys, but also don’t want to be hunting for a power socket in an unknown place.

While all this is great, we can’t help but point out a couple of misses. For one, there’s no Bluetooth multipoint connectivity. This means you’ll have to manually switch between multiple devices connected to the headphones. Dyson has also skipped on Spatial Audio support. Though it is not a huge miss, we’ve become somewhat used to immersive audio experience.

Then there are the physical controls, which look nice, but cannot be customised to suit your usage style. The equaliser too is preset into three settings with no manner of manual control.

Unboxed Take: Who should buy the Dyson OnTrac?

There’s a lot to like about the Dyson OnTrac headphones. Starting with the in-your-face design and massive customisation options, which are a welcome change from the otherwise similar looking options in the market.

Despite the big size, they are extremely comfortable to wear for long hours, which is also aided by a never-ending battery life. Lastly, the audio experience surprised us by how good it was, especially coming from a brand that is quite new in this space.

Yes, there are a couple of small misses, and then there’s the price tag. At Rs 44,900, it is placed in the absolute premium end, competing against the likes of Apple AirPods Max Pro, Sony WH-1000XM5, and the Bose Quietcomfort Ultra to name a few.

For all the above reasons, we rate the Dyson OnTrac 4/5. Stay tuned to Unboxed by Croma for more in-depth reviews of audio products and more.