Wired and Bluetooth Headphones

Wired headphones are great alternative to wireless, and are often available at a more budget-friendly pricepoint than Bluetooth headphones, because they use a standard 3.5mm jack socket to connect. Sound quality isn’t affected by whether your headphones are wireless or wired; while Bluetooth headphones can be more convenient due to their wireless connection, they will require charging fairly regularly, whereas wired headphones usually use power from the device they’re plugged into.

Most wireless headphones are very likely to connect successfully to the majority of smartphones – even considerably older handsets, as long as they have Bluetooth installed. This is because wireless headphones are usually designed to be backwards-compatible, so that they can function with earlier iterations of Bluetooth. For example, Apple Airpods would successfully pair with an iPhone several years old, or with an Android handset, even if they were the newest headphones available.

Wired headphones often have a microphone and basic volume controls built into a small control fitted on the wire itself. Alternatively, wireless headphones fit these functions into buttons which are built into the earpieces, so you can still answer a call and adjust the volume without accessing your device. Most on-ear and in-ear Bluetooth headphones are fitted with a mic, to enable you to talk on the phone handsfree just as you would with wired headphones.

It’s common practice for wireless headphones from tech giants like Apple, Google and Samsung to use Bluetooth in order to pair with your smartphone, tablet or laptop. However, not all wireless headphones use Bluetooth – some headphones and gaming headsets use Infrared or radio waves to connect with your device, but this is quite unusual. Explore our wide selection of wired and Bluetooth headphones, from leading smartphone brands above.