Bowers & Wilkins has introduced the next generation of its original Pi7 and Pi5 in-ear noise cancelling headphones with the introduction of two new upgraded models, the Pi7 S2 ($399) and Pi5 S2 ($299).
Pi7 S2 has upgrades to connectivity, earbud battery life, user experience, and has three new finishes. Both Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 feature upgraded wireless connectivity via a re-engineered antenna design with increased Bluetooth range to up to 25m.
Both new models feature an improved earbud battery life, now offering five hours of listening time before a recharge is required. They continue to offer a quick charge function delivering an additional two hours listening time from a 15-minute charge. The charging cases for each model provide additional battery life, with a further 16 hours available for Pi7 S2 and 19 hours available for Pi5 S2.
Pi7 S2 is available in three new colors; Satin Black, Canvas White and Midnight Blue. With Pi5 S2, Bowers & Wilkins has introduced its widest range of headphone colors to date, available in Cloud Grey and Storm Grey, and in new vibrant colors, Spring Lilac and Sage Green (available in Spring 2023).
Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 are the latest Bowers & Wilkins headphone models to be fully integrated with the Bowers & Wilkins Music App. Offering a seamless user experience, complete with set-up, configuration of noise cancellation modes, and wear sensor adjustment, the Music App also supports hi-res streaming capability direct from a mobile device to the earbuds via services such as Qobuz, TIDAL and Deezer.
The Pi7 S2 continues to offer Wireless Audio Retransmission, a feature originally introduced in the first-generation model, enabling users to connect to an external audio source – such as an in-flight entertainment system – and then wirelessly retransmit audio from that source to the earbuds, via the Smart charging case.
Bowers & Wilkins Music App Control
Both models can be controlled via a single capacitive button on each earbud that can perform multiple tasks, coupled to voice assistant support via either Siri or Google Assistant, depending on the connected device. The Bowers & Wilkins Music App also offers a range of user adjustments for customers who wish to fine tune their earbuds to their preferences.
The Pi7 S2 continues to offer support for Qualcomm aptX Adaptive allowing high-resolution music transmission from compatible streaming services and devices, enabled by 24-bit/48kHz wireless transmission between each earbud.
Pi7 S2 features 9.2mm bespoke Bowers & Wilkins drive units, joined by a high-frequency “balanced armature” driver, with each of the four drive units in the system actively driven by its own amplifier. Pi7 S2 also offers Adaptive Noise Cancellation to automatically monitor, analyze and adapt to its surroundings. That ANC system is paired with six microphones – three in each earbud – for phone calls.
The new Pi5 S2 has TWS technology for robust, high-quality earbud-to-earbud synchronization, coupled to a single 9.2mm bespoke drive unit in each earbud. The Pi5 S2 supports CD-quality playback thanks to the inclusion of high-quality aptX wireless transmission of music from an aptX-compatible mobile device. Pi5 S2 also offers seamless access to user-selectable noise-cancelling plus an ambient pass-through mode, and it features twin built-in microphones per earbud for high-quality phone calls.
The new Pi7 S2 and Pi5 S2 in-ear earbuds are available from bowerswilkins.com and select retailers from 25th January 2023.
