Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 Truly Wireless 2018 vs Apple AirPods (1st generation) Side-by-Side Headphones Comparison

Tested using Methodology v1.3.1

Updated Jan 15, 2024 03:46 PM

See Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 Truly Wireless 2018 Review

Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 Truly Wireless 2018 Picture

Apple AirPods (1st generation) Truly Wireless Picture

TypeIn-ear

EnclosureClosed-Back

Noise CancellingNo

WirelessTruly Wireless

TransducerDynamic

MicYes

TypeEarbuds

EnclosureOpen-Back

Noise CancellingNo

WirelessTruly Wireless

TransducerDynamic

MicYes

Our Verdict

Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 Truly Wireless 2018

Apple AirPods (1st generation) Truly Wireless

The Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8 Truly Wireless 2018 are a better truly wireless headset than the Apple AirPods (1st generation). The Bang & Olufsen have a more isolating in-ear fit that also translates into a better bass range thanks to the better seal they create in your ear. The Bang & Olufsen also have a customizable sound and better app support than the Apple, even on iOS devices. The Bang & Olufsen have a better control scheme that gives you all the essential functions, whereas the Apple rely heavily on voice-enabled controls, which is not always practical. On the other hand, the Apple have longer cumulative battery life at 25+ hours compared to the Bang & Olufsen's 15 hours, at best. The Apple also have a more reliable wireless connection with greater range and better latency than the Bang & Olufsen, especially on iOS devices.

Variants

E8 (Black)
E8 (Charcoal Sand)

AirPods (1st generation) (White)

Review

See Apple AirPods (1st generation) Truly Wireless Review

Check Price

Black

White

AirPods (1st generation)

Charcoal Sand

White

AirPods (1st generation)

Walmart.com

White

AirPods (1st generation)

B&H

White

AirPods (1st generation)

BestBuy.com

Main Differences for
Mixed Usage

Threshold

0.10

Mixed Usage

7.3

6.4

Noise Isolation

8.0

1.3

Leakage

9.8

7.3

Frequency Response Consistency

9.4

6.4

Bass Accuracy

8.7

6.0

Full Comparison

Mixed Usage

7.3

6.4

Neutral Sound

6.8

6.3

Commute/Travel

7.9

6.3

Sports/Fitness

8.2

7.9

Office

7.1

5.9

Wireless Gaming

5.6

5.5

Wired Gaming

5.6

5.3

Phone Call

6.6

5.7

Design

Style

Design Picture 2

Type

In-ear

Earbuds

Enclosure

Closed-Back

Open-Back

Wireless

Truly Wireless

Transducer

Dynamic

Show Text

Comfort

7.5

8.0

Comfort Picture

Weight

0.03 lbs

0.02 lbs

Clamping Force

0 lbs

Show Text

Controls

7.0

4.7

Controls Picture

OS Compatibility

N/A

Ease Of Use

Okay

Subpar

Feedback

Mediocre

Subpar

Call/Music Control

Yes

Volume Control

Yes

Microphone Control

Channel Mixing

N/A

Noise Cancelling Control

N/A

Talk-Through

Yes

N/A

Additional Buttons

Voice enabled controls

Show Text

Breathability

9.2

9.6

Breathability After Picture

Avg.Temp.Difference

0.8 °C

0.4 °C

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Portability

9.5

9.6

Portability Picture

L

1.2"

1.72"

W

1.8"

H

0.6"

Volume

1.3 in³

1.03 in³

Transmitter Required

N/A

Show Text

Case

8.0

8.5

Case Picture

Type

Hard case

L

1.7"

2.06"

W

2.6"

1.69"

H

1.1"

0.74"

Volume

4.9 in³

2.58 in³

Show Text

Build Quality

8.0

Build Quality Picture

Show Text

Stability

7.5

6.5

Stability Picture

Show Text

Headshots 1

Angled Picture

Side Picture

Headshots 2

Front Picture

Rear Picture

Top

Top Picture

In The Box

In the box Picture

Show Text

Sound

Sound Profile

Frequency Response

Bass Amount

-0.41 dB

-7.73 dB

Treble Amount

-0.33 dB

0.61 dB

Frequency Response Consistency

9.4

6.4

Consistency L

Consistency R

Avg. Std. Deviation

0.13 dB

0.8 dB

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Raw Frequency Response

Raw FR L

Raw FR R

Bass Accuracy

8.7

6.0

Bass

Std. Err.

1.84 dB

5.27 dB

Low-Frequency Extension

10 Hz

64.42 Hz

Low-Bass

-0.76 dB

-10.94 dB

Mid-Bass

-2.54 dB

-0.79 dB

High-Bass

0.92 dB

1.62 dB

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Mid Accuracy

8.4

7.9

Mid

Std. Err.

2.18 dB

2.78 dB

Low-Mid

3.22 dB

1.7 dB

Mid-Mid

-0.42 dB

0.55 dB

High-Mid

0.93 dB

3.62 dB

Show Text

Treble Accuracy

6.1

7.2

Treble

Std. Err.

5 dB

4.18 dB

Low-Treble

-3.78 dB

4.46 dB

Mid-Treble

3.93 dB

4.26 dB

High-Treble

0.19 dB

0.57 dB

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Peaks/Dips

6.1

7.3

Peaks/Dips Graph

Peaks

2.71 dB

1.83 dB

Dips

1.82 dB

1.13 dB

Imaging

8.7

8.4

Group Delay

Phase Response

Weighted Group Delay

0.16

0.31

Weighted Amplitude Mismatch

0.2

1.04

Weighted Frequency Mismatch

2.39

1.5

Weighted Phase Mismatch

5.18

5.76

Show Text

Soundstage

0.5

2.6

PRTF

PRTF Accuracy (Std. Dev.)

N/A

PRTF Size (Avg.)

N/A

PRTF Distance

N/A

Openness

2.0

9.7

Acoustic Space Excitation

0.3

3.4

Show Text

Weighted Harmonic Distortion

7.8

7.9

Weighted Harmonic Distortion

WHD @ 90

0.277

0.177

WHD @ 100

0.125

0.128

Isolation

Noise Isolation

8.0

1.3

Noise Isolation

Isolation Audio

Overall Attenuation

-25.53 dB

-2.64 dB

Noise Cancelling

Bass

-11.12 dB

-0.01 dB

Mid

-19.4 dB

1.1 dB

Treble

-46.58 dB

-8.72 dB

Show Text

Leakage

9.8

7.3

Leakage

Leakage Audio

Overall Leakage @ 1ft

22.4 dB

37.73 dB

Show Text

Microphone

Microphone Style

Integrated

Yes

In-line

Boom

Detachable Boom

N/A

Mic

Yes

Show Text

Recording Quality

6.4

6.2

Microphone Frequency Response

Recorded Speech

LFE

339.03 Hz

354.04 Hz

FR Std. Dev.

3.46 dB

2.83 dB

HFE

3,466.89 Hz

3,368.2 Hz

Weighted THD

2.965

31.268

Gain

37.3 dB

28.6 dB

Show Text

Noise Handling

6.0

6.2

SpNR

Speech + Pink Noise

Speech + Subway Noise

SpNR

12.39 dB

14.85 dB

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Active Features

Battery

6.1

7.1

Battery Type

Rechargable

Continuous Battery Life

4.1 hrs

4.8 hrs

Additional Charges

Total Battery Life

12.3 hrs

27 hrs

Charge Time

1.2 hrs

0.5 hrs

Power Saving Feature

Auto-Off Timer

Yes

Audio While Charging

Yes

Passive Playback

Charging Port

micro-USB

Lightning

Show Text

App Support

6.5

5.5

App Picture

App Name

Beoplay

N/A

iOS

Yes

Android

Yes

macOS

N/A

Windows

N/A

Equalizer

Presets

ANC Control

N/A

Mic Control

N/A

Room effects

Playback Control

Yes

Button Mapping

N/A

Yes

Surround Sound

N/A

Show Text

Connectivity

Bluetooth

6.9

Bluetooth Version

4.2

4.2 + W1 chip

Multi-Device Pairing

NFC Pairing

Line of Sight Range

82 ft

91 ft

Default Latency

190 ms

168 ms

aptX Latency

N/A

aptX(LL) Latency

N/A

Show Text

Non-Bluetooth Wireless

0.0

Non-BT Line of Sight Range

N/A

Non-BT Latency

N/A

Wired

0.0

Cable Picture

Analog Audio

N/A

USB Audio

N/A

Detachable

N/A

Length

N/A

Connection

N/A

Wired Latency

N/A

Show Text

PC / PS4 Compatibility

PC / PS4 Analog

PC / PS4 Wired USB

PC / PS4 Non-BT Wireless

Xbox One Compatibility

Xbox One Analog

Xbox One Wired USB

Xbox One Wireless

Base/Dock

2.2

Type

Charging Case

USB Input

Line In

Line Out

Optical Input

RCA Input

Dock Charging

Yes

Power Supply

USB

Lightning

Show Text

Check Price

Black

White

AirPods (1st generation)

Charcoal Sand

White

AirPods (1st generation)