Is there any category in the world of audio more competitive than wireless headphones? Everyone wants a slice of the wire-free pie, with brands as diverse as Sony, Technics, JBL, Bose, Dali, Apple, Mark Levinson and many, many more duking it out across the full gamut of prices and specifications. From budget-friendly options to big-money heavyweights, you aren't spoiled for choice when it comes to finding the best wireless headphones around.
Making it onto our list of the best in the business, then, is no mean feat. There's heaps of competition to contend with, so it usually takes something rather special for us to pull back the velvet rope and admit entrance to our exclusive club.
The thing is, the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 are just too good to ignore. There are no trainers or drunken antics to be found here; the Px7 S3 are coming right into the VIP section, wowing us by excelling across the board and putting most headphones around their premium price point in the shade. It's over to the likes of Sony, Bose and the rest to take them on, because right now, they are easily some of the best wireless headphones we've tested in 2025.
The best B&W wireless headphones ever?
The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 hasn't had an easy route to the top. Standing in their way for the 'best headphones for audiophiles' slot were the Dali IO-8, a reasonably new pair of over-ears that we thought would sit in that space for a long while. Dynamic, detailed and an all-around delight, they are hardly a soft touch. Considering their higher price tag (£499 / AU$999), we were quietly expecting the IO-8 to take the win against the cheaper Px7 S3 (£399 / AU$699).
Yet for us, the B&W are our new top pick. Their lower price does actually work in their favour, as they are a more appealing sound-per-pound set, but even with all other things being equal, we think that the Px7 S3 are objectively a more detailed and informative performer than the Dali. We don't say that lightly, but we certainly believe it to be true, especially through the mid-range.
Elsewhere, their sound is exceptional and easily some of the best we've heard from any B&W Bluetooth headphones. To quote from our review: "The Px7 S3 drop you deep into a performance, breaking the boundary between you and your music and insisting that you become a part of the experience. The B&W have an intimate character that puts you in the eye of the musical storm no matter what you choose to feed them."
They are great across the board, from their nicely judged low-end reproduction to the way they tease our tricky rhythmic patterns with skill and nuance. Clarity and detail are high on the agenda, yet the robustness and solidity the Px7 S3 bring to the party make tracks sound thrillingly muscular and robust.
It doesn't hurt that this is an exceptionally well-made pair of headphones, or that the features on offer, from extensive aptX Adaptive hi-res codec support to a very healthy 30-hour battery life, won't leave you feeling short-changed. If you want the best experience possible, you can also listen via USB-C and 3.5mm cable connections for handling rates up to 24-bit/96kHz.
However you choose to listen to them, we think that the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 are an outstanding pair of wireless headphones that will delight audiophiles everywhere. Now it's up to the likes of Sony (with the potentially incoming WH-1000XM6 over-ears) to challenge their might.
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