8.1/ 10 SCORE Baseus Inspire XH1 Pros
Comfortable match with a gorgeous, sturdy design
Affordable value
Very good sound for the worth
Decent noise-canceling and voice-calling efficiency
Strong battery life
Hard case included
Cons
Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio mode does not actually enhance the sound
Noise canceling might be a bit of higher
No USB-C audio or ear-detection sensors that routinely pause your music once you take the headphones off
Budget model Baseus has two new-for-2025 earbuds — the Inspire XP1 and Inspire XC1 — and one set of full-size headphones, the Inspire XH1 reviewed right here, that each one characteristic Sound by Bose and ship good bang for the buck.Read extra: Best noise-canceling headphones of 2025Recognized extra for its inexpensive energy banks and chargers, Baseus is considerably new to the audio market, though it has a number of headphones and earbuds that price lower than $75. The new Bose-infused fashions I examined are a departure for the model because it ventures into extra premium territory. For its half, Bose has collaborated with a handful of different inexpensive audio manufacturers too, step by step increasing its “Sound by Bose” initiative.
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The Inspire XH1 in black. David Carnoy/CNETLike each the Inspire XP1 and XC1 earbuds, the Inspire XH1, whereas principally plastic, have a extra elevated design than most “value” headphones. Available in a number of completely different shade choices, the XH1 will not be solely pretty light-weight (275 grams) and cozy to put on, however they’ve respectable construct high quality, together with a seemingly sturdy headband lined in fake (“vegan”) leather-based and a dual-hinge design that enables the headphones to each fold flat and fold up.I needed to seek advice from the directions to determine that you just maintain down the quantity buttons to advance tracks ahead and again. But total, the controls for playback and switching between noise cancellation are good, and the Baseus companion app for iOS and Android is simple to make use of. Also, the headphones include a tough case, which isn’t all the time a regular characteristic at this value. Strong sound high quality for the worthThe sound high quality of funds headphones and earbuds has been steadily enhancing lately. While the Inspire XH1 fall into extra of a midrange pricing classification, their sound measures up properly to dearer headphones. Equipped with 35mm drivers, the headphones do certainly characteristic Bose-like sound, which is fairly well-balanced and affords good readability and punchy bass, together with a reasonably huge soundstage. The sound lacks the extra articulate refinement and depth of higher-end headphones, however the XH1 are tuned to work properly with quite a lot of music genres and have sufficient heat to maintain from experiencing listening fatigue.They have a slightly V-shaped sound profile out of the field, with barely accentuated highs and lows and barely recessed mids (the place voices reside). But the sound is much less bass-heavy than Nothing’s CMF Headphone Pro, which can also be a great worth. Still, I choose the Inspire XH1’s sound as a result of it has a bit extra readability and definition.
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The headphones characteristic strong construct high quality and a extra premium design than many headphones of their value vary. David Carnoy/CNETYou can tweak the sound profile barely within the companion Baseus app for iOS and Android, which features a “Sound Fit” take a look at to create a custom-made sound profile tailor-made to your listening to. Android customers have the choice of utilizing the higher-resolution LDAC audio codec (the SBC and ACC audio codecs are additionally supported), and there is a low-latency mode for gaming and video watching, in addition to a volume-limiting listening to safety setting.Baseus touts the headphones’ Dolby Spatial Audio characteristic, however I used to be a bit of dissatisfied with the spatial audio mode as a result of it did not appear to enhance the sound high quality. I ought to word that these headphones do not have the extra superior spatial audio with head-tracking. Nor have they got USB-C audio, although they arrive with a twine for wired listening.
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The headphones of their carrying case. A cable is included for wired listening however the Inspire XP1 do not have assist for USB-C audio. David Carnoy/CNETMiddling noise canceling…Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) are best-in-class for noise cancellation, proper alongside Sony’s WH-1000XM6 headphones for ANC. Alas, the Inspire XH1 fall properly in need of providing top-tier noise canceling. You do get a great passive seal from the properly padded reminiscence foam earcups, however the headphones solely did an OK job muffling the buzzing/rumbling of an HVAC unit in my house at their highest ANC setting. While they diminished some background noise when navigating the streets of New York and its subway system, the beforehand talked about Bose and Sony headphones (and Apple’s AirPods Pro 3) made the XH1’s noise canceling appear about half as efficient by comparability. I’d grade the noise canceling a B-. … however an honest transparency mode and powerful voice-calling efficiency The transparency mode is not top-tier — it simply cannot match the pure sound of Apple’s AirPods Pro 3 of their transparency mode — nevertheless it does sound fairly pure. By that, I imply when you’ve gotten the headphones in transparency mode, which permits sound from the skin world to enter your ears, you are listening to sounds pretty near what you hear once you take the headphones off.
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The headphones fold up and fold flat. David Carnoy/CNETI felt higher in regards to the XH1’s voice-calling efficiency after testing them in some fairly harsh circumstances. Equipped with 5 microphones and the requisite AI noise-reduction algorithms, they did an excellent job at decreasing background noise within the loud streets of New York. Callers mentioned my voice generally sounded a bit of digitized and robotic, however they might hear me fairly clearly. I’d price voice-calling efficiency a B+ and even an A-, and so they did higher than the Inspire XP1 buds for voice-calling (I rated the XP1 a B for voice-calling efficiency). Battery life is one other robust level. The headphones are rated for 100 hours of battery life with noise cancellation off, and as much as 50 hours with noise cancellation on at reasonable quantity ranges. I fell a bit of in need of 50 hours in my battery take a look at (it was extra like 48 hours), however that is nonetheless fairly good.Baseus Inspire XH1 last ideasWhile I am unable to say I used to be completely blown away by any side of the Baseus Inspire XH1 headphones, they’re total fairly competent. Bottom line: If you are on the lookout for a snug, well-designed set of over-ear headphones that supply principally robust efficiency throughout the board and value loads lower than premium fashions from Sony, Bose and others, they definitely match the invoice.