Sennheiser PXC 250 Consumer Headphones

Pros: light
Cons: none

I tried both back to back: Sennheiser works better! The noise cancelling feature is superior to BOSE and they are not as bulky as BOSE.

Pros: Compact design
Cons: Absolutely no noise cancellation.

I love the physical design of these headphones. They fold down down to a very compact size that is extremely convenient. They are somewhat comfortable for short term wear but seem to apply too much pressure on my ears when I wear them for several hours straight.

The first thing that I thought odd when I pulled them out of the package is that I could not find the microphones on the headphones to do the active noise cancellation. Are there even microphones on these things so they can be active? When I tried the noise cancellation I could hear everything around me just the same with the addition of a subtle white noise. It was a pleasing white noise that was comforting but still.. I could hear my cubical neighbor typing just the same and conversations in the hallway just as clearly as when I turned the noise cancellation off.

I tested the noise cancellation in my office and tapped the desk with it on and off, and made other noises. There really was no change.

My assessment... these are not noise *cancelling* headphones. They are white noise generators.

Pros: price
Cons: Sound quality is below par, not comfortable, split cord for headphones.

I tried both the Sennheiser and the Bose side by side prior to making my selection. The Bose won hands down. The Bose are more comfortable and the sound quality was head and shoulders above the Sennheiser's. I know there is a big price difference between the two but if NC headphones are what you want be sure to try out the Sennheiser's prior to purchasing. Personally if the price of the Bose is too steep I would bypass the Sennheiser's and just get a good standard set of headphones and enjoy them.

Pros: They really work to reduce background noise
Cons: battery compartment is a pain

I fly a lot and have always been frustrated by how loud you have to turn up the volume on anything to overcome the background noise. These headphones really do the trick. I never travelwithout them. They do not give 100% silence but they do make a HUGE difference. Well worth the price.