I tried Dyson’s air-cleaning Zone headphones – will we all be wearing them in the future?

Dyson is heading in a very different direction for its next big release and it’s like nothing anyone has launched before. The new Zone headphones not only boom music into your ears but also blast clean and fully purified air into your nose and mouth. With latest figures from the World Health Organisation suggesting that billions of us are constantly breathing in highly polluted air, the famous vacuum firm believes this technology is the future. The question is, are the Dyson engineers right or is this simply a gimmick to grab some headlines?

During a recent trip to Dyson’s HQ in Malmesbury, I was lucky enough to be one of the first to try out these air-cleaning cans and they are certainly unique with them featuring a face shield that covers your nose and mouth.

Although they’ve taken 6 years to create, the concept is actually pretty simple with fans and filters in each earcup getting rid of dust, pollen and bacteria. This freshly cleaned air is then gently blown towards your nose and mouth.

This means when you head to a busy city, such as London, you’re not sucking in all of the nasty particles that surround you.

Once on your head, they are actually pretty comfy with soft cups surrounding the ears and the headband taking inspiration from a horse’s saddle to help distribute the weight. Dyson has also made sure the mouth guard sits away from the face so it won’t irritate your skin and it can be easily moved down or taken off when you want to hold a conversation.

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The Zone headphones are actually very comfortable to wear and the fresh air that blows across your face is so subtle you hardly notice it.

Although I wasn’t fully able to test the audio quality, the active noise cancellation definitely blocked out the sound of the room I happened to test them in.

The Zone headphones are still in final development so there are lots we don’t yet know including how expensive they will be or how long the in-built battery will last. There’s also no word on whether they will kill bugs such as Covid with Dyson still keeping that data under wraps for now.

Some features we did discover at Dyson’s HQ include an app that tells you when the filter needs changing and the fact that they will fast charge when the battery runs flat.

Dyson also says they have tried to make sure the Zone headphone are robust enough to last life on the road and shouldn’t break if dropped on the floor.

I certainly enjoyed the knowledge that the air I was breathing in was as clean as a day out in the countryside but how comfortable I’d be wearing them on the tube to work remains to be seen.

The Dyson Zone is pretty unique and I’m sure I’d get plenty of funny looks when stepping onto the Jubilee Line each day.

Hopefully, we’ll find out full details about a launch and price in the coming months but, in the meantime, add your comments below if you’d be happy wearing Dyson’s new Zone.