Kiwi Ears Ardor ANC Headphone Review
Don’t be fooled by the long list of features for the price
Retail Price: $99.00
Disclaimer: Kiwi Ears sent us a unit free of charge to review, but all thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are our own and were not discussed with the company prior to publishing.
I don’t consider myself an audiophile by any means, but I can appreciate the difference between subpar and superior sound quality delivered by a set of headphones or speakers. Which is why I was intrigued when looking into the Ardor.
Kiwi Ears really wants the user of the Ardor to think of themselves as an audiophone. They literally say the word “audiophile” seven times on the product page. They even specifically say that these headphones are perfect for "audiophiles on the go” because of the connectivity option.
I thought, “Cool! Let me see what kind of sound quality an audiophile expects.” After over a month of daily use, I think the claims fall short.
First Impressions
There is nothing particularly interesting about the look of the hard shell case or the headphones themselves - all grey and black. That does not tend to be my preferred aesthetic, but I know that some people find that look very appealing. I’d say the most interesting visual detail about the headphones is the vegan leather on the ear covers embossed with the Kiwi Ears logo.
Connecting the headphones to my iPhone 13 mini was very straight forward, as was connecting them to my Dell work laptop.
Sound Quality
Bluetooth v. AUX v. USB-C
These headphones offer flexible connectivity with Bluetooth for wireless, and AUX and USB-C for a wired connection. Unsurprising to anyone who has compared a wireless option to a wired option, the wired options always win out. And between the AUX and USB-C option, the USB-C connection provides the fullest and deepest musical immersion.
The USB-C cord is also used to charge the headphones for wireless use.
When specifically talking about the wireless technology used in the Ardor, Kiwi Ears claims that these are the “ideal choice for audiophiles on the go.” I think this is a stretch. If a true audiophile was looking for a good wireless option, this is not what I would recommend. That said, as a non-audiophile, I think an audiophile would be pleased with the sound quality offered through the USB-C connection.
ANC v. Non-ANC v. Transparency Modes
The Ardor has three listening modes - active noise cancelling (ANC), non-ANC, and transparency mode. With any ANC headphone, the frequency that the headphones use to cancel the outside noise can be fatiguing after too long (or is that not something that other people experience?). But for less than 60 minutes at a time, between the 5-microphone array to reduce ambient noise, and the ear pads that enclose the ear in the headphone, outside noise was sufficiently blocked out for me to focus while working at home with my wife watching a bass-heavy show in the neighboring room.
The transparency mode, on the other hand, was underwhelming. It was audibly obvious when transparency mode was turned on, and not just because the headphones announce the mode with each single press of the ANC button. The ambient noise is very present with transparency mode, but nothing else clearly comes through if you have any audio playing. To hear and understand someone talking to you with transparency mode, you either have to pause your audio or reduce the volume to the lowest level. At that point, you might as well just pull one of the ears off to hear what they’re saying, then return the ear to continue listening to your audio. If a quality transparency mode is what you want, look elsewhere.
Game Mode
The Ardor has a “game mode.” There was no explanation in the user manual or on their website of what that was supposed to do, but according to the internet, a game mode is typically supposed to reduce the delay between the audio and visual experience in games and videos by increasing the sampling rate. I’m not a gamer or a tech aficionado, so that last bit is gibberish to me, BUT I did notice a difference in the audio/visual sync when scrolling through social media and watching videos on my phone when I had game mode turned on.
User Experience
Overall, these were very straightforward to set up and use with the physical power, volume, and ANC buttons. My main gripe with the user experience for these headphones relates to dual device connection. Setting up the simultaneous connection to my phone and computer was easy. But when I’m listening to music through my computer, then unlock my phone, the music cuts out, even if I’m not playing any audio on my phone. Just the unlocking was enough to throw off the listening experience. So while both devices may be technically connected to the headphones, the headphones don’t seem to have the ability to seamlessly toggle between connected devices.
Final Thoughts
These headphones tout a lot of sought-after features, and deliver the bare minimum on most of them. It’s easy to be tempted by these headphones when you see the list of technical features offered at just under $100. In my opinion, more time and energy was spent talking about the features on the product page than was spent ensuring that those features were worth talking about. If you really want those features, save your pennies and invest in a different pair.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees and support our channel by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.
These MUZEN Clip-On Earbuds are compact and comfortable, but are they a good pair of daily drivers?