Disclaimer: I received these headphones free of charge from TaoTronics. Delivery of the product was speedy, and the representative I spoke with was kind and efficient in getting it to me. Despite this, I will remain objective in the review.

Introduction

TaoTronics makes some pretty lofty claims with its marketing for the BH060, touting its alleged 30 hour battery life, high-quality ANC, and high-quality sound. So for $70, how much of the hype could they live up to?

Well, in short, I’m thoroughly impressed by this overall package. These headphones don’t really excel anywhere, but they don’t do anything wrong, either. This is a pretty safe pair of headphones if you’re willing to sacrifice a little sound quality for good isolation and comfort.

Unboxing & Accessories

The packaging that the BH060s ship in is minimal. Inside the grey box with an image of the headset printed on it is a large, black case which contains the headphones, a charging cable, and a 3.5 mm headphone cable for wired listening. Simple, but utilitarian and stripped down. I wouldn’t expect a lot more in terms of accessories from a pair of $70 wireless headphones, so this is perfectly adequate.

The case has a mesh pocket on its interior presumably intended to hold the included cables. Unfortunately, I found the cables frequently fell out of the pocket because of a lack of elasticity in the band at the top of the pocket.

Included accessories. Photo from Taotronics.

Both cables included feel sturdy, but I can’t say I love the soft, rubberized texture on the 3.5 mm cable. This is a minor quibble, but it’s definitely worth mentioning if you intend on using these headphones with a hardwired connection.

The included accessories, though minimal, get the job done, with a few notable exceptions, such as the case sturdiness and cable texture. This is pretty standard stuff for a headphone in this range, and Taotronics doesn’t fall short in any meaningful way. 7/10.

Comfort

Comfort is highly subjective, and depends on a number of factors, like head size, ear size/shape, and whether or not the wearer also wears glasses. For me, when my glasses are off, the headphones are quite nice on the head. The ear cups provide a much more plush experience than I was expecting at this price range. The headphones (like most) have an adjustable headband which is conveniently marked with numbers so you can always find how far you extended it. That’s a nice touch.

While the ear cups are plush and quite comfortable, I found my ears heating up quickly under them. That’s definitely something to consider if you plan on using these for long periods of time. Sweat could build up and lessen comfort further.

The TT BH060 are reasonably comfortable for the must part, but become warm and possibly uncomfortable during long listening sessions. 5/10.

Sound Quality

When I first put on these headphones, I was absolutely delighted to find exactly 0% of the standard budget, Beats-esque garish bass typical of sub-$100 headphones. Instead, with ANC on, I found something I might even call relatively balanced. I appreciated the slightly higher frequency focus, which meant much clearer vocals and treble. Bass is leaner and dare-I-say a little thin, but still hits with satisfying impact when necessary. They take a backseat to a warm, comfortable midrange and a very not-rolled-off clear treble.

With ANC off, the bass comes a little more forward along with the vocals. They take on a much warmer signature. Sound becomes fuller and a little more muddled. I prefer their sound with noise cancelling on, but mostly because I prefer a more vocals-forward signature. These headphones work with a variety of genres. Throughout my tests, I listened to a smattering of classic rock, hip-hop, and pop. They work well pretty much everywhere.

Active Noise Cancellation on these headphones is surprisingly good. I found that it did a good job muffling most low frequency sounds, but snapping, keystrokes and clicks were less muffled. I’ll be testing these on a few flights later this spring, and I’ll report back what I find.

I found that these are very nice for spoken media, like podcasts. In fact, these will probably remain in my collection mainly for that sole purpose. Again, they still do music well, but they happen to excel in spoken media.

There’s not a whole lot to say about these headphones in terms of sound, but I find them to have a comfortably balanced signature. They are not fatiguing to listen to, in fact, if I were to describe the signature in one word, it would be “inoffensive”. They don’t do anything amazingly, but for $70, they certainly do a bang-up job with what they have to work with.

I like this sound. It’s refreshing when compared to other headphones in its price category. I would definitely reach for these over a pair of Skullcandy or Beats. For their price, these are pretty great. 7/10.

Extra: Connection

These headphones boast a bluetooth 5.0 connection. I can’t speak to the validity of those claims, but I found that the BH060 were consistently connected to my phone in my pocket. Setting the phone down in my bedroom and walking into my living room resulted in intermittent drops at around 15 feet away. These are best connected when near the source, and don’t have any crazy range like other headphones.

I found the 3.5 mm cable connection to do what it was supposed to do. Not a lot to talk about there.

Conclusion

For $70, the BH060 are pretty fantastic. They have overall good sound quality, great noise cancellation, and decent portability. The bluetooth connection, while consistent, lacks range. The sound is inoffensive and non-critical. These are by no means a replacement for something like Sony’s WH-1000XM3, but those are in a completely different category. In this price range, I am impressed by what Taotronics has been able to do. I’d recommend these to budget-conscious people who have a primary concern with noise cancellation. They won’t knock your socks off with their sound, but they certainly hold their own in this price range. 7/10.