In contrast with the Philips SHB9100s, which come equipped with a single fiddly control button and a distinct lack of accessories, the BH-905i headphones are awash with buttons, and Nokia throws in so many cables and adaptors that we had to look them up in the manual to work out what they were all for.

The BH-905is are very much aimed at travellers, and are the only set of headphones in this group test that provide active noise-cancellation circuitry. This will be particularly handy if you’re trying to relax on a long plane flight, as will the impressive battery life – 14 hours with noise-cancellation turned on, and a full 25 hours when it’s turned off.

The hard-shell carrying case supplied by Nokia also includes an audio cable so you can use them as ordinary wired headphones, along with an adaptor for in-flight music systems, and even an adaptor that lets you use the BH-905is for making internet phone calls on a Mac or PC. There’s also a mains adaptor but, oddly, no USB cable, so you can’t charge these headphones from a laptop when you’re on the road.

Audio quality is very good, although we found the sound a little muffled at lower levels and you need to push the volume up fairly high in order to bring the higher frequencies to the fore. That’s fine if you like your music loud – especially with the headphones’ bass boost option turned on – but not so good if you like to wallow in gentler classical or acoustic sounds.

The BH-905is’ noise-cancellation circuitry makes them perfect for long-haul flights