Cambridge Audio Melomania A100

Affordable earbuds with with tons of tech

-  HOLLIN JONES

CAMBRIDGE AUDIO IS using its decades of experience in the hi-fi world to produce more personalized listening devices, the latest of which are the Melomania A100 wireless earbuds. In a crowded marketplace they stand out for being very reasonably priced at just $119 — but does that mean compromises?

Available in black or white, the earbuds come in a case that charges over USB-C or wirelessly. The earbuds themselves hold 11 hours of charge with noise canceling off or 6.5 with it on, with a total of up to 39 hours from the case, or 21 hours when using ANC. This is above average at this price and better than Apple’s AirPods 4 with ANC, which cost $179. A full recharge takes just over an hour, and a 10-minute fast charge gives around three hours of playback with ANC off.