Bowers & Wilkins Launches 'Pi8 McLaren Edition' Earbuds
The latest product from a partnership that began back in 2015.
Heritage British audio brand Bowers & Wilkins has long had a close relationship with the automotive industry and, most recently, it announced an extension of its partnership with Mclaren – a relationship the two brands have shared since 2015, one that has now expanded to include McLaren Formula 1 Team.
The latest fruits of this collaboration arrive in the form of the new Pi8 McLaren Edition earbuds, which see Bowers & Wilkins’ award-winning flagship earbuds updated in Mclaren’s signature Galvanic Grey and Papaya Orange colors. The release of the Pi8 McLaren Edition marks a decade of collaboration between the brands and the earbuds become the newest member of a collaborative portfolio of Mclaren-inspired products that includes the Px8 McLaren Edition and Zeppelin McLaren Edition.
Constructed with two 12mm Carbon Cone drivers that reduce distortion to deliver a clean, highly detailed sound, the Pi8 earbuds are the best Bowers & Wilkins currently offers. The brand describes the Pi8’s sound as “Reference True Wireless”, suggesting they are capable of producing reference quality audio wirelessly and claiming the earbuds can “capture nuances in your music that other headphone drive units miss.” Each earbud features a dedicated digital signal processor (DSP), amplifier and digital-to-analog converter (DAC), allowing users to enjoy 24-bit audio playback and the use of a five-band customizable equalizer via the supporting app.
In terms of connectivity, the Pi8 McLaren Edition utilizes Bluetooth 5.4 with support for multiple codecs. These include aptX Lossless, aptX Adaptive, aptX Classic, AAC and SBC, meaning users can stream to super-high-quality music files wirelessly.
Each of the earbuds weighs just 7g and packs three microphones and a battery that provides 6.5 hours of playback (with noise-cancelling switched on, even more without). The charging case weighs 46g, but includes an additional 13.5 hours of battery life stored within it. And, lastly, the Pi8 have a water-resistance rating of IP54.
The Pi8 McLaren Edition earbuds are available now priced at £449 GBP / €499 EUR / $499 USD.
