Many were disappointed that the AirPods 3 were not announced at yesterday's Apple Spring Road event. The company did announce the PI7 and PI5 with active noise cancellation (ANC).

But both are expensive: the $249 PI5 is more expensive than most of the best wireless earphones, including the AirPods Pro and Sony WF-1000XM3. And the $399 PI7 is the most expensive pair of true wireless earbuds from a major manufacturer.

Nevertheless, the PI7s have serious specs. The main 92.mm driver is paired with a "balanced armature drive unit" that delivers high-resolution, 24-bit audio, and Bluetooth aptX Adaptive support maintains that high-quality sound, Their layer-cake design appears to stick out quite a bit from the wearer's ear, but the metal components look rather handsome; they are also IP54-rated dustproof and waterproof.

PI7 also has a unique party trick. The included charging case has an "auto-retransmit" feature, which basically means that when the case is connected to an in-flight entertainment system or "some gaming systems" via cable, the case itself will transfer audio to the earphones via Bluetooth. [Bowers & Wilkins has not stated, but expect "some gaming systems" to include the Nintendo Switch, which notoriously lacks Bluetooth headphone support.

The PI5 appears almost simplistic in comparison, with no auto-retransmit feature on the enclosure, no armature drive unit, and only two microphones per earphone. However, they do support ANC, the aptX Bluetooth codec, and the same level of dust and water resistance as PI5. Therefore, depending on sound quality, it could remain a premium contender to the AirPods Pro and Master & Dynamic MW08.

The main drawbacks of both models seem to be cost and middling battery life: the PI5 offers 4.5 hours of playback on a single charge and an additional 20 hours with the case, while the PI7 offers 4 hours on a single charge and an additional 16 hours with the case. PI7 is capable of 4 hours of playback on a single charge, with an additional 16 hours of playback with the case attached. Both support fast charging, allowing 2 hours of playback on a 15-minute charge.

The PI7 and PI5 are available now and can be purchased directly from Bowers & Wilkins. Both are available in white and charcoal color options.