The best headphone mic we've ever tested

Episode Summary

Executive Summary: The episode centers on headphone microphone quality, arguing it is underrated but increasingly important for calls, AI voice interactions, and everyday usability. Host David Pierce and reviewer John Higgins compare several headphones in a noisy Los Angeles coffee shop, finding that most models are only middling, while Soundcore’s Liberty 5 Pro stand out dramatically for balancing clear voice pickup with strong noise suppression. The discussion also briefly covers current Verge news and the broader market direction for smart home and AI audio features.

Main Topics: Why headphone microphones matter more now (Priority: 5/5): David argues mic quality affects phone calls, Zooms, dictation, and AI voice interactions, making it a key but overlooked part of headphone performance. Real-world microphone testing in noisy environments (Priority: 5/5): John tests multiple headphones from a loud Ventura Boulevard coffee shop to simulate everyday conditions like traffic, nearby conversations, and outdoor calls. AirPods Pro 3 as the mainstream baseline (Priority: 4/5): The AirPods Pro 3 perform decently but not exceptionally: they reduce some background noise while still sounding compressed and leaving distracting ambient sound. EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus as a cheap value pick (Priority: 4/5): These budget earbuds cost far less than AirPods and produce a more pleasant call experience than expected, with strong noise suppression despite some voice compression. Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro as the standout winner (Priority: 5/5): Soundcore’s new earbuds deliver the best microphone performance in the test, with near-total background-noise rejection and only modest loss of voice fidelity. Why over-ear headphones still lag in call quality (Priority: 3/5): Sennheiser’s Momentum 5s are solid, but over-ear designs generally struggle more than earbuds because beamforming and voice-localization are harder through padded cups. Industry implications: AI may push mic quality forward (Priority: 4/5): The hosts speculate that growing use of voice assistants and AI could finally motivate manufacturers to improve microphone performance more aggressively.

Key Arguments: Microphone quality is a critical but undervalued feature because it affects how well people communicate and how seriously they are perceived on calls. A good call microphone matters not just for human conversation but increasingly for AI-powered voice input and dictation. Most headphone mics have plateaued around a middling standard; improvements are incremental rather than dramatic. Testing in a noisy public space reveals the practical difference between models better than sterile lab conditions do. Budget brands can compete with premium incumbents on call quality, sometimes outperforming much pricier products. Earbuds generally have an advantage over over-ear headphones for voice pickup because they can beamform more effectively and may use bone-conduction/localization techniques. Soundcore’s custom processing chip appears to be a major reason for its unusually strong microphone performance. The market may begin rewarding microphone quality more if AI voice interaction becomes more central to everyday device use.

Data Points: Date of Vergecast segment: Wednesday, June 17th, 2026 - The episode’s “90 Seconds on the Verge” news rundown and headphone test segment Matter smart home spec version: Matter 1.6 - Mentioned in the news rundown as a new smart home standard update Google Home Speaker pre-order price: $99 - Google’s first smart speaker in six years, now available for pre-order Google Home Speaker ship date: Next Thursday, June 25th - The device’s announced release timing EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus list price: $99.99 - John Higgins says these are usually on sale for about $80 EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus sale price: About $80 - Typical sale price cited during the comparison Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro price: $170 - John describes them as more expensive than the budget EarFun set but well below AirPods pricing Soundcore higher-tier case price: $230 - The pricier version adds a larger touch screen and AI transcription/summary features while using the same earbuds AirPods Pro 3 relative price: Around $200 on sale - Used as the premium comparison point in the segment EarFun price comparison to AirPods: Less than half the price - David notes the value difference when comparing performance and cost Microphone test count: 4 headphone sets discussed in detail - EarPods, AirPods Pro 3, EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus, Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro, and Sennheiser Momentum 5s Soundcore hearing-preference tuning iterations: 7 rounds - John explains that the app asks listeners to choose preferred audio clips multiple times to tailor sound Podcast support platform: Odoo - Sponsor segment for all-in-one business software Newsletter/subscription link: theverge.com/subscribe - Promoted at the end as the best way to support The Verge and access ad-free podcasts

Pivotal Quotes: "the microphone actually matters a lot, especially if you believe in AI and we're all going to record our lives and do everything." — David Pierce: Opening argument for why headphone microphone quality deserves more attention "This is like you don't sound the best, but this would be the most pleasant phone call to have of the three that we've tried so far." — David Pierce: Reaction to the EarFun Air Pro 4 Plus during the comparison test "This is multiple orders of magnitude better than anything we've tested so far." — David Pierce: Reaction to the Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro microphone performance

Implications: Listeners should care more about mic quality when buying headphones, especially for calls and AI voice use. The test suggests Soundcore has raised the bar, and rivals may need to respond or risk falling behind.