Bluetooth headphones have become so commonplace that many users will never have encountered wired headphones: indeed, smartphone manufacturers such as Apple have long ago dispensed with a conventional headphone socket to connect wired designs. But there’s more to these wireless Bluetooth headphones than meets the eye, and an awareness of how they work will help you get the most from your listening experience.
The technology behind Bluetooth headphones
Just as headphones weren’t originally designed for listening to music, but started out in telephony and radio communications, so Bluetooth began in 1999 as way to connect microphones and earpieces to mobile phones for ‘hands free’ use on the move. Professional drivers used those little earpieces, usually with a blue light on them to show they were connected, to make and receive, but the sound quality was pretty bad.
And that’s another reason why, when Bluetooth headphones for music arrived in the early 2000s, they didn’t set the world on fire – they sounded dreadful! It’s taken two decades of improvement in design, components and software to make the high-quality Bluetooth wireless headphones we enjoy today.
What is Bluetooth…?
Famously named after 10th-century Danish king Harald Bluetooth, whose initials, in runic characters, also form the system’s logo, Bluetooth was originally launched as a short-range wireless connection for computers and phones. Originated by Ericsson in Sweden, it soon drew in IBM, Intel, Toshiba and Nokia, the five companies founding the Bluetooth Special Interest Group. Today that group has thousands of member companies.
The first 1.0 release of Bluetooth in 1998 delivered a modest range of up to 10 m – more than adequate for Bluetooth headphones. Since then, though, the technology has seen frequent updates (twice per year since 2025), now offering a range in the hundreds of metres, albeit significantly less through walls and other obstacles. Bluetooth has developed into a precise, efficient, location-aware, low-latency, multi-stream, ubiquitous technology that connects millions of devices around the world.
…And what Bluetooth isn’t
Bluetooth is a wireless carrier, not an audio format; what it can carry depends on the sending and receiving device. Bluetooth headphones use a subset of the technology known as the Headset Profile (or HSP), allowing the transmission of audio and control of a connected phone.
The basics of Bluetooth audio use SBC (low complexity sub-band coding) to transmit sound at 328 kb/s, or less than mp3 quality, and this highly compressed audio is far from hi-fi quality. Fortunately, the arrival of Qualcomm’s aptX Bluetooth in 2009 opened up wireless audio for quality-conscious listeners: using more advanced compression, it allowed CD-quality sound to be transmitted.
aptX HD is now a well-established codec, offering 48 kHz/24 bit high-resolution audio over Bluetooth. Later versions like aptX Adaptive build on this, adjusting on the fly for a more stable connection and supporting up to 24 bit/96 kHz audio when conditions allow. There are also proprietary 'hi-res' formats developed by the likes of Samsung and Sony, all based on similar compression techniques.
All Bluetooth earphones, be they on-ear, over-ear or in-ear designs, need extra components when compared to wired designs: the Bluetooth receiver, digital-to-analogue conversion and amplification to power the drivers delivering sound to the ears. In addition, an onboard rechargeable battery is there to power all this technology.
Advantages of Bluetooth headphones
By “cutting the wires” between your music source and your headphones, Bluetooth removes the chances of being tangled up in cable and makes for a more discrete listening experience – especially when using in-ear designs. You can keep your phone in your pocket, and still listen to music, control playback, and make or take calls.
In the home, Bluetooth headphones such as DALI’s IO series allow you to sit away from your music system, enjoying superb audio without the need for cables across the room. These headphones are also excellent on the move, and a must-have for commuters and frequent flyers.
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View ArticleExploring different Bluetooth headphone designs
As with all headphones, the best wireless Bluetooth headphones for you will be the type most comfortable where you’re going to listen. Many prefer ultra-compact in-ear designs for everyday use: they fit tightly in the ear canals for the best sound, will exclude outside noise by their tight fit (and often active noise cancellation technology) and are all but invisible in use, attracting little attention.
Others, however, will prefer full-size headphones with a headband, offering more power, a better sound and longer battery life – they’ve also become a fashion statement through their use by everyone from musicians to sportspeople! On-ear headphones will be lighter for use in this way, but over-ear models, which surround your ears with covered foam cushions, provide better isolation, keeping noise out and the music in. Add in the Audiophile Active Noise Cancellation and extended 35-hour battery life of a model such as the DALI IO-8, and you have the perfect choice for listening anywhere.
Others, however, will prefer full-size headphones with a headband, offering more power, a better sound and longer battery life – they’ve also become a fashion statement through their use by everyone from musicians to sportspeople! On-ear headphones will be lighter for use in this way, but over-ear models, which surround your ears with covered foam cushions, provide better isolation, keeping noise out and the music in. Add in the Audiophile Active Noise Cancellation and extended 35-hour battery life of a model such as the DALI IO-8, and you have the perfect choice for listening anywhere.
How to connect Bluetooth headphones
The beauty of Bluetooth is its standardization, making it easy to connect wireless Bluetooth headphones to your devices. With the headphones switched on, it’s just a matter of setting your device to ‘discover’ them – they’ll then ‘pair’ and you’re ready to listen. Once made, this connection is remembered, and will just happen next time you want to play music
How to connect Bluetooth headphones to a smartphone
On an iPhone, go to Settings > Bluetooth and turn on Bluetooth. Then press the pairing button on the headphones and wait for it to appear on the phone’s Bluetooth list. Then tap the headphones name, and you’re paired.
On an Android phone, swipe down from the top of the screen, then touch and hold
‘Bluetooth’. Tap ‘Pair new device’. Tap the name of the Bluetooth headphones you want to pair with your device. Done.
Discover our IO series
Hi-Fi Bluetooth® headphones with industry-leading battery life. The DALI IO wireless Hi-Fi headphone series combines advanced technology, high-quality components, class-leading battery life and exceptional materials for hours of authentic DALI sound on the go.
How to connect Bluetooth headphones to Mac and PC?
On a Mac computer, choose the Apple menu, then System Settings, then click Sound in the sidebar. click Output, and select the headphones from the list
On a Windows computer, select the Network, Sound or Battery icons next to the time and date on the right side of your taskbar. Then select Manage Bluetooth devices on the Bluetooth quick setting, and then select your headphones under New devices.
How to connect Bluetooth headphones to PS4 and PS5?
In the PS4 menu, select Settings > Devices > Bluetooth Devices. That will set your console to automatically scan for additional devices to pair. Select your headphone from the list of unconnected devices (with a blue light to the left). When connected to the PS4 correctly, the colour will change to green.
The PS5 will require a Bluetooth adapter, which plugs into one of its USB ports. Then press and hold the sync or pair buttons on your headphones and adapter, and the PS5 will recognize the Bluetooth headphones as USB audio.
Troubleshooting and optimisation
Bluetooth connectivity is long established, standardised and stable: it’s also designed to be easy to use, but occasionally problems may arise:
Pairing may take a couple of attempts, or a short while – make sure both the device and the headphones are set to pair and be patient.
If you have multiple Bluetooth devices and headphones, you may find switching one on will ‘hi-jack’ the sound from your headphones. Very occasionally this can even happen when someone using Bluetooth walks past you in the street! Re-pairing should solve the problem.
And for the best Bluetooth connection, keep the distance between device and headphones as short as possible, and consider Bluetooth to be a ‘line of sight’ technology. Don’t expect it to work too well through walls or floors!
Explore high-quality Bluetooth headphones with DALI
DALI has used its decades of expertise in speaker design and acoustic engineering to create the IO range of Bluetooth headphones. The DALI IO-12 is the flagship model, drawing heavily on the technology of our speakers, and with innovations including large 50mm paper fibre drivers powered by the same SMC motors you’ll find in the Kore flagships speaker, and DALI’s own Audiophile Active Noise Cancellation.
The latest addition to the range is the IO-8, available in Iron Black or Caramel White, and offering similar driver and noise cancellation technologies at a more affordable price. It also gives 35 hours of use from its rechargeable battery and can even connect directly to a computer via USB when listening at home or when travelling, saving the battery and allowing higher-resolution audio.