The best Lightning headphones 2021 for your iPhone or iPad
To listen to music on any iPhone since the age-old iPhone 7, you either need a pair of wireless Bluetooth headphones, a 3.5mm to Lightning converter (no longer included in the box for 2018 and later iPhones) or a pair of wired headphones that will connect to the Lightning port.
Lightning headphones do have a special quality; they’re capable of receiving lossless stereo 48kHz digital audio output from Apple devices and sending mono 48kHz digital audio input. They can also draw power from an Apple device (even if the device is asleep).
Apple’s Lightning port can also support headphones with integrated digital-to-analogue converters (DACs) and amplifiers, so audio travelling through the Lightning port will pass into the headphones digitally, thus avoiding typical analogue signal interferences you get with other headphones.
We’ve picked some of the best pairs of Lightning headphones available now, comprising over-ear and in-ear models, at a variety of price points.
