I wore the Dyson Zone headphones on a long flight — it was pretty much a disaster

Dyson Zone
(Image credit: Future)

One of the first things I did with Dyson Zone noise-cancelling and air-purifying headphones was pack them for a 6-hour flight from New York to California. And while I was initially excited to travel with the futuristic device, the experience wasn’t as user-friendly as I hoped.

The $949 Dyson Zone are headphones with air purification technology in the ear cups. The cups push filtered air through a magnetic visor that many have compared to the mask worn by DC super villain Bane. But concerns about looking nefarious aside, I thought that current fed to my nose and mouth through the Dyson Zone would be a major improvement to stale airplane air. (Though, I later found out, it offers a more significant improvement during bouts of air pollution.)

I knew that the headset wouldn’t protect me from any airborne viruses lurking among my fellow passengers. In fact, airplane air is filtered through sophisticated HEPA systems, while the Dyson Zone is only rated to filter certain pollutants, such as nitrogen dioxide. In other words, there was little the Zone would offer in terms of improving the air I breathed. Instead, I hoped a constant, cool airflow could ease some of my flying anxiety. Bonus points if it fended off unsavory odors.

It’s a bulky product

When it came to packing the Dyson Zone, I had to leave behind the included purse-like carrying case. I opted for the soft drawstring bag in order to fit the headphones and visor into my backpack along with all my other tech and flight snacks.

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But in the confines of the coach section, getting the Dyson Zone system out of my bag proved a struggle. Not only is the device a hefty 1.47 pounds with the visor, but the visor doesn’t stay attached if the headset gets bumped around. Juggling my iPad, water bottle and neck pillow, the Dyson Zone certainly didn’t grant me grace.

People didn’t stare

Once I had the Dyson Zone set up for use, I sat watching passengers fill into their seats, waiting for someone to notice the contraption on my face. No one did, or at least, I didn’t catch anyone giving a curious glimpse.

I’ll admit, I didn’t really care about whether people stared. But it surprised me that people didn’t seem interested in what I was wearing. Don’t they know the Dyson Zone could be a glimpse at the type of thing everyone uses in the future? At least I could settle in for the long flight knowing everyone around me would be minding their own business.

Battery life became a problem

About two hours into my flight, a status chime in the headphones indicated a low battery life (you can also check the battery status of the headphones on your iPhone, too). My options were to a) detach the visor and enjoy a bit more time with audio only or b) spend the rest of the flight tethered to a charging cable.

My options were to a) detach the visor and enjoy a bit more time with audio only or b) spend the rest of the flight tethered to a charging cable.

As I had been enjoying the filtered air, I opted for the latter. Luckily, I could reach the outlet between the seats. But the receptacle must’ve been a bit loose, because not long later, I heard the low battery life chime in my ears again. I eventually wiggled the charger at an angle that offered consistent charging through the flight. Still, not all airplanes provide outlet access, so I could’ve had a problem. I didn’t have room to pack my Sony WH-1000XM5s as a back up, after all.

Would I wear the Dyson Zone on a flight again?

Between the bulk and battery life struggle, the Dyson Zone probably won’t be coming with me on any more flights. As much as I enjoyed the cool airflow and the sound quality sufficed for binging reality TV, they’re impractical for air travel.

Unless I had more room at my seat (or perhaps a hook to hang the headset on) and guaranteed outlet access, the Dyson Zone isn’t worth the hassle. Plus, an airplane isn’t the ideal environment to benefit from the headset’s filtering features. Instead, I’ll stick to my non-air-purifying headphones for my next trip, and give Dyson Zone a go outside in the busy city.

Responding to the comments

Several commenters on this story found trouble with my mention of "stale" airplane air. While I acknowledged that cabin air is "filtered through sophisticated HEPA systems," I'll clarify again that breathing through Dyson Zone on the plane lacks tangible benefits. According to the IATA, cabin air is refreshed 20-30 times an hour through HEPA filters that are more than 99.9% effective at removing viruses, bacteria and fungi.

But we all know that airplane fans can omit a particular odor, which, after a while, may smell a bit stale. Happy to listen if you have a better word to describe the scenario. What's more, I know there are people like me who randomly overheat or suffer from a bit of claustrophobia while seated in the cabin. The intention of wearing the Dyson Zone on the flight was less for protection and more for comfort. 

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Kate Kozuch

Kate Kozuch is the managing editor of social and video at Tom’s Guide. She covers smartwatches, TVs and audio devices, too. Kate appears on Fox News to talk tech trends and runs the Tom's Guide TikTok account, which you should be following. When she’s not filming tech videos, you can find her taking up a new sport, mastering the NYT Crossword or channeling her inner celebrity chef. 


  • butstough
    "airplane air" is about the farthest possible thing from stale. the engine compressors are pumping in a huge volume of mega fresh air from the upper atmosphere during the whole flight, enabling you to breathe at high altitudes.
    Reply
  • kep55
    admin said:
    I wore Dyson Zone air-purifying and noise-cancelling headphones on a long flight. Let's just say it didn't go as planned.

    I wore the Dyson Zone headphones on a long flight — it was pretty much a disaster : Read more
    A thousand bucks for a so-so gimmick? I've a simpler solution. Reach up to the air vents and adjust one so it blows on your face. Not only will this help block noise, it will also blow the nasties away and lessen the effects of changing air pressure. I've done this for decades and it helps tremendously.
    Reply
  • Guzeebo
    Dyson needs to stick to making products that "suck."
    Reply
  • Guzeebo
    butstough said:
    "airplane air" is about the farthest possible thing from stale. the engine compressors are pumping in a huge volume of mega fresh air from the upper atmosphere during the whole flight, enabling you to breathe at high altitudes.
    Some people don't like dry, relatively low pressure jet cabin air. I live at 8,600 feet above sea level. I love airplane air. When we take off from Bogotá El Dorado airport the pressure begins to go up and the air gets cleaner too!
    Reply
  • Djplonghead
    butstough said:
    "airplane air" is about the farthest possible thing from stale. the engine compressors are pumping in a huge volume of mega fresh air from the upper atmosphere during the whole flight, enabling you to breathe at high altitudes.
    Exactly, my family was on a 4 hour flight and we were sitting right behind a captain. As I am interested in mechanics (this was when I was at the age of 10, but I still like mechanics to this day) he gladly explained a few things about planes, one being air; he explained that the air first passed through the jets, which as you should know are very hot and therefore kill all bacteria, before entering massive heat exchangers/ air conditioners under the floor in the vicinity of the wings. The entire cabin air volume is cycled fully in a matter of minutes- between 15 and 30 cycles per hour. Also more than 50% of that fresh air is passed through HEPA filters on modern aircraft.
    Reply
  • Djplonghead
    “Stale” plane air…

    My family was on a 4 hour flight and we were sitting right behind a captain. As I am interested in mechanics (this was when I was at the age of 10, but I still like mechanics to this day) he gladly explained a few things about planes, one being air; he explained that the air first passed through the jets, which as you should know are very hot and therefore kill all bacteria, before entering massive heat exchangers/ air conditioners under the floor in the vicinity of the wings. The entire cabin air volume is cycled fully in a matter of minutes- between 15 and 30 cycles per hour. Also more than 50% of that fresh air is passed through HEPA filters on modern aircraft.


    A “struggle”…

    If you have trouble lifting headphones that are less than 2 pounds out of a bag that is absurd…
    Regarding battery, complaining about being plugged in to a cable is about the most lazy thing you could say about this experience. Furthermore, your options where not to use just sound, or plug it in. You could of taken the whole thing off and let in charged, then put in your AirPods because you have both an iPad and an iPhone, so it would only be logical to have AirPods. Once you got more battery on the headphones you could unplug them and wear them without “being forced to” complain about a SINGLE cable. How horrible…


    Finally, your absence of stares (and maybe logical sense).

    It’s a crappy pair of headphones with a stupid plastic mask type guard covering your precious mouth. No-one cares except the old man of Dyson who needs to listen to music while breathing “fresh air.”

    I understand the concept and it has a future. People who have allergies or other conditions where they need constant fresh air.
    The impeller is super cool but in terms of its price tag, build quality, and aim in the consumer segment- I think it is unlikely to do well for our future.
    Reply
  • Djplonghead
    Guzeebo said:
    Some people don't like dry, relatively low pressure jet cabin air. I live at 8,600 feet above sea level. I love airplane air. When we take off from Bogotá El Dorado airport the pressure begins to go up and the air gets cleaner too!
    Well Dyson headset isn’t doing anything to solve that, especially the dry air part.
    Reply
  • rzn1
    " (you can also check the battery status of the headphones on your iPhone, too)." Why do a lot of Americans think everybody has an Iphone? Just say smartphone pls it suffices
    Reply
  • sfjuocekr
    If you really thought the headphone would be a "major improvement" for stale airplane air and already know airplane air is filtered...

    I'd call that naïeve, good thing people didn't stare as that truly is my biggest issue out the streets (sarcasm).

    If you bought a 1k headphone, you just did it to rain money on something completely useless as we humans seem to do left and right. There is no excuse for any headphone to cost much more than 100 bux, neodymium drivers are dirt cheap and all produce great sound. Humans only notice the attenuation in the sound reproduction caused by external factors like the volume of air they are moving.

    Even switching to different compression or EQ will persuade humans something is better or worse for the wrong reasons.
    Reply
  • dhsndbd
    A cheap N95 face musk would provide better results than this overpriced gadget blowing slightly filtered air at your face while drying out your mucous membranes and giving no safety due to big air gaps and missing certifications.

    Sadly this review was totally biased and blindly believing marketing terms without checking the science.

    As a positive example of an informed review of the product check out the video by YouTuber Marques Brownlee.
    Reply