Sennheiser launches Momentum 4 headphones and improved sports headphones with health sensors

Sennheiser’s latest sports headphones, the Momentum Sport, are durable enough to handle the stress and strain of a sweaty workout, yet advanced enough to track your heart rate and body temperature. They were announced today at CES as part of a trio of new headphones from Sennheiser, alongside the company’s new flagship Momentum True Wireless 4 earbuds and a new pair of over-ear Accentum Plus headphones.

Heart rate-sensing earbuds have been around for at least as long as true wireless earbuds, but they’re far from commonplace, and the feature hasn’t appeared in Sennheiser’s previous sports earbuds like the Sport True Wireless. According to a press release from Sennheiser, its new Momentum Sport headphones can track your heart rate using a built-in photoplethysmography (PPG) sensor and sync with exercise devices and apps from Apple, Garmin, Strava, Peloton and Polar. In particular, Sennheiser said the headphones will be able to instantly transmit biometric data to the Polar Vantage V3 smartwatch during workouts.

Otherwise, they have many of the same features you’d expect from sports headphones. They’re IP55 rated to withstand dust and water splashes (read: sweat), and have a semi-open design designed to help you stay aware of your surroundings. But if you don’t want to interact with the outside world, there’s also adaptive noise cancellation. The battery life of the earphones themselves is rated at up to 6 hours, which can be extended to 24 hours with the charging case. (Supports wireless charging via USB-C or Qi.) Available codecs include AptX Adaptive, AAC, and SBC.

If you’re after something less rugged and more high-end, Sennheiser also announced its new flagship Momentum True Wireless 4 headphones today. Here, the focus is no longer on durability, but on sound quality. The earbuds support Qualcomm’s AptX lossless technology, which delivers lossless CD-quality audio when paired with compatible devices, and support new technologies such as energy-saving Bluetooth LE audio and Auracast, which enables one-to-many broadcasting. You also get adaptive noise cancellation.

The earphones themselves have a battery life of up to 7.5 hours, and the charging case has a battery life of up to 30 hours, which is comparable to our top pick for the best true wireless earphones today, the Sony WF-1000XM5. The case can also be charged using USB-C or Qi wireless charging.

Finally, there are the Accentum Plus over-ear noise-canceling headphones. They have up to 50 hours of battery life, have touch controls on the earcups, and support AptX Adaptive and multipoint connectivity. They charge via USB-C with a 10-minute charge, which is claimed to provide 5 hours of listening time, and there’s a 3.5mm port for when you want to plug in a wired audio source.

Three new devices from Sennheiser will be released in the coming months. The Accentum Plus will launch on February 20 for $229.95 (€229.99/£199.99), followed by the Momentum True Wireless 4 on February 29 for $299.95 (€299.99/£259.99). Meanwhile, the Momentum Sport, equipped with heart rate and body temperature sensors, will be available from April 9 and will retail for $329.95 (€329.99/£259.99).