Philips Fidelio L4 review: Two-minute review
I absolutely want to love the Philips Fidelio L4.
The problem lies in the execution.
The Philips Fidelio L4 suffers from a few too many disconnection issues.
When playing, it sounds fantastic.
The problem is that sometimes it simply drops out and I cant figure out why.
Its frustrating because the Philips Fidelio L4 are good enough that they still deserve a high rating.
A 15 minute charge gives back 14 hours which is ridiculously good going.
Theres always theApple AirPods Maxif you want to spend more too.
At least when theyre working nicely.
The Philips headphones app guides you through the essentials.
Theres wear detection, auto on/off and an adjustable EQ.
The latter comes with four presets but its always good to be able to adjust things for yourself too.
Theres also Bluetooth 5.3 support and a 3.5mm jack for listening to music more crisply.
Sounds perfect, right?
While using the Philips Fidelio L4, I found it very prone to random disconnections.
Full recharging takes about two hours but 15 minutes worth returns 14 hours.
You read that right.
Out of the box, I was impressed by how vibrant everything sounded.
My random playlist came out with Black Eyed PeasI Gotta Feelingand it instantly feels punchy and ridiculously enthusiastic.
Its all just a bit delightful.
Crucially, unlike some inferior headphones, it’s possible for you to genuinely hear the differences here.
They dont feel as high-end as the competition for instance, but they are fairly light on your head.
The foam ear cups feel comfy while fully covering your ears aiding the ANC.
However, the Philips Fidelio L4 doesnt fold, which instantly makes it feel less portable than others.
Youre tossing them into your bag as they are on your head which feels a little unsafe.
The bulk of the controls come from the touch sensitive surface on the right ear cup.
Gestures work well here with accidental taps rarely an issue.
For features, the Philips Fidelio L4 are definitely on a par providing they work reliably.
Value score: 3/5
Should I buy the Philips Fidelio L4?
You want good looksThe Philips Fidelio L4 is pretty dull looking.
Functional but there are more stylish alternatives.
Dont count on great battery life though.
In typical Welsh fashion, they also had to face up against some very loud stormy weather too.
During the day, Id wear them in my home office while working.
For the most part, Id listen to Spotify or Twitch streams.
In the evenings, Id listen to YouTube videos while any walks were handled by Apple Music.
Genres were pretty varied from classical to rock, cheesy recent pop, and some jazz too.
Twitch streams and YouTube videos were predominantly gaming related.
Ive been reviewing audio products for about 10 years and know what sounds good and what doesnt.
I also appreciate theres not much point in having great sounding headphones that feel awful on your head.
