Urbanista Los Angeles: Powered by Light

These solar-powered headphones sound pretty sweet.

- TIM GIDEON

We test our fair share of noise-cancelling headphones, but we’ve never come across a pair like the Urbanista Los Angeles, which integrate a solar cell material called Powerfoyle to convert light into battery power. That alone is impressive enough to earn the headphones our TechX award, but of course, it wouldn’t mean much if they didn’t also sound good. Luckily, the headphones deliver powerful audio with rich bass and sculpted highs, along with effective active noise cancellation (ANC) for the price. Thanks to their combination of technological (not to mention eco-friendly) innovation and impressive audio performance, the Urbanista Los Angeles headphones also earn our Editors’ Choice award, and we hope to see more products use this charging technology in the future.

Urbanista Los Angeles

PROS Solar-powered charging. Impressive audio performance with rich, deep bass and crisp highs. Quality noise cancellation for the price. Stylish design.

CONS No in-app EQ. Noise cancellation slightly impacts sound signature.

BOTTOM LINE The stylish Urbanista Los Angeles headphones deliver deep bass, sculpted highs, and solid active noise cancellation in a unique design that supports solar-powered charging.

FEATURES & SPECS

You might expect solar-powered tech to be unwieldy and heavy (to us, it conjures an image of ostentatious solar panels glued to a headband), but the Los Angeles headphones are quite stylish. Available in matte black or gold, they have a pleasing minimalist aesthetic.