We're closing in on the end of the year, so it's time to look back at 2024. We've seen some great products (as the many newcomers in our What Hi-Fi? Awards list can attest), some real innovations... and some proper duff moves.
So which brands impressed over the last 12 months? And which have some serious work to do in 2025? Let's see...
Loser: Sonos app blunder was costly
If Sonos is multi-room royalty, then 2024 was very much its annus horribilis. It started the year with such promise, with the Era 300 and 100 still riding high and a strong soundbar game to its name. Sonos had barely put a foot wrong for years. But then came the spring, and the missteps began...
First up was the Sonos Ace, its highly anticipated debut in the wireless headphone market. But they felt rushed, with so-so sound quality and features missing at launch, and were accompanied by an app update that is up there with the Amazon Fire Phone as one of the worst tech decisions in recent memory.
The app update introduced numerous bugs and removed some much-loved features – an impressive double whammy, akin to scoring an own goal while shooting yourself in the foot. Sonos initially defended the app, before backtracking and setting out a timeline of bug fixes and improvements. The Sonos board also agreed to forego its annual bonus "unless the company succeeds in improving the quality of the app experience and rebuilding customer trust". Which is a bit like me deciding whether I've earned another mince pie or not (and you know what? I definitely have).
It also released the Sonos Roam 2. With only minor improvements over the original and no bump in sound quality, it scored a disappointing three out of five stars in our expert review team's review.
Sonos did, however, end the year on a more positive note. The Arc Ultra soundbar landed in November and scored a perfect five-star in our new review, prompting us to call it "a huge upgrade on the still-very-good original Arc". In light of the newcomer's arrival, the original Arc has also dropped to a record-low price to shift final stock. Let's hope Sonos continues this upward trend into the new year. Its first set-top box is rumoured to be on the horizon.
Winner: LG OLEDs are back on top
LG's mid-series OLED TV for 2023, the C3, was fairly disappointing. For years we had extolled the popular TV model as the ideal premium telly for its class-leading picture quality and reasonable pricing, but last year's C3 was a black mark on its track record. It offered minimal improvements over the C2 and a higher price, opening the door for the Sony A80L to saunter in and claim the mid-price OLED crown. Thankfully this black mark turned out to be a minor blemish rather than a permanent stain, as this year's C4 was very good indeed. In fact, our TV editor was blown away by how much better the LG C4 is than the C3.
A rich, engaging picture, a full suite of streaming apps and unrivalled gaming specs (plus a more reasonable price than its predecessor) helped it win three What Hi-Fi? Awards and five-star ratings across the sizes we tested (42, 48 and 65 inches).
The step-up G4 model was another winner. While it didn't pick up any Awards, it did score five out of five, with its second-generation MLA-equipped screen proving a step up on 2023's already excellent G3. In what is a hugely competitive premium TV market, 2024 saw a welcome return to form for LG.
Winner: Sony wireless headphones continue their form
Sony's wireless headphones once again dominated the market this year – the brand won five out of seven What Hi-Fi? Awards in the ever-popular product category. The WF-C700N noise-cancelling earbuds once again picked up Product of the Year, while the brand-new WF-C510 proved to be the best budget earbuds around. Both Sony's flagship XM5 earbuds and over-ears won for another year, as did its mid-ranging WH-CH720N over-ears.
Despite having another stellar year, Sony wasn't quite as dominant as it was last year when it pulled off a clean sweep in the wireless headphones category. That's not down to Sony doing anything wrong exactly; the competition just upped their ante. The Austrian Audio Hi-X25BT wireless over-ears and Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 premium earbuds are phenomenal headphones and squeezed in around the various Sony pairs.
Winner: Bose silences the competition
Sticking with headphones, Bose refreshed an old classic, the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds. Bose's entry-level pair of wireless noise-cancelling earbuds scored the full five-star set for their compelling ANC, entertaining sound and very good price. Despite only launching recently, they have already had a price cut, making them worthy competitors to the flagship (though ageing) Sony WF-1000XM5.
It just shows the rate of progress that only a couple of years after a flagship pair launched, another brand's mid-range model can give them a run for their money. And it's a sign that Bose's buds remain ones to be reckoned with.
Winner: Apple pulls off ANC without eartips
Apple's AirPods 4 launched in two varieties – one with active noise-cancelling, one without. But even the ANC model retains the eartip-less design of the standard AirPods, making them the first earbuds to offer active noise cancellation with such an 'open' design. Cue puzzled faces all around.
But it works. By focusing its noise-cancelling energies on low-end frequencies, Apple has proven that you don't need to plug up your ears to achieve a decent standard of sound isolation. Sure, the effect isn't as isolating as that delivered by Bose's traditional flagship QuietComfort Earbuds Ultra, but then it is more comfortable over long listening sessions.
Here we have a case of Apple living up to its classic 'Think different' slogan.
Loser: Earfun fails to recapture its former glory (again)
Oh, Earfun. What happened? How bright the future must have seemed when, four years ago, the budget Earfun Air wireless earbuds came out of nowhere to score five stars and a What Hi-Fi? Award. Never before had we given such eminently affordable earbuds such a glowing review. The big brands have duly followed, targeting the entry-level end of the wireless earbuds space, but Earfun was there first, redefining what was possible at such a scandalously low price. Good on it.
But now? Well, the present hasn't actually turned out so bright. The Earfun Air Pro followed hot on their heels and added ANC to the mix to achieve another five-star review, but the more recently released Earfun Air Pro 2 and 3 only notched up three stars apiece, as did this year's Earfun Air 2 and Earfun Wave Pro. We're hoping the brand can return to its former glory, but going on its recent form that is looking less and less likely.
Loser: Spotify fails to move with the times
And still we wait. The three-year delay of Spotify's Hi-Fi lossless tier has become such a joke in the industry that we're considering creating an Award in its honour, to hand out every year until Spotify finally launches the blasted thing. It's been close to a decade since Spotify first teased a lossless streaming tier.
This prompted us to re-evaluate the world's most popular music streaming service this year. With Spotify's paid service now costing more than rivals' (most of whom do offer lossless streaming), we had no choice but to dock Spotify a star when updating our review.
The service still has plenty going for it, including a genuinely free tier, an intuitive app and Spotify Wrapped. But it's not enough for the sound quality-conscious listener.
Winner? Loser? The jury's out... McIntosh is brought into the Bose family
Shockwaves were sent around the technology industry when the announcement reached it that Bose was acquiring the McIntosh Group, owner of audiophile brands McIntosh, Sonus Faber and Sumiko Phono Cartridges. This caused much consternation among audiophiles that the specialist brands would be diluted – and the quality compromised – by such a mass-market tech owner. But for now, we're taking a more positive outlook. Bose has been in the audio game for a long time and has deep pockets that could prove beneficial to the legacy hi-fi brands. Doesn't that make for a better home than McIntosh's previous owner, a private equity firm?
As my esteemed colleague Becky Roberts pointed out: "I'm confident that this ownership will last longer than the previous one – and that the new owners are likely far more interested in growing the brands rather than simply turning a quick profit."
It also opens some exciting possibilities for in-car audio. Bose has kitted out cars made by Porsche, Chevrolet, Honda and Mazda, while McIntosh and Sonus Faber have had systems installed in cars at the higher end of the market, Jeep, Maserati and Lamborghini, to name but three.
Plenty of potential, then. Whether the brands' hardcore fans see it that way is another matter...
MORE:
Check out the best noise-cancelling headphones
The best streaming services for music
And check out all our 2024 What Hi-Fi? Award winners
