2026 seems to be the time of the open-back gaming headset. After years of not seeing much in this sector (bar the Corsair Virtuoso Pro), we've seen a return to form for this admittedly niche sector that I'm all for. First, it was the turn of Asus with the Hifiman-collab Asus ROG Kithara with its audiophile credentials, huge planar magnetic drivers, and an equally hefty price tag that m'colleague Phil liked, although with the caveat that it's $300/£285 and misses some very basic features for a headset. Y'know, like physical controls or any form of software control.
Now it's the turn of Sony with the lightweight and breathable Inzone H6 Air, which immediately wins against Asus in my head for coming in at virtually $100/£100 less. Granted, the $200/£180 price tag is still dear for a strictly wired headset when versatile wireless choices such as the Beyerdynamic MMX 150 and Logitech G522 Lightspeed exist. Whether it can match in features or quality is a different matter entirely against any of these, though, which is why hardware overlord Jacob is paying me for these very words.
