Bowers & Wilkins Refreshes Pi8 and Px7 S3 with New Finishes: Is Color the New Innovation in Premium Headphones?

Bowers & Wilkins isn’t pretending this is a breakthrough and that’s exactly the point. The British luxury audio brand has expanded its flagship Pi8 true wireless earbuds and Px7 S3 noise-cancelling headphones with a slate of new premium finishes, leaning into a trend that’s been quietly reshaping the high-end audio category: color as innovation. The Pi8 now arrives in Dark Burgundy and Pale Mauve, bringing the total to six finishes, while the Px7 S3 adds a new Vintage Maroon option to its growing lineup.

If that sounds familiar, it should. Last year, I pointed out how a long list of premium audio brands had started treating industrial design and colorways not as afterthoughts, but as a legitimate product cycle strategy; extending relevance without touching the underlying acoustics. Bowers & Wilkins is now fully committed to that playbook. The hardware hasn’t changed and it didn’t need to, but the visual refresh keeps both models firmly in the conversation in a market that’s running out of meaningful spec-sheet upgrades.

Available starting March 19, the new finishes don’t come cheap: $499 for the Pi8 in Pale Mauve or Dark Burgundy, and $479 for the Px7 S3 in Vintage Maroon. Same award-winning sound, new wardrobe. Whether that counts as innovation or just smart business depends on how easily you’re seduced by a better shade of red.

What Are the Bowers & Wilkins Pi8?

The Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 are the company’s flagship true wireless earbuds, positioned as a no-compromise attempt to deliver genuine high-end sound in a category that usually prioritizes convenience over fidelity. In our review, the Pi8 stand out for their refined tuning, clarity, and sense of control, offering a presentation that feels closer to a compact hi-fi system than a typical pair of wireless earbuds. They’re designed for listeners who actually pay attention to what they’re hearing and not just how easily it connects.

At their core, the Pi8 combine carbon cone drivers, advanced DSP, and support for aptX Lossless to push beyond the limitations that have traditionally defined Bluetooth audio. Bowers & Wilkins also includes a smart charging case with retransmission capability, allowing wired sources to be streamed directly to the earbuds; an unusually practical feature that adds real-world flexibility. It’s a more thoughtful approach than most, focusing on how people actually use their gear rather than chasing feature checklists.

That said, the Pi8 don’t try to win on every front. As we noted in our review, the emphasis is clearly on sound quality, materials, and overall refinement, rather than class-leading noise cancellation or mass-market pricing. If overall sound quality, comfort, and strong but not class leading ANC matter most, these are among the best options available.

What Are the Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3?

The Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S3 are the brand’s latest over-ear wireless noise-cancelling headphones, sitting just below the Px8 S2 but very much aimed at the same crowd that shops Sony, Bose, and Sennheiser at the top of the category. In our review, they come across as a deliberate refinement of what Bowers & Wilkins has been building for over a decade; premium materials, a more mature design language, and a clear focus on sound quality first. This isn’t a lifestyle headphone trying to fake it. It’s a high-end hi-fi product that just happens to be wireless. 

Where the Px7 S3 separates itself is in how it sounds relative to its competition. As noted in the review, it delivers audiophile-grade clarity, deep and controlled bass, and a level of detail that outpaces most rivals in this price range, including the usual suspects from Sony, Bose, and Apple. Bowers & Wilkins has also refined the internal driver design and overall tuning, while adding modern essentials like aptX Lossless and a more flexible EQ. The result is a presentation that feels more composed and revealing than what you typically get from mainstream ANC headphones.

That said, like the Pi8, the Px7 S3 doesn’t try to dominate every category. The review makes it clear that while ANC is improved and competitive, it’s not the class leader, and comfort is very good without being the lightest or most effortless in the segment. This is a headphone built around priorities: sound quality, build, and long-term listening satisfaction. If that’s what matters most, it’s one of the strongest all-around options available right now and one of the few that still feels like it was tuned by people who actually prioritise sound quality over ANC and connectivity features.

The Bottom Line

New colors are not innovation, but they do make the Pi8 and Px7 S3 feel fresher and harder to ignore. More importantly, this kind of refresh signals longevity these models are not going anywhere. Same excellent sound, now with a little more swagger.

Where to buy:

Tip: These new finishes add to the existing colors which include back, white, blue and jade green. Currently the new colors are only available at the Bowers & Wilkins website.

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