Logitech G435 LIGHTSPEED Wireless Headphones Review

These headphones have a sleek and minimalist design. They have coiled audio cables that lead from the ear cups into the headband, giving them a slightly more gamer-centric look. In the 'Black & Neon Yellow' variant, they don't stand out from the crowd. However, if you want to make a statement, they come in two more eye-catching color variants: 'Blue & Raspberry' and 'Off-White & Lilac'.

These headphones have a comfortable fit. They're extremely lightweight and have a light clamping force, so you can wear them for long periods without feeling too much fatigue. They also have memory foam ear padding, which feels nice on your head. However, they have a limited range of motion, and since they're designed mainly with younger users in mind, they may not fit on extra-large heads.

These headphones have sub-par controls. The command buttons are all found on the ear cup and can be combined to enter a large number of inputs. However, this interface isn't always intuitive, and they still lack the ability to answer/end calls, play and pause music, or control the voice and sound mix. These headphones don't come with a manual either, though Logitech provides a digital copy here. There are beeps for many commands, like reaching max volume, as well as muting and unmuting the mic. While there's nothing to indicate when you've reached the minimum volume, the buttons have good tactile input feedback. There's also a multicolor LED you can use to check their battery level as well as their connection setting.

On/Off button:

• Single press: Indicates battery level.
• Hold for 1.5 seconds: Turns the headphones on.
• Hold for 3 seconds: Turns the headphones off.

Volume button:

Mute Mic button:

• Short press: Mutes and unmutes the mic.
• Hold for 5.0 seconds: Switches the connection between Bluetooth and their wireless dongle.
• Double press: Activates mic sidetone, which allows you to hear your own voice over a call.
• Single press (while holding the 'volume up' button): Raises sidetone.
• Single press (while holding the 'volume down' button): Lowers sidetone.
• Hold for 3.0 seconds (while holding the 'volume up' button): Sets the volume limiter to 100 dB.
• Hold for 3.0 seconds (while holding the 'volume down' button): Sets the volume limiter to 85 dB.

The Logitech G435 LIGHTSPEED aren't very portable, but this is to be expected for gaming headphones. While they're a bit smaller in size than other Logitech products, like the Logitech G733 LIGHTSPEED Wireless, they don't fold or swivel inwards to help reduce their footprint. They also don't come with a carrying case to help protect them when you're on the move.

These headphones have an alright build quality. The frame is made of fabric and lightweight plastic, while the ear cups have cloth-covered memory foam padding, which feels good on-head. However, the plastic frame and cloth cover both feel cheap and prone to breaking over time. The hinges may also wear down over continuous use.

They're reasonably stable. They don't move around if you're gaming from your couch or desk, but they can fall off your head if you move around a lot during an intense match.

• Logitech G435 Headset
• Wireless USB dongle
• USB-A to USB-C charging cable
• Logitech sticker
• User documentations

The Logitech G435 have a slightly warm sound profile that delivers a touch of extra bassy boom to sound effects and footsteps. Dialogue and instruments also sound present and clear, though a bit bright. However, they lack an EQ to help you customize their sound to your liking.

These headphones have a volume limiter that you can set to either 85dB or 100dB. When set to 85dB, we could reach a max volume of 91dB, which isn't ideal if you're trying to protect your hearing. Note, though, that we conducted all of our sound tests with the volume limiter turned off.

These headphones have mediocre frequency response consistency. You'll notice a drop in bass if you have a lot of hair or wear glasses. They're also prone to inconsistencies in treble delivery, so it's important to take the time to adjust their fit and positioning to ensure a more consistent sound.

The bass accuracy is good. They lack a bit of thumpy low-bass, but the rest of the range is well-balanced and will give sound effects and footsteps ample boom and body.

This measurement represents the average bass response, and as bass delivery can vary across users, your experience may vary.

Their mid accuracy is excellent. While the mix is fairly neutral across the whole range, an overemphasis from the high-bass to low-mid makes the dip in the mid-mid feel a little more exaggerated. While the dialogue and music in games like Fallout: New Vegas sound very clear and detailed, they feel somewhat nudged to the back of the mix.

These headphones have decent treble accuracy. Dialogue and soundtracks have adequate detail thanks to the well-balanced low-treble, but the underemphasized mid-treble makes sibilants like S and T sounds in dialogue sound dull.

This response represents the average treble response, and as treble delivery can vary across users, your experience may vary.

Their peaks and dips performance is decent. A wide peak between the low-bass and low-mid adds extra thump, punch, and boom to sound effects and footsteps. A dip in the low-mid pushes vocals and lead instruments to the back of your mix, while a large peak in the low-treble makes their upper harmonics sound harsh. An uneven mid-treble range also makes sibilants, like cymbals, alternatingly dull and piercing.

These headphones have great imaging. Logitech's headphones typically have good quality control and ergonomics, resulting in consistent imaging. The group delay falls below the audibility threshold, resulting in tight bass and transparent treble reproduction. Our unit's L/R drivers are also well-matched in amplitude and frequency response, but there's a substantial imbalance in the phase response's mid to treble range. This especially affects the accuracy of high-mid range sound, like voices, which waver between the L/R drivers, creating a hole in the stereo image. It's audible with real-life content, but keep in mind, however, that imaging varies between units.

The Logitech G435 have a passable passive soundstage. They're closed-back headphones, so while the soundstage feels wide and natural, content sounds like it's coming from inside your head rather than from all around the room.

These headphones are compatible with Dolby Atmos, PS5's Tempest 3D AudioTech, and Windows' Sonic Spatial Audio, all of which virtually reproduce an open-sounding soundstage to make your game feel more immersive. However, some of these kinds of programs, like Dolby Atmos, require a separate paid subscription.

These headphones have a very good weighted harmonic distortion performance. There's a small peak at normal volumes in the low to mid-treble, but this can be hard to hear with real-life content. As a result, the rest of the frequency range falls within acceptable limits, resulting in clean and pure audio reproduction.

These are the settings used to test the Logitech G435, and our results are only valid when used in this configuration.

The Logitech G435 have poor noise isolation. They don't have ANC and can't passively block out bass-range noise, like the low rumble of bus and plane engines. They also struggle to cut down mid-range ambient chatter but do a better job reducing the high-pitched noise from an AC unit or PC fan.

These headphones have a sub-par leakage performance. Leakage is concentrated between the mid to treble range, so escaping audio sounds somewhat full-bodied. Even in noisier environments, like a busy office, you're likely to bother your colleagues when listening at high volumes.

Their recording quality is fair. Their integrated mic can't pick up on your voice as well as a flexible boom mic can, but you still sound bright and clear, though somewhat thin and unnatural. The Turtle Beach Stealth 500 Wireless offer a much better microphone recording quality if that's important to you.

The microphone's noise handling performance is mediocre. The mic struggles to separate your voice from moderate ambient noise, so you're not likely to be heard by your team if someone is vacuuming nearby. If you're talking near an open window with a lot of traffic outside, your voice can be drowned out entirely.

The Logitech G435 have excellent battery performance. The manufacturer advertises them to last 18 hours on a single charge, and we measured just under 20 hours. They have an auto-off timer to help conserve battery life, but they lack an AUX port, meaning you can't use them passively when they run out of power. Fortunately, you can still use them while they're charging. Keep in mind, though, that battery life varies depending on use.

These wireless headphones come with a USB-A to USB-C cable for charging the headphones. You can't use it for audio.

These headphones have great Bluetooth connectivity. They have low latency on PCs, making them well-suited for wireless gaming. Some devices and apps also compensate for latency. However, they don't support multi-device pairing, so you can't listen to audio on your phone while gaming simultaneously.

Some users have also reported issues connecting their headsets to the Nintendo Switch via Bluetooth. The headset doesn't seem to appear on the Switch's 'Pair Device' list, and there have been issues updating the headset via the Logitech Update Tool. At first, we couldn't pair our unit to its USB dongle, even though the PC recognized it. We had to perform a hard reset by using a pin to press the button located within a small hole in the left ear cup. After this, everything worked normally, and we could update the headset by connecting them via wired USB and using the update tool. Once you complete this update, you can connect your unit to your Nintendo Switch by holding down the 'Mute' button for three seconds, allowing you to alternate between Bluetooth and the USB dongle.

The Logitech G435 have great non-Bluetooth wireless connectivity. They have low latency using the USB dongle, so your game audio and video stay in sync.

These headphones have full audio and mic compatibility with PCs via Bluetooth or the included wireless dongle.

These headphones have audio and mic compatibility with PlayStation consoles via their wireless USB dongle.

These headphones have a wireless USB-A dongle that works on PlayStation consoles and PCs. It delivers full audio and mic compatibility.