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We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
If you want a safe, wired, kid-proof headset for school and travel, choose New Bee 2; if you need to turn any airplane screen, gym TV, or car AUX port into a Bluetooth connection for your own wireless headphones, choose Twelve South AirFly Pro 2. These are two very different answers to the same travel question, and picking the wrong one means carrying something that never solves your actual problem.
• New Bee 2 — biggest strength: a hard-wired 3.5mm connection with a switchable 85dB/94dB volume limiter, so there is no pairing, no battery, and no way for the volume to creep up on a child.
• New Bee 2 — biggest trade-off: it only works with devices that have a 3.5mm jack (or need a Lightning adapter), and it is built for kids rather than adult ears.
• Twelve South AirFly Pro 2 — biggest strength: it converts a wired audio source into Bluetooth 5.3 and can pair two sets of wireless headphones at once, with 25+ hours of claimed battery life.
• Twelve South AirFly Pro 2 — biggest trade-off: it does nothing on its own — you still need your own Bluetooth headphones, and it relies on a battery you have to remember to charge and maintain.
• Who each pick is for: New Bee 2 for parents equipping a child aged roughly 4–16; AirFly Pro 2 for adults who already own AirPods or other wireless headphones and want to use them on a plane, in a rental car, or at the gym.
The New Bee 2 is a straightforward wired kids' headset, and its whole design philosophy is removing variables. There is no Bluetooth, no pairing, no charging, and no app. You plug the 3.5mm jack in and it works. For a parent handing a headset to a seven-year-old on a long drive, that simplicity is the feature.
The headline spec is the volume limiter switch. You get two settings: 85dB for quiet environments like a classroom or the living room, and 94dB for louder surroundings where engine noise and traffic would otherwise drown out the audio. For anyone shopping with a child's hearing in mind, that two-position switch is the reason to look at this model at all. It also carries a built-in HD microphone, which makes it usable for online classes, video lessons, and voice chat rather than just passive listening. The 32-ohm impedance and 20kHz frequency response are modest, ordinary numbers for a headset in this class — nothing exotic, but nothing that will get in the way of speech or cartoons.
Who should buy it: parents who want a wired, volume-limited headset for one or two children, and who value zero setup over wireless convenience.
Who should skip it: anyone who wants to use wireless headphones, anyone whose device has no 3.5mm port and who does not want to deal with an adapter, and adult listeners who want better sound than a child-focused headset is designed to deliver. The listing is explicit that iPhone 7 and newer, plus certain iPad Pro models, need a Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter — check your device port before ordering.
Twelve South AirFly Pro 2: Who It's For
The AirFly Pro 2 solves an entirely different problem. It is not a headset. It is a small Bluetooth 5.3 transmitter and receiver that plugs into a 3.5mm AUX jack and bridges the gap between old wired audio hardware and modern wireless headphones. That is a niche, but it is a niche that shows up constantly when you travel.
In transmitter mode, it takes audio from an airplane seat-back screen, a gym treadmill TV, a gaming console, or a classic stereo and sends it to your AirPods, Beats, Sony headphones, or any other Bluetooth headphones. In receive mode, you flip the switch and it does the reverse: your phone streams to the AirFly, which feeds the car or boat AUX port. That single flip makes it useful in a rental car with no Bluetooth, or on an older stereo system that still sounds good but has no wireless input.
The dual-pairing feature is the part I think most people underestimate. Two sets of Bluetooth headphones can connect at once, and there are dedicated pairing buttons for adding the second pair. On a flight, that means two people can watch the same seat-back screen with their own headphones instead of splitting a tangled wired pair. For couples, siblings, or a parent and child sharing an iPad, that is a genuinely useful capability rather than a spec-sheet bullet.
Audio quality is backed by Bluetooth 5.3 with aptX HD Adaptive support, low-latency operation for movies and gaming, and quick-access buttons for volume and mute. Battery life is listed at over 25 hours, and Twelve South notes that the unit skips a display specifically to protect that runtime. It is compact — roughly 0.43" by 1.3" by 4.25" — so it drops into a tech pouch or carry-on pocket without a fight. One practical caveat straight from the product information: it uses a rechargeable battery, and Twelve South recommends using it for 30–60 minutes at least once a month, avoiding full discharge, and charging to around 50% before long-term storage. Treat it like any small battery gadget and it will behave.
Who should buy it: frequent flyers, gym-goers, and road-trippers who already own wireless headphones and keep running into wired-only audio sources.
Who should skip it: anyone who does not own Bluetooth headphones, anyone who wants a headset rather than an adapter, and anyone who would rather not think about charging and maintaining a small battery. Hearing aid users should note that Twelve South only describes standard Bluetooth (not Bluetooth Low Energy) support as a maybe, and recommends checking with the hearing aid manufacturer first.
• Best for young children → New Bee 2. The 85dB/94dB limiter and the 4–16 age range are the whole point.
• Best for using your own AirPods or wireless headphones on a plane → Twelve South AirFly Pro 2. That is literally its job.
• Best for two people sharing one screen → Twelve South AirFly Pro 2. Dual pairing lets two sets of Bluetooth headphones connect simultaneously.
• Best for zero setup and zero charging → New Bee 2. Wired means it always works when you plug it in.
• Best for battery life on long trips → Twelve South AirFly Pro 2. Over 25 hours of claimed runtime, with no display draining it.
• Best for classroom, Zoom, and voice chat → New Bee 2. The built-in HD microphone is designed for exactly that.
• Best for rental cars, boats, and older stereos → Twelve South AirFly Pro 2. Receive mode turns an AUX port into a Bluetooth input.
• Best for a two-child household → New Bee 2. It ships as a two-pack, so both kids are covered in one purchase.
My Verdict
The New Bee 2. Its 94dB mode is designed to cut through engine noise, it needs no charging or pairing, and the 85dB setting protects young ears at home. The AirFly Pro 2 assumes the child already owns Bluetooth headphones and can manage a small battery-powered device.
No — it is a Bluetooth transmitter and receiver. You connect it to a wired audio source, and it sends that audio to wireless headphones. You need your own Bluetooth headphones to hear anything.
Only if your device lacks a 3.5mm jack. The manufacturer states that iPhone 7 and newer, plus certain iPad Pro models, require a Lightning-to-3.5mm adapter. Check your device port before ordering.
Both listings vary, so check the current price on Amazon using the button on this page before deciding. Price aside, the choice comes down to whether you need a headset for a child or a Bluetooth bridge for your own wireless headphones.
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