If you want wireless gaming audio with Bluetooth for calls or music, choose Turtle Beach Ear Force; if you need open-ear TV listening that keeps you aware of your surroundings, choose Avantree Medley Air. For commuting, neither is a straightforward all-purpose pick: Turtle Beach is the more versatile wireless headset, while Avantree is built around a home TV and its audio connections.
• Turtle Beach Ear Force: Its standout is gaming-focused audio with Dolby surround sound, chat balancing, and Bluetooth for calls or music. Its trade-off is that its feature set centers on gaming, not a dedicated TV transmitter or open-ear listening.
• Avantree Medley Air: Its open-ear design leaves you aware of surrounding sounds, and its dock connects to compatible TVs. Its trade-off is a shorter stated battery life and a specific TV-listening purpose.
• Turtle Beach fits people who want a wireless gaming headset that can also handle phone calls and music.
• Avantree fits people who want personal TV audio without fully blocking their ears, while leaving compatible speakers available through optical passthrough.
Turtle Beach Ear Force XP510 is the more gaming-oriented option. It combines dual-band Wi-Fi wireless audio with Bluetooth, so game sound and chat are central to its design, while Bluetooth adds the option to stream music or take phone calls during a session. Its dual-stage processing offers customizable audio presets and Dolby surround sound, and Dynamic Chat Boost automatically raises chat volume as game volume increases.
That mix makes sense for someone who spends long stretches gaming and wants chat to remain audible when action gets loud. The rechargeable battery is specified for up to 15 hours of continuous play, and the headset can charge while in use. It also has an automatic shutoff after five minutes without audio or microphone activity, a detail worth knowing if you sometimes pause a session for a while.
How We Research
We compare products from their published specs and features; the verdicts below are our independent editorial opinions.
Updated: 2026-10-23 · 6 min read · Independent comparison
Avantree Medley Air: Who It's For
Avantree Medley Air is designed for TV listening rather than gaming. Its open-ear earbuds sit outside the ears, letting TV sound come through while you remain aware of other sounds nearby. The system includes a Bluetooth transmitter and charging dock, with TV connection through an available optical or 3.5 mm AUX output. No Wi-Fi or app is required for setup.
Its speech-focused tuning is intended to make dialogue easier to follow without simply turning up the overall TV volume. Optical passthrough lets other people continue listening through a soundbar or speakers while you use the earbuds. That passthrough is specifically optical; HDMI ARC passthrough is not supported. If you connect over optical, the TV should be set to PCM or stereo for optimal sound.
• Best for gaming audio and chat → Turtle Beach Ear Force. Its gaming-focused processing, Dolby surround sound, and automatic Chat Boost directly address game audio and voice chat.
• Best for open-ear awareness → Avantree Medley Air. Its earbuds sit outside the ears, so the design allows you to hear TV audio while staying aware of your surroundings.
• Best for longer stated battery life → Turtle Beach Ear Force. It is specified for up to 15 hours, compared with up to eight hours at normal volume for Medley Air.
• Best for dialogue-focused TV listening → Avantree Medley Air. Its speech tuning is designed to make conversations, news, and shows easier to follow without raising the whole TV’s volume.
• Best for taking calls while gaming → Turtle Beach Ear Force. Bluetooth supports phone calls as well as music alongside gaming.
• Best for sharing TV audio with a soundbar or speakers → Avantree Medley Air, with a condition. Optical passthrough supports this arrangement, but HDMI ARC passthrough is not supported.
• Best for commuting awareness → Avantree’s open-ear design is the closer fit, but it is still a TV system. The product is built around a transmitter dock and TV connections, so I would not treat it as a dedicated commuting solution.
• Best for a broader mix of gaming and wireless listening → Turtle Beach Ear Force. Its combination of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth has a wider stated use case than Medley Air’s TV-centered setup.
The phrase “best Bluetooth headphones for commuting” often points shoppers toward a headset that can handle audio and calls on the move. Of these two, Turtle Beach is the closer match because Bluetooth and phone calls are part of its listed feature set. But its gaming orientation matters: I would not assume it has commute-specific features that are not described.
I would choose Turtle Beach Ear Force if I wanted one of these for gaming, calls, and occasional music, because it combines Bluetooth with gaming audio features and has the longer stated battery life. For commuting, it is the more practical of the two on the information available, though neither is specifically presented as a commuting headset.
If my main need were open-ear TV listening, I would choose Avantree Medley Air instead. Its TV dock, dialogue-focused tuning, and open-ear fit are a much closer match for that job.
Turtle Beach is the closer fit if Bluetooth calls and music matter, and its stated battery life is up to 15 hours. Avantree is an open-ear TV-listening system that connects through a transmitter dock, so commuting is not its stated purpose.
Yes. The earbuds sit outside the ears rather than sealing them, allowing awareness of surrounding sounds while listening to TV audio. They do not have noise control.
It works with a TV that has an available optical or 3.5 mm AUX audio output. Optical passthrough is supported, but HDMI ARC passthrough is not; for optical connection, set the TV audio output to PCM or stereo.
Turtle Beach Ear Force is specified for up to 15 hours of continuous play. Avantree Medley Air is specified for up to eight hours at normal volume, and sustained high volume can shorten its battery life.
• our Wantek Phone Headset vs Weatwo Headset pick
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon and affiliated sites.
When you buy through links on this page, we may earn a commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon or its affiliates. This site is an independent third-party review and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Amazon or the product brands mentioned.