The SE8 continues Cowin’s incorporation of technology standards improving sound quality for a broader customer demand. The incorporation of Bluetooth 5.0 & AAC Codecs standards, comfortable over the ear pads, redesign and location of controls and control of ambient sound has improved sound depth and performance consistency. That said, I rated the SE8 4 stars because of a design change for storage. The ear cups fold vertically over each other instead of 90 degrees flat and stored in a fatter elliptical case. Having the ear cups lay flat in a larger case has several desirable features:One - having the ear cups fold over each other may cause damage to the soft cup lining;Two - the fold ear cup over storage design is difficult and may cause some customers to damage the connections;Three - having more room in the case allows for storage of cables, a wireless flight adapter, etc.;Finally - having a flat case is more practical to pack and retrieve during a flight.I received an invitation from Cowin to evaluate their SE8 headphones. They requested an evaluation about Appearance, Sound Quality, Noise Cancellation, Comfort and Battery time. Since I own two sets of E7 Pro headphones I decided that the best way to start was to compare the two. I bought my E7 Pro headset on 11/30/19 after weighing the pros, cons and price of several headsets. I am retired, so the headsets are primarily used when traveling. I used the E7 Pro’s on a flight to/from Atlanta to Aruba, a 4 hour flight. In conjunction with that flight, I also tested my new RHA Wireless Flight Adapter. My wife and I used E7 Pro’s during the flight to and from Aruba. I used mine with the RHA wireless transmitter and my wife used a direct hook up. Both of us were very impressed with the NC, comfort and non lag time voice to video parring of the movies we watched using the E7 Pro.For convenience and direct comparison I used my iPAD Pro and Amazon Music with BT and direct connections. I also used my RHA Wireless Transmitter on my receiver for BT. This allowed me to simulate using it on airline systems without BT.My iPad Pro doesn’t have phone access, so I didn’t test it. I suspect that incorporating BT 5.0 and AAC Codecs standards improves 'phone connection quality significantly.Comparison of SE8 vs. E7 Pro Appearance - the SE8 headphones have oval ear cups vs. round ear cups on the E7 Pro; - the SE8 has a smaller radius ear cup to ear cup than the E7 Pro. - both have the same soft leather like comfortable cushiness; - - the E7 Pro folds flat in the case vs. the SE8 folds sideways in the case - the SE8 has physical control buttons on one ear cup that allows for easier control without removing them. The E7 Pro has a slide switch for Off/BT/NC and a touch +/- on the side of same ear cup for volume control; Opinion - Having the ear cups that lie flat in a larger case and laying flat has several desirable features: One, having the ear cups fold over each other doesn’t protect the soft cup lining; Two, having more room in the case allows for storage of cables, a wireless flight adapter, etc.; Finally, having a flat case is more practical to pack and retrieve during a flight then an odd shaped one.Sound Quality - the SE8 headphones has Bluetooth 5 vs. Bluetooth 4 on the E7 Pro; - the SE8 uses the AAC Codecs standards; - the SE8 ear cup sound apertures are 36 mm vs. E7 Pro’s 45 mm; - the SE8 has adjustable ambient sound; - both units worked well with the RHA Wireless Transmitter and parred well with the voice and TV viewing. Opinion - Both lose deep base and crisper higher notes in NC mode; - the SE8 sounds crisper overall, though both sound much better without NC; - the SE8 has a nice feature of ambient sound control where it is important to be aware and in contact with your surrounding; - Both connected easily using a direct wire connection. I did notice that there was a difference in sound quality with both units. Both were were crisper and deeper using the BT option; - I don’t use my headphones for phone conversations or conferencing, so I did not test the phone for clarity. I suspect that BT 5 and AAC Codecs improve phone connection quality significantly; - The SE8 has verbal prompts to help you through connections. I discovered something I overlooked previously with my E7 Pro. The SE8 requested access to my microphone to communicate with my Alexa Dot. I then relooked at my E7 Pro capabilities and discovered it could also can communicate with Alexa.Noise Cancellation Depth - the SE8 reduces noise to 33 db vs E7 Pro reduces noise to 30 db.Comfort - I found that the SE8 headphones to be a little more comfortable.Battery Time - Both are rated for 30 hrs.