I've used these on an airplane, in a car, and at home.  The good news is that they're ok comfort wise.  The great news is how good the noise cancelling feature works.  You hit the switch and it cuts out the largest of the background noise-- the road noise in a car, or the roar of the engines of a jet.  It will not remove ALL sound, but will remove a big chunk of it, enough that it's a relief when you turn it on.  Sound quality is good for this price range, and do you really want to have a $200 pair of headphones going through security, getting smushed in your bag, etc.?  Will $200 headphones sound any better on a plane, when there's so much ambient noise?  I think these are very adequate.  My only complaint:  One week past the 90 day warranty, the vinyl of the ear cup separated at a seam, after only about 8 hours of use.  Not sure if mine was defective, and if I used them more often it certainly would have been under warranty.  I've had a low-end pair of Sonys that were not any more durable and didn't have the noise cancelling, and I tried some noise cancelling ear buds that quit working right off the bat, and didn't do near as good a job.  If more expensive gets you more durable, go for it, but I doubt it, I think you're ok taking your chances on these, they do make a difference and make it easier to hear your music/podcasts, etc. while holding out the snotty sinus noises your neighbor keeps making (Are you kidding me?  Three hours of phlegm?  Good thing it wasn't an exit row or I think I might've popped the door).