Sony WF-1000XM4 Review – God Tier ANC Earpods! 5/5
Here’s my Sony WF-1000XM4 Review which is now out in the market particularly with Lazada at Php13,999 and is definitely a god-tier earbuds from Sony!
First check out my Sony WF-1000XM4 Unboxing:
Design
Seems like Sony does pay attention with the comments and suggestions of users of the previous version the WF1000XM3 as its now a lot more compact which is easier to control and keep in your pockets especially when your walking or doing sports activities (I promise we will get to that later). But while the did make the size smaller compared to the previous version by around 10% but it certainly packs a punch. The case is even smaller with Sony saying its smaller to the XM3 by 40% but still provides 16 hours of juice.
The case not only looks nice and benefitted from a redesign but its also up to standard with the current set up which means its got a USBC port or a Type-C port and is easy to operate thanks to the use of the traffic lighting system. Red already means its out of juice and well, you know the rest.
I also have to comment that the box is just so simple and minimalistic. No fuss no frills and very easy to unpack plus it’s made from recyclable materials.
Just a little nitpick for this review.
Functions
I totally loved the ANC function of this earpods. They made it in such a way that its easy for you to enjoy these earphones. First I want to talk about is the Ambient Noise Cancellation feature here. It’s so scary how silent it can get when you put these on your ears with the ANC function turned on. You don’t hear anything. AT ALL. Sony calls this “Evolved Digital Noise Canceling with Integrated Processor V1”.
Just like most of the top tier headphones in the market today, the XM4 can also immediately recognize when it is not being worn and will immediately pause whatever is playing and will remain in that state for as long as its got battery. This is perfect for people working at home or content creators. This is definitely an all-encompassing good purchase!
The touch control settings for this product is also clearly one of the best I’ve tried this year. The left earbud is the MVP of this set with the controls for Ambient Sound and Noise Cancelling toggled on this side. Double tapping on the right on the other hand will help with skipping tracks which comes in handy when your streaming music through Spotify. Using the Sony Headphones Connect app
The WF-1000XM4 headphones feature intuitive touch control settings—for example, tap on the left earbud to change from Noise Canceling to Ambient Sound and long tap for Quick Attention, or double tap on the right to skip to the next track. What’s more, you can assign your own functions to each earbud using the Headphones Connect app.
Sound Quality
The Sony WF-1000XM4 goes out of its way to provide excellent Sound quality with High-Resolution Audio Wireless. It would really help if you use the appropriate foam tips to “seal in” the sound and make the other functions work better. Generally speaking this product gets good notes and it can even hit the middle-C segment in certain songs. Lead guitars and riffs are crisp and clean and the bass is also mean.
Even when using the buds for calls, I was blown away about how great the quality is. Even the microphone built-in on this bad boy is just awesome.
Battery
The hype is real when it comes to the battery life. The 1000XM4 does break the conventional battery life of other earpods/ headphones that are out in the market today! One full charge of the pods will run for a total of eight hours even when you use the Active Noise Cancellation or ANC function. The case can hold an additional two more charges aka 16 hours in total so again its good for when you’re traveling or going to work and not wanting to bothered for a long period of time. This is also improvement as the XM3 can only last for just 6 hours.
And just like other reviewers have pointed out if you are in the market for a good set that lasts longer than 4 hours then the XM4 is definitely the solid choice compared to the Apple AirPods Pro which only has around 4.5 hours of battery in it.
The earbuds offer up to eight hours of audio playback on one charge, with two more full charges – or 16 hours – in the case. That’s a solid offering and a noteworthy improvement on the six hours of playback that the WF-1000XM3 offered.
Usability
There’s also a little technological brilliance here with the 1000XM4 as it connects to your smartphone with Bluetooth 5.2. This is cool especially when your phone has a processor that works extremely well with the current build and helps improve the already impressive battery life.
The Sony WF-1000XM4 is also a good for sporting activities because the design fits snugly in your ear and is nearly hard to shake off. I tried doing a few rounds around our place and it fit really well. These pods aren’t waterproof but it does have an IPX4 which is good against moisture and water splashes i.e. sweating.
This is also the reason why its important to pick out the right size of foam buds from the case. By the way, when you get the XM4, you get three sizes which I think is good.
These earbuds also features Qi technology to allow easy wireless charging although I’m not a big fan of that.
So there you go! I hope that this Sony WF-1000XM4 Review convinces you to pick up one of these. It’s pricey as hell but its worth every centavo you spend! Leave a comment and follow me on Twitter at @thefanboyseo for more tech news and updates!