Sony WF-1000XM4 True Wireless Earbuds

The Sony WF-1000XM3 was one of the best purchase I made to reduce ambient noise. I purchased the successor, Sony WF-1000XM4, after I thought I lost the XM3 during one of those on-leave-but-working-outside days. The charging case slimmed down a fair bit and now comes with wireless charging. A new integrated V1 Processor replaced the QN1e chip, taking noise cancellation to a new level while lowering power consumption. It also support LDAC in the WF-1000XM4. Since I “lost” the XM3, why not grab the Sony WF-1000XM4? I got it off Shopee SG for S$242.41.

Unboxing the Sony WF-1000XM4

The retail packaging also slimmed down a lot. The packaging appears to be made out of recycled materials. If it really is, great!

I was honestly shocked when I saw and felt the size of the case (for the earbuds). They are small compared to its predecessor – the Sony WF-1000XM3. Despite the smaller case, it packs the same amount of battery capacity – 120 mAh.

Honey, they shrunk the case

The Sony WF-1000XM4 Active Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds

The WF-1000XM4 came fitted with medium-sized foam ear tips. Sony also included the small and large sized ones within the package. The WF-1000XM4 earbuds are also smaller/ more compact than the WF-1000XM3.

New Processor V1, Better Battery and Qi Wireless Charging

Sony mentioned that the new Processor V1 is more energy efficient than the previous QN1e so noise cancelling and high resolution playback will last longer on a single charge. From what I gathered, it is between 7 and 8 hours per charge. The case can provide at least 2 rounds of charging so one can squeeze about 24 hours worth of audio. Not too bad for those on-leave-but-working-outside days.

On top of the regular wired charging via its USB-C port, it also support Qi wireless charging. Just leave it on the charging mat that you are using it for your phone.

Bluetooth 5.2, Multipoint Connectivity and new audio codecs

Connectivity has also been bumped up to Bluetooth 5.2 from the previous 5.0. The WF-1000XM4 also supports multipoint connectivity. This allow the earbuds to be connected to two separate device simultaneously. How is this useful? You could be listening to music on your laptop and when a call come in (through your phone), the earbuds will switch source automatically. Neat.

Other than the usual SBC and AAC, the WF-1000XM4 now support LDAC as well like its cousin – the WH-1000XM4. Hence, if you want to use the higher bitrate LDAC, do enable it in your Android’s Developer options under “Bluetooth Audio LDAC codec Selection”.

Sound and Comfort

The first thing I did was to swap out the foam ear tips for Comply’s. Isolation is better as it passively cuts the ambient noise and leaves the active noise cancellation to do its magic for the remaining noise. The earbuds feel comfortable on the ears without much noticeable weight.

I am not an audiophile and it doesn’t sound awful to me. I used some affordable wired earbuds before and it sounded flat and muffled for some. For the WF-1000XM4, the base in my music sounded clear and detailed. The voices during calls also sounded clear.

Conclusion

I thought I lost my WF-1000XM3 but I found it on the day that the Sony WF-1000XM4 is delivered. I found the WF-1000XM3 in one of obscure corner of my bag and it refused to show itself despite me turning the bag upside down. As a result, I get to really test both earbuds side-by-side.

The smaller case great but hopefully I won’t misplace it in the future. The Qi wireless charging is a nice touch but not entirely necessary as I prefer to get it quickly charged up.

In terms of audio, it sounds like an upgrade to me. Active noise cancellation works great in noisy environments. I no longer get the clicking noise in one of the earbuds when I am on the bus when the ANC (active noise cancelling) is on. I can’t really say whether the ANC on the XM3 or XM4 is better as my noise environment isn’t controlled. But it definitely works.

If you need a pair of active noise cancelling wireless earbuds, check out the Sony WF-1000XM4. It works and music sounds great.