introduction
“It’s a Sony” – this was Sony Corporation’s slogan at the time and it may be making a comeback as the success of its flagship Wireless Headphones (WH) and Wireless Free (WF) ranges has made them the gold standard for headphones Bluetooth with active noise canceling technology. The WF earbuds are now at the XM5 version with a more compact design, new 8.4mm Dynamic Driver .
As you’d expect, these flagship Sony earbuds aren’t cheap, retailing for around $300/€300/€260. So are they worth the price when their predecessors are now being offered at a considerable discount? We have been using the WF-1000XM5s for almost two weeks now and hope to be able to answer this and many other questions in the following lines.
Project
Previous WF-1000XM earbuds were larger than most of their direct rivals, but Sony has now slimmed them down appropriately. The XM5s are 25% smaller and 20% lighter than their predecessors. Each earbud now weighs 5.9 grams while the case weighs 39 grams, bringing the total combined weight to just over 50 grams – a far cry from the bulky XM3s we reviewed in 2020.
The design of the XM5s is still unmistakably Sony with gold accents for the Sony logos and mesh microphone cover, as well as the charging case cover. The buds themselves feature a mostly glossy finish with a matte texture on the outside where we have the touch controls. The case is reasonably compact and boasts a pairing button, a USB-C port and support for Qi wireless charging. Our test pair comes in silver which handles smudges quite well, and the only other color you can currently get is classic black.
Last year’s XM4 buds introduced the new polyurethane foam tips which carry over to the XM5s. The earbuds come pre-installed with size M tips, while the package offers replacement tips in sizes XS, S and L. Sony’s foam tips offer superior noise isolation than their silicone counterparts, although they also tend to expand in the ears, which may prove to be a problem for some users.
In my case, the default size M eartips fit my ears a little too tightly, so I resorted to the size XS eartips which offered a better fit. I also tried switching to some regular silicone tips from another pair of earbuds and in my book they were more comfortable.
The XM5s come with IPX4 splash- and sweat-proof protection, which is pretty standard for earbuds in 2023. The case doesn’t feature any ingress protection, so you’ll need to keep it away from liquids.
Characteristics
Sony has spared no expense when it comes to the WF-1000XM5’s spec sheet. There is the new onboard processor V2 which features 24-bit audio processing and analog audio amplification as well as the QN2e HD Noice Canceling processor which drives the ANC system and the Bluetooth SoC. A new addition here is the Quick Attention feature which activates transparency mode when you long press the left earbud for when you need to hear someone talking to you and then automatically switches back to ANC.
SonyWF-1000XM5
Sony says the new 8.4mm Dynamic Driver The earbuds support the latest Bluetooth 5.3 standard and what’s new is additional support for the LC3 codec which promises lower latency and lower power consumption compared to legacy SBS and AAC codecs.
If your device and media app support the LDAC codec, you can stream higher bitrate audio up to 990 kbps with 96kHz sampling. You also get 360 Reality Audio spatial audio with head tracking and multi-point pairing to two devices simultaneously, out of the box. This last aspect is noteworthy as the XM4s had to wait several months for a software update before they could handle multipoint pairing.
Each earbud now boasts three microphones, and Sony has added an AI machine learning noise reduction engine and bone conductor sensors that should do a much better job of picking up your voice during calls. You also get Google Fast Pair on Android and Swift Pair for Windows 10 and 11 devices for easy pairing with your devices. Hands-free Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa let you control all aspects of the earbuds as well as all the other tricks both virtual assistants offer.
The XM5s carry standard touch controls on their outer shell, however, they’re not remappable, so you’re stuck with what Sony has deemed optimal: four taps for volume adjustment are a bit of a pain. Sony has also added a Find Your Equalizer feature that guides you in creating a custom equalizer optimized for your listening preferences.
The Adaptive Sound Control feature automatically switches between noise-canceling and ambient modes based on your surroundings and activity. Running and walking will have the Ambient mode active while the transport and stay modes will activate the noise canceling mode. Talk to Chat is another familiar Sony feature that instantly activates ambient mode so you can hold a conversation without interrupting the music.
Sony’s Headphones Connect app for Android and iOS is your one-stop shop for managing the XM5’s array of features, including EQ and ANC modes.
Find your Sony equalizer and head gestures
Rounding out the features section are some gimmicky additions like new head gestures that let you accept incoming calls with a nod and reject them by shaking your head. There are also some beta features like AutoPlay which plays music based on your activity. You’ll get upbeat music for your runs and calming, relaxing music at the end of the workday or after a long call. SpotifyTap is also here to allow Spotify users to jump straight to their songs with a double tap on the touch control.
Performance and sound quality
We tested the WF-1000XM5s back and forth with an iPhone 13, Sony months for a software update like on the XM4s.
The XM5s offer a ready-made balanced audio profile with just the right amount of bass without overpowering the rest of the frequencies of the audio spectrum. Like their predecessors, these earbuds tend towards a warm soundstage with a smooth transition between low, mid and high frequencies. The sound that comes out of the XM5s seems more mature than other popular in-ear offerings we’ve tested recently, and we can confidently say that it’s a step up from the XM4s, too.
Mids are faithfully reproduced with vocals and instruments offering nuanced details that are harder to spot on more affordable in-ear headphones. Treble response is also a step up from the XM4 with more clarity in the upper range. With that in mind, Sony’s Headphone app lets you tweak all aspects of the EQ to your specific tastes.
The XM5s punch above their weight in terms of volume thanks to their upgraded 8.4mm drivers. Listening in LDAC mode proves to be a slightly better experience, however, like my previous experience with the high bitrate codec, it is taxing on battery life and is only noticeable on specific occasions on the higher bass range and the string instruments.
And then we come to noise cancellation, the main feature of the WF-1000XM series. The updated ANC system on the XM5s is by far the best implementation we’ve tested on a pair of in-ear headphones. Part of that is likely due to the foam ear cushions which offer great passive noise isolation on their own.
Air conditioners, water coolers and other mid-frequency noises are blocked as soon as you wear the XM5s. Even more impressive, the XM5s handle busier environments just as well, managing to block out a large portion of sound across the noise frequency spectrum. Even though the ANC isn’t at the level of the WH-1000XM5, we can consider the WF-1000XM5 the benchmark for in-ear noise cancellation.
The ambient mode is done perfectly allowing you to naturally hear your surroundings and voices, which is usually a weak point for other wireless earbuds. You also don’t get the vacuum effect usually associated with cheaper noise canceling earphones.
We were also impressed with the microphones offering excellent voice pickup – a notable improvement over the XM4s in our call tests. The XM5s managed to pick up my voice on busy streets with lots of car traffic and even handled moderate winds with people on the other side reporting clear reception of my voice.
Latency performance when watching video content shows minor delays, better than most wireless earbuds we’ve tested. There is still some audio lag when gaming, but that’s the case with all Bluetooth headphones. Connectivity was solid throughout my testing on all four test devices, with no dropouts or slowdowns.
Battery life
Sony claims that the XM5s are capable of 8 hours of battery life with ANC active, while the case adds two full charges, bringing the total playback time to 24 hours.
In our tests, we got up to 7.5 hours with ANC (on the SBS codec), which is pretty good although a bit far from class-leading earbuds that offer over 11 hours on a single charge. It’s also important to note that the high-resolution LDAC audio codec is even more taxing on the battery and we only get 6 hours of continuous playback which matches the XM4s. The charging case adds two full charges of the earbuds, meaning the combined battery life reaches 22.5 hours.
A full charging cycle of the earphones and case takes 90 minutes via the USB-C port while the wireless route takes over 3 hours. A 3-minute quick charge via USB-C will give you up to an hour of playback.
Verdict
The Sony WF-1000XM5s are the best-sounding wireless earphones we’ve tested to date. They also offer excellent noise cancellation, a wealth of features, and come in a lighter, pocket-sized design.
Sound quality benefits from the new 8.4mm drivers, and the improved sound tuning addresses one of our only gripes with the XM4s: rolled-off upper treble. The noise cancellation is one of a kind and surpasses competitors from Apple and Samsung.
The only gripes we have with the XM5s are the non-remappable touch controls and foam earpads that are less comfortable than silicone tips for longer listening sessions.
If money is no object then the XM5s are a resounding yes! We believe you can’t go wrong with these earphones, no matter what smartphone ecosystem you’re in.
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