Sony WH-1000XM4 Industry Leading Wireless Noise Cancellation Bluetooth Over Ear Headphones with Mic for Phone Calls, 30 Hours Battery Life, Quick Charge, AUX, Touch Control and Voice Control – Black

3 Months into use everyday, worth a purchase
I have been using these industry leading headphones by Sony, colour Midnight Blue, and trust me i find them worth every penny spent. Yes, i agree these headphones are highly expensive, some may say you can purchase Apple Airpods, Boss, Sennheiser, and other audio equipment options, but trust me nothing beats these bad boys.I am not a tech reviewer, but since being a musician, a music connoisseur myself and a huge fanatic of accessories such as headphones, earphones and smart gadgets, i can tell, these headphones are a revolution to the sound industry. I’ll be quoting every pros and cons that i’ve personally come across and might help a few of you who decide to purchase this beauty.Pros:1. Active Noise Cancellation (ANC): Let’s talk about people who love listening to their music without any external interference while working, walking, running, working out, during a flight, or any other mode where they’d use them, ANC is a boon. Switch to ANC, you’ll have the minimum of the minimum noise entering your ears. Only sounds close to you can reach at a very low level, else wise, you won’t feel a thing in your ear. Be prepared for some bashing from your parents when they scream your name on top of their voices, and you’ve got that ANC kicked in.2. 3 Ambience Sound Control (ASC) ON: Apart from the ANC, there are two more features that these bad boys offer. ASC when active gives you a chance to listen to your surroundings at a certain level where you can be aware of people speaking, birds chirping, children hauling in the park, and other sounds. This feature enables one to understand the surrounding noises and doesn’t feel isolated.3. Ambience Sound Control (ASC) OFF: When ASC is disabled or switched off, you can listen to your surrounding voices in a much denser state, ie. much more clearly in comparison to when the ASC is enabled. This feature is much similar to the ASC ON, just a slight difference of pitch and volume of the surrounding entering your ears.4. Head Phones Connect by Sony: Let’s talk about the main functioning unit of these headphones, the app provided by Sony under the name of Head Phones Connect. You can download it from the App store if you are an iPhone user just like me, as well as from the play store for android users.This app is highly functional as well as quite intact providing a list of various functions such as adaptive sound control which is highly recommended to lazy people just like me. Once all set up, the app detects your actions and locations frequently, and switches the headphones settings automatically.In addition, if you are a daily user of these headphones just like me, the app tracks your daily attributes such as at what certain volume do you like listening you music, which mode do you mostly use, which location do you travel, and then adjusts the headphones as per your choice.One feature which at first startled me a lot but i really got impressed by it which is the Speak-to-chat feature. It’s always annoying to either pull your phone out of your pocket and pause the music or to just pull off your headsets every time you need to talk to someone. This feature enables your headphones to pause automatically the instant you start speaking, and shall remain pause for about 20 secs and resume on their own if they do not detect any speech.For better sound quality, the app detects the size and shape of your ear through these headphones. This enables the device to perform better with distinct users.5. Motion Gestures: The right ear piece of the headphones has all the motion gestures such as taps for music pause/play, attend a call, play next/previous song and remove the headsets and the song pauses. These controls are highly helpful and can be easily learnt through the guide book provided, hence i won’t dive deeper into it.6. Number of devices that can be paired at once: These headphones provide an option of connecting two devices simultaneously. You can connect these headphones to almost every device that has a latest and updated version of bluetooth/NFC. Devices that i’ve paired them with are iPhone, macbook, hp laptop, and android phones.7. What’s in the box: The box comes with an impressive in-shape carrying case to carry these bad boys where ever you go. Also they include a C-type data cable for charging, 3.5mm jack cable which is quite long (haven’t measured it honestly, but it is as long as a regular data cable), and a dual port 3.5mm jack converter, which so far i haven’t tested.8. Battery Life: Well i must say that i am quite impressed with the battery backup these headphones provide. This device completely charges within 3 hours and trust me with an ON/OFF mode of playing music regularly, the battery stays up till 4-5 days, which is i bet a highly impressive feature which probably no other company audio equipment in this range might have.9. Voice Assist Functions: These headphones can be connected to google assistant, SIRI and alexa and perform really well.10. Easy access keys: The headphones are enable with two easy access keys on the left earphone. The custom key toggles between the 3 modes that i’ve already mentioned above which are guided by the in-built assistant voice. The power key pressed long enough, turns ON/OFF the device and pressed once, the in-built assist provides you with the current % of the battery left.11. Comfort: I should had talked about it earlier, but never mind. With no questions asked these headphones are highly comfortable, the cushion provided is the softest pad your ears can get. Since i am regular spectacle user, i find it hard with headphones imposing excessive pressure over the ears, making it a painful experience, but these headphones give a feather touch to your ears, even if you are specy or even while wearing a face mask. These go good with everything.12. Battery Saver: These headphones tend to power-off on their own if not in use for more than a minute which is a highly power efficient feature added by Sony to the device.Cons:1. If you are into running or any sort of longer workouts, be prepared for sweaty ears. Since the cushions on these headphones completely cover you ears, creating a vacuum sort of environment, no air flows in and out, and the sweat starts dripping down from the earphones, which i must state doesn’t affect them at all, only can be slightly irritating sometimes.2. ANC can be difficult to be kept enabled every time since it reduces the environment sounds to almost negligible, which can be dangerous while running or walking at a buss street. Be very careful while using this feature. Probably it is made for environments such as while travelling in a bus or a flight, and seems suitable for these environments.3. Since these headphones can be simultaneously be connected to two devices at once, which is a boon, but is also a slight problem in disguise. Imagine your headphones are connected with your laptop as well as you phone. You are attending an important zoom call while on your laptop and the headphones are in action, your phone starts to ring, now abruptly you’ll start hearing you phones ringtone, and the device gets a little startled to which device shall be entertained. i’ve personally faced this, but i tend not to connect them to two devices at once.PS: One highly important thing is, you won’t get an experience of the sound through reading review or watching Youtube videos. You might get a fair image of weather to invest in them or not, but you’ll only get the sound experience when you’ll listen the music through these bad boys.

**Disclaimer: I bought mine used like new through AmazonI originally purchased the Sony XM5 because they were soooo highly rated in every article I read. I returned the XM5, got the XM4 and am so much happier. I’ll compare the XM4 to the XM5, Apple AirPods Max, and Bose QuietComfort 45 – just to help anyone choosing between them.**Noise Cancellation (4.5/5): the noise cancellation on the XM4 is crazy, almost comparable to the Apple AirPods Max. I gave the XM4 a 4.5 because I still think the Apple AirPods Max have the best noise cancellation, but the Sony XM4 is very close. I also like the fact that you can turn noise cancelling on/off with a button – which is a feature not available with the Bose QuietComfort 45. The noise cancellation is much better than the XM5 and less finicky. An issue with the XM5 is that the noise cancelling would just randomly turn on/off. Like if I paused a video for a little too long, the noise cancellation would just turn off Overall, I wouldn’t say I it blocks out all sound, but it’s close. I can hear the sound of people talking and music, but it’s quieter and I can’t make out the words. I definitely can’t have a conversation with them on. Also, the XM4 will pick up on when you’re talking to people and turn the noise cancelling off for you – but it does make a little announcement when it does that may be annoying or disruptive.**Sound Quality (4/5): the sound quality is great. Way better than the XM5, not as great as the Apple AirPods Max. I think the Apple headphones are just a little crisper. I think it’s cool that you can turn 360 sound on, but tbh I never really use it (XM5 also has this feature). The sound is clear, and I haven’t experienced any malfunctions/issues with the noise. When I had the XM5, they would just randomly sound muffled (like I was underwater) and, when that wasn’t happening, the sound quality was mediocre.**Comfort (5/5): the XM4s are REALLY comfy. I wear glasses with plastic frames and a lot of headphones just don’t work and are really uncomfy. The Apple AirPods Max were really uncomfortable with my glasses. Obviously, an easy solution is to just wear contacts, but I hate wearing my contacts for long periods of time – especially, when I study/do work. The XM5 were also pretty comfortable, but wouldn’t stay fixed when I adjusted them – they would slip and I would need to readjust them a lot. The XM4 completely cover my ear and the ear pads are soft. They don’t squeeze my head the way other headphones do and they don’t hurt any part of my ear. I will say that the headband part that rests on top of my head does kind of hurt my head after wearing them for almost 10 hours. Also, I have TMJ so sometimes wearing the headphones does cause my TMJ to flare up and I’ll switch to earbuds. But, I think overall these are the most comfortable headphones I have tried.**Product Quality (3.5/5): let’s be honest, they’re plastic and they feel plastic. They don’t feel like super high quality, but let me tell you that they feel way better quality than the XM5 – those felt like a barbie toy. I think the XM4 are sturdy and pretty durable. The Apple AirPods Max are also plastic, but do feel a little more high quality – but also, nothing spectacular.**Aesthetic (3.5/5): If the aesthetic is important to you, I would say they look fine. They’re a little bulky, but not terrible. Not as sleek as some others, but they don’t look ridiculous. If you’re really against a bulky look, then they may not be a great aesthetic match for you. I was worried they would be really clunky, but after getting them and wearing them for a bit, I really don’t think they look bad.**Connectivity (4/5): I only have Apple devices (iPhone, MacBook, etc.) and I think the connectivity is great with these products! When I got the XM5, they had so many connection issues. I wasn’t able to connect them to my laptop, they wouldn’t stay connected to my devices – it was a mess. I was really worried I would have the same issues with the XM4, but I have had no problems so far. I will say it was a little odd to have have to download the Sony Connect app and manage the headphone through that platform, but it’s user friendly and it’s kind of nice to have a control for them (it’s almost like a remote).**Battery Life (5/5): The battery life is insane. I’ve had them for 8 days and have not charged them yet – they still have about 40% charge left. They will turn off automatically to save battery life if you don’t use them for a certain amount of time, which I personally like.OVERALL (4.5/5): I think the XM4 are great headphones for a better price than the Apple AirPods Max. The Bose are apparently really similar, but I’ve never personally tried them. The XM4 is MUCH better than the XM5 in terms of quality and price. They’re comfy, great noise cancellation and sound quality, and have great battery life.

Review completo como consumidor y profesional dedicado al audio, si te da flojera leer, de entrada te digo que esto vale cada centavo, no lo dudes ni esperes, rompe el cochinito porque te lo estás perdiendo.Ahora si para los que dudan de Dios:Hace 3 años adquirí los MDR-XB950N1, mejor conocidos como los Sony Extra Bass. Sin duda fueron una compra demasiado buena, pasé de unos Skullcandy Hesh 2 a los Extra Bass y vaya que la diferencia es muy considerable.Ahora, 3 años después decidí hacer un “upgrade”, yo me dedico a la música, soy estudiante de la materia y me dedico al audio, la verdad es que no puedo llevarme mis audífonos de estudio fuera de casa, necesitaba unos que realmente ofrecieran buena calidad, portabilidad y facilidad de uso con mis aplicaciones. Encontré estos después de hacer un par de búsquedas en internet, los comparé con varias opciones y al final me decidí por comprarlos.En primera debo decir que he quedado impresionado por la tecnología que traen estos audífonos. Puedes personalizar el audio acorde a tu oreja, así es, a la forma de tu oreja, Sony te pide que tomes un par de fotos para que se puedan analizar y proveer mejor experiencia, nunca en mi vida había visto algo así.Desde que los abres se denota un producto bastante premium y que vale el dinero que se paga por él, ya que de hecho no es nada barato.La experiencia de abrirlo es excelente, pero es cuando bajas la aplicación que empiezas a ver lo brutal de estas máquinas. De adelanto estos audífonos ya vienen con carga máxima, o al menos así fue en mi caso, no te pide que los cargues ni nada, funcionan desde que los sacas de la caja. Son extremadamente cómodos y si eres miope como yo y usas fierros para ver, estos audífonos no te van a incomodar en ningún momento.No es que quiera advertir, sino más bien dar aviso de que por defecto los audífonos se oyen un poco flojos, el sonido está un poco saturado, y si te gusta escuchar música como el Heavy Metal o música clásica te quedas pasmado, no se oyen para nada como los Extra Bass que al salir de la caja otorgan un sonido fino y bien configurado. Estos no, pero entiendo por qué lo hacen, ya que como mencioné, la experiencia de verdad comienza cuando bajas la aplicación que tiene como mil opciones de configuración y optimización de sonido, así que prepárate para estar ahí unos 25 minutos de tu vida, que sin duda alguna por supuesto, lo valen.Una vez que has pasado las optimizaciones, toca jugar con el ecualizador, yo recomiendo configuración 400: 1 1K: 3 2.5K: 7 6.3K: 8 16K: 5 Clear Bass: +5 o +7 para escuchar Heavy Metal y música clásica, aunque si eres fan de los medios tal vez quieras mover un poco más, pero como dije, esto es libre y Sony te prevé todas las herramientas para que esto quede sabroso.Ya con todo listo, toca escuchar música, y ahí es cuando te da el golpe. Sabía que habría una diferencia entre los Extra Bass que tengo y los M4 que son estos, pero no sabía que realmente se fuera a notar tanto. Estos no son audífonos, son interfaces de audio andantes, además, Sony te regala una prueba gratis en cualquier servicio de restringe que contenga su servicio Sony Audio 3D, yo escogí Tidal, pero también puedes escoger otros 3 más, ahí aparece la opción.De verdad que escuchar música en formato de alta calidad como es el FLAC que te ofrece Tidal es algo maravilloso, inclusive después de varios años escuchando lo mismo, logré notar varios elementos musicales extras que antes ni sabía que existían en la canción, ahí es cuando te vas para atrás, es como por fin escuchar las cosas sin filtro. También recomiendo el formato “Loss-less” de Apple music en caso de que sean usuarios de iPhone o solo para que tengan una tercera opción. Sea cual sea el servicio que escojan, se oye increíble, pero sin duda combinado con formatos de baja compresión esto se vuelve místico.Claro que esto no es tan plano como unos audífonos de estudio, pero sin duda la experiencia se acerca bastante.En conclusión, estos audífonos realmente son un producto bastante premium, te otorgan no solo alta calidad de audio, sino una experiencia tecnológica muy innovadora, además vienen con su porta audiófonos y cables correspondientes, son muy cómodos y portables. Los recomiendo al 100% no duden en adquirirlo para nada.