In 2018 Sony launched WH-1000XM3 with 4.2 Bluetooth, 30 hrs battery life that supports SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, and LDAC formats. That was an excellent ANC gear I have ever met to date. Then come Xm4 which was 1 step ahead of WH-1000XM3. I could see an improvement in each dimension like quick charging, improved noise-canceling, Improved comfort, and a premium look.
After Comparing Sony WH-1000XM3 & XM4 I faced no difficulties to announce the winner. It was WH-1000XM4 that steal the show. XM4 also added a new feature that makes it superior to XM3. XM4 offered Multi-Device Connection which was absent in XM3. I thought XM4 will be the last gear in the WH-XM series. XM4 was near to the perfection so I never imagine something better will come after XM4 in the same XM series but I was wrong.
Sony launched another ANC headphone in the XM series which is Sony WH-1000XM5. It took almost 2 years to introduce the new member of the XM family. XM5 officially launched on 20th May 2022. So what's the special in XM5? Why should you buy it when you already have a WH-1000XM4?. Here is the answer. If you want to get an improved version of XM4 think about WH-1000xm5. So, Without wasting the time Let's go for Sony wh-1000xm5 review. After reading a complete review of the Sony WH-1000XM5 it will be easy for you to make your final decision.
Pros:
Cons:
Sound
Build
Battery
Comfort
Bottom Line:
It's quite difficult when you have to choose the best between 2 great audio gears. the same question arises in my mind when I compare xm4 and xm5. I felt the same when I was comparing xm3 and xm4. Let's come to the point. if you haven't bought xm4 yet then the answer is quite easy. It's XM5.
If you are looking for the best noise-canceling Headphones Sony WH-1000XM5 is the best choice. It's miles ahead of its rivals. But the question comes when you already have xm4 and now xm5 came into the market. Should you buy xm5 when you already have xm4? For me, the answer is quite easy. I am happy with the noise-canceling ability of xm4. I am happy with the call quality too. I am not disappointed with the earcups of xm4 but I wish it would like xm5's earcups. so what to do when you already have xm4. I would say no need to buy the new one if you have xm4.
but if you don't have any ANC headphones or you want high quality ANC headphones then you must think of Sony WH-1000XM5. It's awesome except that no foldable design. Happy to give a 4.5 rating out of 5. Sorry, xm5! you lost that 0.5 marks for no foldable design and no water resistance build but you are truly awesome. Let me remind you that XM5 costs $400 and the price of XM4 is $350.
How is the Design and Build Quality of Sony WH-1000xm5?
I tried and tested AirPods max too before testing xm5 and I found some similarities between these 2. First, let’s talk about xm4 and xm5. if you compare xm5 and xm4 I found xm5 is more comfortable than xm4. The main reason for added comfort is softer earcup padding and a more spacious earcup design than xm4. yes! earcups are slightly spacious in size which gives more room to my ears.
The headband is not thick like xm4 but the change in design makes the headband more comfortable than xm4. As I said it's a little bit similar to the AirPods max design. headband has a slider mechanism so you can extend or shorten them as per your head size. though it's not as smooth as AirPods max but better than xm4. earcups can swivel well like xm4. I feel xm5 looks more appealing than xm4.
As I wrote in cons I didn't like one thing about xm5. It doesn't have a foldable design. Though you can fold it up to some extent it's not as good and compact as xm4. This is the reason Xm4 could pack comfortably in a small carrying case but XM5 has a larger carrying case that also takes more space in your bag when you are traveling. Though I must admit that I love that new case of xm5. because it has a separate compartment to keep the wire and charging cable that comes with xm5. xm5 costs more compared to xm4 but that's not the only case. This time they haven't given an airplane adapter as they included with xm4. you have to purchase it separately.
Another reason for more comfort with XM5 is weight reduction. XM5 weighs 250 grams while XM4 is 254 grams. This is a very negligible difference but the overall change in the design along with slight weight reduction makes the XM5 more comfortable. If we compare xm5 with Airpods max AirPods max is much heavier. It weighs almost 390 grams because many parts are made of metal. Though Airpods max has an equal level of comfort of xm5. if you don't want heavy audio gear you may not like Max. let's see how the touch controls of WH-1000XM5 work.
Play/Pause | Tap twice quickly |
Skip to the beginning of the next track | Swipe forward & release |
Skip to the beginning of the previous track | Swipe backward and release |
Fast-forward | Swipe forward and hold |
Fast-reverse | Swipe backward and hold |
Increase the volume | Swipe up repeatedly until the volume reaches the desired level |
Decrease the volume | Swipe down repeatedly until the volume reaches the desired level |
Change the volume continuously | Swipe up or down and hold |
How is the Sound Performance of Sony WH-1000xm5?
I love one thing with sony headphones. They deliver great Bass. When I checked the specifications of XM5 I saw the 30mm driver are used so I thought it will affect the sound quality, especially the Bass. But I was wrong. The upper bass was stronger than the XM4 upper Bass. Mids were warm unlike the bright mids of xm4. highs are also balanced like xm4. I found no significant difference between xm4 and xm5 in soundstage and imaging. When I play the same music with xm4, xm5, and Airpods max I found xm5 was more enjoyable compared to the remaining 2.
What that means is though Airpods max is superior in many other sections like ANC and call quality enjoying music with xm5 was a better experience. It's interesting and surprising that Bass is more powerful despite reducing the driver size by 10 mm. Sony said that these drivers are made up of TPU material that enhances noise cancellation performance and audio fidelity and that's true up to some extent. clear vocals, smooth, balanced, and round mids, and improved bass made the xm5 enjoyable audio cans. if you love high fidelity audio xm5 won't disappoint you and I shouldn't forget to tell you that xm5 is marginally better than xm4 in this department.
How is the Noise cancelling of Sony WH-1000xm5?
This is the area where xm5 shines the most. Active noise cancellation. This time Sony added more microphones and several processor too. No matter whether you are at the airport or on a busy street it worked awesomely. I experienced its ultimate performance when I was in a busy restaurant waiting for someone. The place was so crowded but for me, it was a pleasant silence. I was enjoying my music with no connection to the outside world. Yes! I had the same experience few months back when I was at the airport with my xm4. But xm5 is a better noise canceling gear than xm4.
As I already said if you already have xm4 and you are fine with it no need to get xm5. But if you want the best noise cancellation and want something better than xm4 at an affordable price then xm5 is the best choice. because xm5 costs $50 more than xm4 and Apple's Airpods max costs $550. 10 out of 10 for the noise cancellation of Sony WH-1000XM5.
just keep your palm on the earcup and you will reconnect with your outside world. When you start a conversation with the person near you xm5 automatically pauses the music. once the communication is done it resumes the music. You get the same feature in xm4.
Sony WH-1000XM5
How is the call quality of Sony WH-1000xm5?
I used xm3, and xm4 and now reviewing xm5 and I noticed a common thing between these 3. Sony took special efforts to improve call quality, noise-cancelling, and comfort. Xm4 has better call quality compared to xm3 and now xm5 is the Boss. If you check the specifications of xm4 and xm5 you may say that there is no difference in both. Why should I think about xm5 when I already have xm4. You are not wrong completely but a few areas are there where xm5 dominates and call quality is one of them. Yes! xm4 was the best but xm5 is one step forward.
The speak-to-chat feature automatically stops the music when you start a conversation. But do you know why xm5 works so precisely? because the three technologies coordinate smoothly. Voice Pickup Technology, advanced audio signal processing, and noise reduction algorithm. If you ask me the one reason to buy WH-1000XM5 it would be call quality and ultimate Active noise canceling experience. 10 out of 10 for great call quality. If you are in a crowded area like restaurants or airport or on a train you will get what I mean to say.
How is the Connectivity of Sony WH-1000xm5?
Pairing the source with the xm4 was so easy and the same with xm5. The only difference is that XM4 has a 5.0 Bluetooth version while WH-1000xm5 gives you 5.2. I am not sure yet whether it makes any difference in real life or it's just on paper but xm5 is also very good in this area like xm4. Bluetooth works effectively up to 20-25ft though they mentioned 32ft on paper. Same like xm4, xm5 too supports SBC,LDAC and AAC formats. Though APtX and aptX HD is still missing.
As a general user, I found no issue in the connectivity and no significant difference in the connectivity features of xm5 and xm4. I must not forget to tell you that you will also get a 3.5mm jack in xm5. with the “Sony | Headphones Connect” app all required adjustments are quite easy.
NFC is not available in xm5. If you want NFC xm4 is the better option than xm5. According to many experts, NFC is a better option than Bluetooth because it's more secure and gives a stable connection. Practically I didn't find this completely true in my case but yes, it affects the connectivity. Not something noticeable difference I found between NFC and without NFC.
Let me quickly tell you the features you will get with the Sony WH-1000XM5. These features helped me a lot while traveling. Thank you, Sony. Please note that almost all the features you will get in the xm4. So this shouldn't be the reason to switch from xm4 to xm5 in my opinion.
Passive Operation | Yes |
DSEE Extreme | Yes |
Noise Cancelling | Yes |
Ambient Sound Mode | Yes |
Atmospheric Pressure Optimizing | Yes |
Personal NC Optimizer | Yes |
Quick Attention | Yes |
XM5 also includes the feature "instant pause and play". When you take the headphone off music stops automatically. Sensors in the headphones know when you wear them again and music starts again. Google and Alexa are also at your service with XM5. One important feature that we're missing in XM3 but included in XM4 is also coming back again with XM5. Thia is multipoint connection. Your XM5 can connect with the 2 devices at the same time.
How is the Charging and Battery performance of Sony WH-1000xm5 ?
Now let's talk about the battery. Sony WH-1000xm4 has 30 hrs of battery life. Many of my friends were telling me that the next version of xm4 has better battery life than xm4 but I found no difference between Sony WH-1000xm4 and xm5. Each audio gear delivers 30 hrs of battery life which is impressive.
Fast charging is a very important feature and xm5 is the best. It has a fast-charging feature that keeps xm5 ready to work for the next 180 minutes and it takes just 3 minutes to charge. isn't a great advantage xm5 has? But practically this shouldn't be the only reason to buy xm5 when you have the xm4. why? because my xm4 also gives 300 minutes battery life with just 10 minutes charging. XM5 takes almost 3 hrs to charge the battery completely. I noticed no significant difference in battery performance. xm4 and xm5 both are great in this area.
What’s in the box?
- Wireless Noise Cancelling Stereo Headset
- USB-A to USB-C charging cable
- Headphone cable
- Carrying case
Who should Buy Sony WH-1000XM5 ?
- xm5 is for those who want the ultimate noise-cancelling experience
- If you spend many hours of the day on phone calls xm5 is the best because of its great microphone quality and premium comfort
