Sony WF-1000XM4 Review: The Ultimate Comeback of Wireless Earbuds!

Expectations are high, as this line of earbuds has proven itself as one of the best consumer-grade products in recent years, or at least has been able to take a significant leap forward upon launch: WF-1000XM3, for instance, brought noteworthy noise-canceling technology and sound quality.

Design

Firstly, macroscopic differences regarding design are noticeable, starting from the casing, which is 40% smaller than the previous one and has completely altered its appearance. Beginning with the fact that it stands upright (instead of flat) and lacks a glossy finish, making it less prone to scratches. You can conveniently carry it in your pocket.

The magnets on the case and earbuds securely hold everything with a very strong grip. Additionally, there's a front LED for indicating the charging status of the case, but there's no button for Bluetooth pairing; instead, it's done by holding both earbuds for 7 seconds. This isn't a maneuver you'll have to perform often, though a quick pair rotation is provided and works quite effectively.

Even the earbuds themselves are 10% smaller and have changed shape: rounder on the outside, with this attractive wind-resistant mic, they're less bulky than their predecessors. On the inside, flat, with 3 pogo pins for charging and a sensor to detect if they're in-ear or not. Another common improvement is the IPX4 certification for rain and sweat resistance.

Comfort has been enhanced compared to the XM3s, something we genuinely felt, as well as stability, but you'll need to practice a bit to wear them correctly: After insertion, you'll need to twist them gently clockwise and press them to fit snugly into the ear canal to ensure optimal isolation.

The ear tips are made of polyurethane foam, with a porous structure to keep them in place and improve insulation. The app also has a fitting analysis based on your ear shape and suggests which size you should choose from the three available (S, M, L). Great is everything is made from sustainable, easily recyclable materials, starting from quite compact packaging.

Sound

Turning to sound quality, let's talk straight about music reproduction capability, this continues to be the strong point of WF-1000XM4: currently, there's no official frequency response graph of the WF 1000XM4, but Sony has integrated a new driver unit using a new processor: the V1 to handle sound.

To optimize playback performance, the DSEE Extreme system can be activated, analyzing the music being played in real-time, improving their quality to prevent degradation due to low-resolution MP3 conversion. If you're a high-fidelity enthusiast, there's something new as Sony has also introduced exclusive LDAC codec support on these tiny ones, along with Bluetooth 5.2 enabling wireless transmission and playback with very high quality. The 360 Spatial Sound option is still available.

So, how's the performance? In summary, the new Sony WF-1000XM4 has great sound: Sony has endeavored to improve what was good in the previous ones, considering they're indeed the best wireless earbuds. At first listen, they're richer and more comprehensive than the WF-1000XM3, with good high-frequency detail and non-intrusive bass. Maximum volume is very high, like the Galaxy Buds Pro, but with a more balanced, nuanced output; the driver handles well all music genres, and we have to say with ANC on, listening can be an enjoyable experience.

Everything is also good on the call front: stable signal – even because the BT signal goes to both earbuds simultaneously, just like on the WF1000XM3 – and clear voice, also thanks to the bone conduction sensor detecting vibrations. However, simultaneous connection to two devices is still missing; you'll need some time to comfortably switch from one device to another, e.g., from smartphone to PC.

Active Noise Cancellation

When it comes to noise-canceling ability, these Sonys maintain a high standard, but rely heavily on how snugly the ear tips fit in your ear canals. Personally, we've compared them to the Galaxy Buds Pro (REVIEW) we have (one of the best products on the consumer market in this regard) and found them to be equal when reproducing music in action; Instead, when activating ANC to block out surrounding noise without playing music, we felt the Buds Pro were slightly more effective in terms of voice clarity. However, there's talk about a very high level.

According to data provided by Sony, ANC has significantly improved low frequencies like airplane sounds. Unfortunately, we didn't have the opportunity to test them in this situation, but it turns out they're quite effective in city traffic.

Transparency mode is truly excellent, allowing voices of those close to us to come through without echo. Managing modes is also very interesting: to switch from one mode to another (ANC – Ambient sound – off) you can use touch controls, but there are also two options. Say to Talk detects the wearer's voice, pauses music, and inputs surrounding sound for 15 seconds to allow you to speak (though we didn't use it much because we tend to hum and it'll trigger).

On the other hand, with quick attention, just placing your finger on the earbud prioritizes ambient sound while music continues in the background; then you can press and hold as long as necessary, then return to your listening. Adaptive sound is still there linked to behavior and location (sitting, moving, etc.) and also sensors to detect if we're wearing them or not, immediately pausing playback.

Features

There's also good news for smart features, with support for Google and Alexa voice assistant calling. Additionally, there's the Find My Device feature to ring and locate the earbuds via geolocation.

The app is the usual Sony Headphones Connect that you might have experienced, and it works well on iOS too; divided into three pages: 'status,' 'sound,' and 'system,' where you can control a large number of parameters, from adaptive sound to music reproduction, from ANC to conversation, also allowing you to get quality connection privileges or music playback with adjacent codec options, ear shape analysis, and free music reproduction balance (Sony is one of the few that allows you to do this, although we didn't particularly exploit this capability because we prefer the original more).

The touch control panel is also quite interesting: the fact is the entire protruding round surface from the ear is sensitive and not missed beats. Different commands for each earbud and can be customized directly from the app, but they're grouped into topic groups (ANC and ambient sound management, music playback management, volume). If we consider the root settings, this means, for example: the left earbud controls ANC and the right side playback.

Then, a single press on the left side is used to switch between ANC and Ambient sound on or off. Double press to accept or end a call, hold for quick attention or reject a call. Instead, a single press on the right side to play/pause, double press for the next track, triple press for the previous track, and press and hold to call the voice assistant.

Battery Life

There's good news from a charging perspective as wireless charging support is provided, while Quick Charge gives you 1 hour of playback with 5 minutes of charging.

Battery life is also improved, a single earbud with ANC activated has been extended from 6 to 8 hours, promising to become 24 hours with the presence of the charging case. As far as we're concerned, we've had very little time for this Sony WF-1000XM4 review, we'll say this estimate corresponds to reality.

Conclusion

Sony is targeting high-end users, and from the perspective of sound quality and build, the company has the numbers to do so, always keeping in mind the fact that these are TWS. We may not rate this device highly in terms of ergonomics and switch, but the street price may soon make them more interesting. The new Sony WF-1000XM4 comes in two colors, Black and Silver, with a starting price of $278.