Three Months with Sony’s Flagship Earbuds
I bought these with my own money after my AirPods Pro finally gave out. At $300, they’re not cheap, and I went back and forth for weeks before committing. Now that I’ve used them daily for three months, I can give you an honest assessment.
Short answer: they sound incredible. But they might not fit your ears.
What You Get
- The earbuds themselves
- A charging case that’s noticeably smaller than before
- Four sizes of ear tips (SS, S, M, L)
- USB-C cable
- Quick start guide nobody reads
The smaller case is actually a meaningful improvement. My XM4 case barely fit in my jeans pocket - this one slides in easily.
Sound Quality
This is where Sony really delivers. I’m not an audiophile by any stretch, but even I can hear the difference compared to my old earbuds. Bass hits without getting muddy, vocals come through crystal clear, and there’s this sense of space in the music that I didn’t expect from earbuds.
I mostly listen to a mix of hip-hop, indie rock, and podcasts. Everything sounds great. The LDAC codec support is nice if you have high-quality files, though honestly I’m usually streaming from Spotify and it still sounds excellent.
Noise Cancellation
Okay, the ANC on these things is legitimately impressive. I take the subway to work, and with these in, the train noise basically disappears. I can still tell the train is moving, but it’s reduced to this distant hum.
I also took them on a flight to visit family over the holidays. Put them on, turned on some music, and the engine drone was gone. I actually fell asleep on a plane for the first time in years.
Wind noise handling is also much better than my old earbuds. Walking around on a breezy day used to make the ANC freak out, but these handle it fine.
The Fit Problem
Here’s where things get personal - literally. Sony made these 25% smaller than the XM4s, which sounds good on paper. And for me, with medium-sized ears, they fit perfectly with the M tips.
But I let a few friends try them, and reactions were mixed. One buddy with larger ears said they felt like they were going to fall out. Another said they got uncomfortable after about an hour. Meanwhile, my girlfriend (small ears) said they fit perfectly.
So I’d really recommend trying these somewhere with a good return policy. Fit is so individual that I can’t tell you if they’ll work for you.
Battery Life
Sony claims 8 hours with ANC on, 24 hours total with the case. In my experience, that’s pretty accurate. I charge them maybe twice a week, and I use them at least 3-4 hours daily.
The quick charge feature is clutch too - 3 minutes gets you about an hour of playback. I’ve used that more than once when I forgot to charge them overnight.
Call Quality
I was skeptical about this, but calls actually sound great. I take a lot of work calls, and nobody has complained about audio quality. The bone conduction sensor thing they talk about seems to work - even in noisy environments, people can hear me clearly.
Things That Bug Me
- $300 is a lot for earbuds, full stop
- The touch controls are finicky - I sometimes trigger them by accident when adjusting the fit
- Only connects to 2 devices at once (would love 3 for phone, laptop, and tablet)
- No wireless charging case option, which feels like an oversight at this price
Would I Buy Them Again?
Yeah, probably. The sound quality and noise cancellation are genuinely best-in-class. I use these every single day and they’ve become essential to my routine.
But I’d also understand if someone looked at the $300 price tag and decided to go with something else. The AirPods Pro are cheaper and have better Apple integration. The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds have great ANC too.
For me, the sound quality is worth the premium. But it depends on your priorities.
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