There are a billion reviews for these things so why another one? Well, today I'm hoping to help those trying to decide between these or the Sony WF-1000XM4 in ear noise cancelling buds (see pics). Both are top of the line in terms of noise cancelling.
I love love love Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) headphones. My at-home go to cans are the Sony XM4, with a XM3 as backup. I also own and love my Bose QC 35 II. I've lived with ANC cans on my head for the better part of 5 years. While I realize the sound quality for music is often a little compromised, for non-audiophiles it's usually more than good enough IMO.
But as awesome as the full sized Sony and Bose cans are, when I leave the home I prefer not to look like someone from the 1980s, so I pop in either my Apple Air Pods Pro or my Sony WF-1000XM4 buds. I need good ANC but also comfortable but SECURE fit, good track controls, portability, and decent battery life.
So which is better?
COMMONALITIES
Stuff both the Airpod Pro and Sony have in common:
- both have decent ANC
- both have a great case which can charge the buds while on the go
- both have reasonably good audio quality
- both allow for being connected to multiple devices at the same time
- both can turn off when taken out of the ears (except Airpod can only do this with iPhone/iPad)
- both can start/stop tracks by touch
- both cases can do wireless charging
- both let you see the battery levels for each bud
- both can be set to turn ANC off, and both have "transparency mode" where the mics stop canceling noise and actually amplify your surroundings so you can hear better without having to remove the buds
- NEITHER can increase or decrease volume by touching (!) . Airpods require you say the "Hey Siri"-command ("hey Siri, increase volume by 20 percent") , or fiddling with your phone. For the Sony you'll need to go straight to your device, or set your chosen voice assistant to do it for you via the Sony Headphones app (not tested).
The Airpods Pro and Sony WF have more in common than not. And the few differences may or may not be big enough for you to write home about. Let's have a look:
ANC - Active Noise Cancelling
(If you need details exactly how ANC works, please google it as I don't have the space here to explain this.)
SONY wins here IMO. Both the Airpods Pro and the XM4 are almost equally good at reducing much of traffic, air conditioner and other steady noises. Sony might be a little bit better, but that's subjective.
However, for voices (playground, restaurants, etc), and other non-static noise, the Sony do offer noticeably better noise cancelling in my opinion. It's not a HUGE difference in most situations but I did notice it on occasion and other reviewers seem to agree.
COMFORT and FIT
Airpod Pro wins here (for me). In fact the fit is probably the single biggest fail with the Sony buds. Have a look at my pics and notice how much bigger the Sony buds are. Now remember the whole thing (the big outer part) has to sit between your ears' conch and antihelix, and the actual sound producing part of course goes inside your ear canal. This means the weight of the outer part is dragging on your inner ear quite a bit if not balanced correctly. Since the Sony are so bulky, there's a good chance that parts of it won't ever sit properly in your ears and try to pull out the tips from your ear canal.
Critics would say to just "put them in properly" but this is surprisingly hard to do with the XM4 buds.
You'll also see comments that the way the Sony buds curve is better for ears. IDK, I'm not feeling it. And I'm pretty sure I don't have freak ears. I've never had problems fitting and balancing any buds like the Sony XM4.
The Sony units have a much larger and honestly rather uncomfortably shaped body that houses the ANC chip and microphone.
Even when properly placed in the ears, they stick out.
Weight distribution always seems off to me. I'm a tall man with average sized ears, and it's a chore to make the Sony buds fit comfortably. Once they're in, they often fall out or FEEL like they're about to fall out. This is because the size and weight of the outer parts of the XM4 buds is rather high, at least compared to the Airpods Pro.
Another part of this is the size of the ear tips (see below).
To get the Sony buds in my ear I have to use both hands: one to tug and pull the ears, the other to wedge and move the buds into place. If I don't get it juuuuuust right, they are prone to fall out. Very annoying.
Airpods Pro: one hand, quick move and they're in - and stay in. I have more confidence in that the buds will stay in during movement compared to the Sony XM4. Somehow the weight, size, and ear tips all just work better for me. Your ears may vary.
Side note: the part that goes INSIDE your ear canal has a removable and replaceable ear tips. Those tips come in several sizes and most people find one that fits. Somehow none of the 3 that Sony provides really fit me, but the "Large" are the closest ones. Since they're very tight on me, they provide a better passive noise cancelling. But they're quite uncomfortable. The other 2 are just too small for me. They're also sweaty and pick up lint and dust and (icky alert!) ear wax easily. The fit really matters with these buds, especially considering that they have to compensate somewhat for the extra bulk and weight of the overall unit.
Soundguys claims the Sony have a better fit but I have to disagree. And I really do love Sony headphones in general.
The Airpod Pro on the other hand come with cleaner and better fitting ear tips. They have a neat magnetic thing where you "clip on" the tips. It's a strong connection and yet makes it easier to replace them if you need to. They're also easier to clean (bye ear wax!) Since the buds aren't as bulky or heavy, it feels like the tips stay in the ear canal better. I can use the Medium size tips and they fit perfectly.
BATTERY LIFE
TIE. Assuming you have ANC on all the time, and have the case with you (the case houses a battery which in turn can charge the ear buds batteries), you'll get about the same play time out of either set. Some sites say the Sony get longer playback before needing to be charged, others say the opposite. MY experience is that both have about the same playback time, and both have another 18 or so hours of juice from the case. Again, your use of ANC and other factors change these numbers somewhat.
CHARGING
Sony wins here because you can charge the case using USB-C cables - much faster than Apple's slower Lightning. In my experience, the case charges up about twice as fast as the Airpods Pro case.
I have not tested wireless charging for either.
SOFTWARE
I've not tested Sony's Headphones app much except I downloaded it on both my iPhone, iPad, and Android phone. It works flawlessly on all devices for me. You can change some parameters but overall it's probably not something you'll need to use a lot. I didn't, hence no further ratings
Apple Aiprods Pro work perfectly with iOS devices right out of the box. Pairing is super fast, and all settings can be changed within iOS directly.
OTHER
I find that both connect to all my devices just fine, Bluetooth connectivity is strong on both, and the distance between ear buds and device is about the same before I get connectivity problems.
I do like the seamless switching between iPad, iPhone and Macbook Pro that the Airpods Pro can pull off. It's almost instant and just works - IF you're on iOS or Mac OS
The Sony also work on all devices I tried them on but switching between them is not always as seamless or fast.
I HATE that I can't change volume directly on the buds on either of these. Sony has these awful "touch" pads on the side and I find myself constantly tapping and re-tapping to start or stop the audio because I sometimes miss hitting that tiny spot where you're supposed to touch.
The Airpods have a dedicated little clicky button that just works more reliably in my experience.
You WILL lose one or both of your ear buds at some point. Death, taxes, and losing ear buds. It's a law. And I love how Apple implemented the FIND MY option here. If you lose your Airbuds Pro, simply make them sound an alarm and use the GPS feature on your phone to find them. It works really well.
I didn't find a way to do this on the Sony buds.
SOUND QUALITY
This one's a bit subjective. I find the Sony to be a tad better, with a little more bass and oomph yet they never sound muddy to me. The difference isn't massive and audiophiles probably have their own overly persnickety opinions about either option.
FINAL WORDS
There are several things I either didn't test or don't want to spend time talking about. The apps (equalizer options, voice assistant options, etc) are something you'll need to figure out for yourself if that's important. For me, the default settings are sufficient for both the Sony and the Airpods Pro.
The biggest takeaway for me is that the Airpods Pro fit my ears a lot better and feel more "secure" in my ears than the Sony. The Sony have better noise cancelling.
You'll find online reviews that claim the opposite, other reviews that agree with my findings. You really need to figure it out yourself.
One final suggestion is that if you primarily or solely use Apple devices, your better bet is probably to invest in Airpods Pro - the seamless switching is excellent.
There is a newer version of this item:
Compare Apple AirPods
| Price | From: - | From: $479.99 | From: $99.00 | From: $169.00 |
| Ratings | (143,096) | (11,488) | (571,888) | (3,929) |
| Fit | Customizable | Customizable | Universal | Universal |
| Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode |
|
|
- | - |
| Chip | Apple H1 headphone chip | Apple H1 headphone chip (each ear cup) | Apple H1 headphone chip | Apple H1 headphone chip |
| Hey Siri | Always on | Always on | Always on | Always on |
| Personalized Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking |
|
|
- |
|
| Battery life (listening time on one charge) | Up to 4.5 hours of listening time | Up to 20 hours of listening time | Up to 5 hours of listening time | Up to 6 hours of listening time |
| Battery life (listening time with charging case) | More than 24-hours | - | More than 24-hours | Up to 30-hours |
| Bluetooth |
|
|
|
|
| LED Charging Light Location | Front of case | - | Top of Case | Front of case |
| Qi Compatible |
|
- | - | - |
| Adaptive EQ |
|
|
- |
|
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Apple Airpods Pro vs Sony WF-1000XM4
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2022
There are a billion reviews for these things so why another one? Well, today I'm hoping to help those trying to decide between these or the Sony WF-1000XM4 in ear noise cancelling buds (see pics). Both are top of the line in terms of noise cancelling.I love love love Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) headphones. My at-home go to cans are the Sony XM4, with a XM3 as backup. I also own and love my Bose QC 35 II. I've lived with ANC cans on my head for the better part of 5 years. While I realize the sound quality for music is often a little compromised, for non-audiophiles it's usually more than good enough IMO.But as awesome as the full sized Sony and Bose cans are, when I leave the home I prefer not to look like someone from the 1980s, so I pop in either my Apple Air Pods Pro or my Sony WF-1000XM4 buds. I need good ANC but also comfortable but SECURE fit, good track controls, portability, and decent battery life.So which is better?COMMONALITIESStuff both the Airpod Pro and Sony have in common:- both have decent ANC- both have a great case which can charge the buds while on the go- both have reasonably good audio quality- both allow for being connected to multiple devices at the same time- both can turn off when taken out of the ears (except Airpod can only do this with iPhone/iPad)- both can start/stop tracks by touch- both cases can do wireless charging- both let you see the battery levels for each bud- both can be set to turn ANC off, and both have "transparency mode" where the mics stop canceling noise and actually amplify your surroundings so you can hear better without having to remove the buds- NEITHER can increase or decrease volume by touching (!) . Airpods require you say the "Hey Siri"-command ("hey Siri, increase volume by 20 percent") , or fiddling with your phone. For the Sony you'll need to go straight to your device, or set your chosen voice assistant to do it for you via the Sony Headphones app (not tested).The Airpods Pro and Sony WF have more in common than not. And the few differences may or may not be big enough for you to write home about. Let's have a look:ANC - Active Noise Cancelling(If you need details exactly how ANC works, please google it as I don't have the space here to explain this.)SONY wins here IMO. Both the Airpods Pro and the XM4 are almost equally good at reducing much of traffic, air conditioner and other steady noises. Sony might be a little bit better, but that's subjective.However, for voices (playground, restaurants, etc), and other non-static noise, the Sony do offer noticeably better noise cancelling in my opinion. It's not a HUGE difference in most situations but I did notice it on occasion and other reviewers seem to agree.COMFORT and FITAirpod Pro wins here (for me). In fact the fit is probably the single biggest fail with the Sony buds. Have a look at my pics and notice how much bigger the Sony buds are. Now remember the whole thing (the big outer part) has to sit between your ears' conch and antihelix, and the actual sound producing part of course goes inside your ear canal. This means the weight of the outer part is dragging on your inner ear quite a bit if not balanced correctly. Since the Sony are so bulky, there's a good chance that parts of it won't ever sit properly in your ears and try to pull out the tips from your ear canal.Critics would say to just "put them in properly" but this is surprisingly hard to do with the XM4 buds.You'll also see comments that the way the Sony buds curve is better for ears. IDK, I'm not feeling it. And I'm pretty sure I don't have freak ears. I've never had problems fitting and balancing any buds like the Sony XM4.The Sony units have a much larger and honestly rather uncomfortably shaped body that houses the ANC chip and microphone.Even when properly placed in the ears, they stick out.Weight distribution always seems off to me. I'm a tall man with average sized ears, and it's a chore to make the Sony buds fit comfortably. Once they're in, they often fall out or FEEL like they're about to fall out. This is because the size and weight of the outer parts of the XM4 buds is rather high, at least compared to the Airpods Pro.Another part of this is the size of the ear tips (see below).To get the Sony buds in my ear I have to use both hands: one to tug and pull the ears, the other to wedge and move the buds into place. If I don't get it juuuuuust right, they are prone to fall out. Very annoying.Airpods Pro: one hand, quick move and they're in - and stay in. I have more confidence in that the buds will stay in during movement compared to the Sony XM4. Somehow the weight, size, and ear tips all just work better for me. Your ears may vary.Side note: the part that goes INSIDE your ear canal has a removable and replaceable ear tips. Those tips come in several sizes and most people find one that fits. Somehow none of the 3 that Sony provides really fit me, but the "Large" are the closest ones. Since they're very tight on me, they provide a better passive noise cancelling. But they're quite uncomfortable. The other 2 are just too small for me. They're also sweaty and pick up lint and dust and (icky alert!) ear wax easily. The fit really matters with these buds, especially considering that they have to compensate somewhat for the extra bulk and weight of the overall unit.Soundguys claims the Sony have a better fit but I have to disagree. And I really do love Sony headphones in general.The Airpod Pro on the other hand come with cleaner and better fitting ear tips. They have a neat magnetic thing where you "clip on" the tips. It's a strong connection and yet makes it easier to replace them if you need to. They're also easier to clean (bye ear wax!) Since the buds aren't as bulky or heavy, it feels like the tips stay in the ear canal better. I can use the Medium size tips and they fit perfectly.BATTERY LIFETIE. Assuming you have ANC on all the time, and have the case with you (the case houses a battery which in turn can charge the ear buds batteries), you'll get about the same play time out of either set. Some sites say the Sony get longer playback before needing to be charged, others say the opposite. MY experience is that both have about the same playback time, and both have another 18 or so hours of juice from the case. Again, your use of ANC and other factors change these numbers somewhat.CHARGINGSony wins here because you can charge the case using USB-C cables - much faster than Apple's slower Lightning. In my experience, the case charges up about twice as fast as the Airpods Pro case.I have not tested wireless charging for either.SOFTWAREI've not tested Sony's Headphones app much except I downloaded it on both my iPhone, iPad, and Android phone. It works flawlessly on all devices for me. You can change some parameters but overall it's probably not something you'll need to use a lot. I didn't, hence no further ratingsApple Aiprods Pro work perfectly with iOS devices right out of the box. Pairing is super fast, and all settings can be changed within iOS directly.OTHERI find that both connect to all my devices just fine, Bluetooth connectivity is strong on both, and the distance between ear buds and device is about the same before I get connectivity problems.I do like the seamless switching between iPad, iPhone and Macbook Pro that the Airpods Pro can pull off. It's almost instant and just works - IF you're on iOS or Mac OSThe Sony also work on all devices I tried them on but switching between them is not always as seamless or fast.I HATE that I can't change volume directly on the buds on either of these. Sony has these awful "touch" pads on the side and I find myself constantly tapping and re-tapping to start or stop the audio because I sometimes miss hitting that tiny spot where you're supposed to touch.The Airpods have a dedicated little clicky button that just works more reliably in my experience.You WILL lose one or both of your ear buds at some point. Death, taxes, and losing ear buds. It's a law. And I love how Apple implemented the FIND MY option here. If you lose your Airbuds Pro, simply make them sound an alarm and use the GPS feature on your phone to find them. It works really well.I didn't find a way to do this on the Sony buds.SOUND QUALITYThis one's a bit subjective. I find the Sony to be a tad better, with a little more bass and oomph yet they never sound muddy to me. The difference isn't massive and audiophiles probably have their own overly persnickety opinions about either option.FINAL WORDSThere are several things I either didn't test or don't want to spend time talking about. The apps (equalizer options, voice assistant options, etc) are something you'll need to figure out for yourself if that's important. For me, the default settings are sufficient for both the Sony and the Airpods Pro.The biggest takeaway for me is that the Airpods Pro fit my ears a lot better and feel more "secure" in my ears than the Sony. The Sony have better noise cancelling.You'll find online reviews that claim the opposite, other reviews that agree with my findings. You really need to figure it out yourself.One final suggestion is that if you primarily or solely use Apple devices, your better bet is probably to invest in Airpods Pro - the seamless switching is excellent.
Reviewed in the United States on August 3, 2022
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Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on October 8, 2022
Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on August 3, 2022
There are a billion reviews for these things so why another one? Well, today I'm hoping to help those trying to decide between these or the Sony WF-1000XM4 in ear noise cancelling buds (see pics). Both are top of the line in terms of noise cancelling.
I love love love Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) headphones. My at-home go to cans are the Sony XM4, with a XM3 as backup. I also own and love my Bose QC 35 II. I've lived with ANC cans on my head for the better part of 5 years. While I realize the sound quality for music is often a little compromised, for non-audiophiles it's usually more than good enough IMO.
But as awesome as the full sized Sony and Bose cans are, when I leave the home I prefer not to look like someone from the 1980s, so I pop in either my Apple Air Pods Pro or my Sony WF-1000XM4 buds. I need good ANC but also comfortable but SECURE fit, good track controls, portability, and decent battery life.
So which is better?
COMMONALITIES
Stuff both the Airpod Pro and Sony have in common:
- both have decent ANC
- both have a great case which can charge the buds while on the go
- both have reasonably good audio quality
- both allow for being connected to multiple devices at the same time
- both can turn off when taken out of the ears (except Airpod can only do this with iPhone/iPad)
- both can start/stop tracks by touch
- both cases can do wireless charging
- both let you see the battery levels for each bud
- both can be set to turn ANC off, and both have "transparency mode" where the mics stop canceling noise and actually amplify your surroundings so you can hear better without having to remove the buds
- NEITHER can increase or decrease volume by touching (!) . Airpods require you say the "Hey Siri"-command ("hey Siri, increase volume by 20 percent") , or fiddling with your phone. For the Sony you'll need to go straight to your device, or set your chosen voice assistant to do it for you via the Sony Headphones app (not tested).
The Airpods Pro and Sony WF have more in common than not. And the few differences may or may not be big enough for you to write home about. Let's have a look:
ANC - Active Noise Cancelling
(If you need details exactly how ANC works, please google it as I don't have the space here to explain this.)
SONY wins here IMO. Both the Airpods Pro and the XM4 are almost equally good at reducing much of traffic, air conditioner and other steady noises. Sony might be a little bit better, but that's subjective.
However, for voices (playground, restaurants, etc), and other non-static noise, the Sony do offer noticeably better noise cancelling in my opinion. It's not a HUGE difference in most situations but I did notice it on occasion and other reviewers seem to agree.
COMFORT and FIT
Airpod Pro wins here (for me). In fact the fit is probably the single biggest fail with the Sony buds. Have a look at my pics and notice how much bigger the Sony buds are. Now remember the whole thing (the big outer part) has to sit between your ears' conch and antihelix, and the actual sound producing part of course goes inside your ear canal. This means the weight of the outer part is dragging on your inner ear quite a bit if not balanced correctly. Since the Sony are so bulky, there's a good chance that parts of it won't ever sit properly in your ears and try to pull out the tips from your ear canal.
Critics would say to just "put them in properly" but this is surprisingly hard to do with the XM4 buds.
You'll also see comments that the way the Sony buds curve is better for ears. IDK, I'm not feeling it. And I'm pretty sure I don't have freak ears. I've never had problems fitting and balancing any buds like the Sony XM4.
The Sony units have a much larger and honestly rather uncomfortably shaped body that houses the ANC chip and microphone.
Even when properly placed in the ears, they stick out.
Weight distribution always seems off to me. I'm a tall man with average sized ears, and it's a chore to make the Sony buds fit comfortably. Once they're in, they often fall out or FEEL like they're about to fall out. This is because the size and weight of the outer parts of the XM4 buds is rather high, at least compared to the Airpods Pro.
Another part of this is the size of the ear tips (see below).
To get the Sony buds in my ear I have to use both hands: one to tug and pull the ears, the other to wedge and move the buds into place. If I don't get it juuuuuust right, they are prone to fall out. Very annoying.
Airpods Pro: one hand, quick move and they're in - and stay in. I have more confidence in that the buds will stay in during movement compared to the Sony XM4. Somehow the weight, size, and ear tips all just work better for me. Your ears may vary.
Side note: the part that goes INSIDE your ear canal has a removable and replaceable ear tips. Those tips come in several sizes and most people find one that fits. Somehow none of the 3 that Sony provides really fit me, but the "Large" are the closest ones. Since they're very tight on me, they provide a better passive noise cancelling. But they're quite uncomfortable. The other 2 are just too small for me. They're also sweaty and pick up lint and dust and (icky alert!) ear wax easily. The fit really matters with these buds, especially considering that they have to compensate somewhat for the extra bulk and weight of the overall unit.
Soundguys claims the Sony have a better fit but I have to disagree. And I really do love Sony headphones in general.
The Airpod Pro on the other hand come with cleaner and better fitting ear tips. They have a neat magnetic thing where you "clip on" the tips. It's a strong connection and yet makes it easier to replace them if you need to. They're also easier to clean (bye ear wax!) Since the buds aren't as bulky or heavy, it feels like the tips stay in the ear canal better. I can use the Medium size tips and they fit perfectly.
BATTERY LIFE
TIE. Assuming you have ANC on all the time, and have the case with you (the case houses a battery which in turn can charge the ear buds batteries), you'll get about the same play time out of either set. Some sites say the Sony get longer playback before needing to be charged, others say the opposite. MY experience is that both have about the same playback time, and both have another 18 or so hours of juice from the case. Again, your use of ANC and other factors change these numbers somewhat.
CHARGING
Sony wins here because you can charge the case using USB-C cables - much faster than Apple's slower Lightning. In my experience, the case charges up about twice as fast as the Airpods Pro case.
I have not tested wireless charging for either.
SOFTWARE
I've not tested Sony's Headphones app much except I downloaded it on both my iPhone, iPad, and Android phone. It works flawlessly on all devices for me. You can change some parameters but overall it's probably not something you'll need to use a lot. I didn't, hence no further ratings
Apple Aiprods Pro work perfectly with iOS devices right out of the box. Pairing is super fast, and all settings can be changed within iOS directly.
OTHER
I find that both connect to all my devices just fine, Bluetooth connectivity is strong on both, and the distance between ear buds and device is about the same before I get connectivity problems.
I do like the seamless switching between iPad, iPhone and Macbook Pro that the Airpods Pro can pull off. It's almost instant and just works - IF you're on iOS or Mac OS
The Sony also work on all devices I tried them on but switching between them is not always as seamless or fast.
I HATE that I can't change volume directly on the buds on either of these. Sony has these awful "touch" pads on the side and I find myself constantly tapping and re-tapping to start or stop the audio because I sometimes miss hitting that tiny spot where you're supposed to touch.
The Airpods have a dedicated little clicky button that just works more reliably in my experience.
You WILL lose one or both of your ear buds at some point. Death, taxes, and losing ear buds. It's a law. And I love how Apple implemented the FIND MY option here. If you lose your Airbuds Pro, simply make them sound an alarm and use the GPS feature on your phone to find them. It works really well.
I didn't find a way to do this on the Sony buds.
SOUND QUALITY
This one's a bit subjective. I find the Sony to be a tad better, with a little more bass and oomph yet they never sound muddy to me. The difference isn't massive and audiophiles probably have their own overly persnickety opinions about either option.
FINAL WORDS
There are several things I either didn't test or don't want to spend time talking about. The apps (equalizer options, voice assistant options, etc) are something you'll need to figure out for yourself if that's important. For me, the default settings are sufficient for both the Sony and the Airpods Pro.
The biggest takeaway for me is that the Airpods Pro fit my ears a lot better and feel more "secure" in my ears than the Sony. The Sony have better noise cancelling.
You'll find online reviews that claim the opposite, other reviews that agree with my findings. You really need to figure it out yourself.
One final suggestion is that if you primarily or solely use Apple devices, your better bet is probably to invest in Airpods Pro - the seamless switching is excellent.
I love love love Active Noise Cancelling (ANC) headphones. My at-home go to cans are the Sony XM4, with a XM3 as backup. I also own and love my Bose QC 35 II. I've lived with ANC cans on my head for the better part of 5 years. While I realize the sound quality for music is often a little compromised, for non-audiophiles it's usually more than good enough IMO.
But as awesome as the full sized Sony and Bose cans are, when I leave the home I prefer not to look like someone from the 1980s, so I pop in either my Apple Air Pods Pro or my Sony WF-1000XM4 buds. I need good ANC but also comfortable but SECURE fit, good track controls, portability, and decent battery life.
So which is better?
COMMONALITIES
Stuff both the Airpod Pro and Sony have in common:
- both have decent ANC
- both have a great case which can charge the buds while on the go
- both have reasonably good audio quality
- both allow for being connected to multiple devices at the same time
- both can turn off when taken out of the ears (except Airpod can only do this with iPhone/iPad)
- both can start/stop tracks by touch
- both cases can do wireless charging
- both let you see the battery levels for each bud
- both can be set to turn ANC off, and both have "transparency mode" where the mics stop canceling noise and actually amplify your surroundings so you can hear better without having to remove the buds
- NEITHER can increase or decrease volume by touching (!) . Airpods require you say the "Hey Siri"-command ("hey Siri, increase volume by 20 percent") , or fiddling with your phone. For the Sony you'll need to go straight to your device, or set your chosen voice assistant to do it for you via the Sony Headphones app (not tested).
The Airpods Pro and Sony WF have more in common than not. And the few differences may or may not be big enough for you to write home about. Let's have a look:
ANC - Active Noise Cancelling
(If you need details exactly how ANC works, please google it as I don't have the space here to explain this.)
SONY wins here IMO. Both the Airpods Pro and the XM4 are almost equally good at reducing much of traffic, air conditioner and other steady noises. Sony might be a little bit better, but that's subjective.
However, for voices (playground, restaurants, etc), and other non-static noise, the Sony do offer noticeably better noise cancelling in my opinion. It's not a HUGE difference in most situations but I did notice it on occasion and other reviewers seem to agree.
COMFORT and FIT
Airpod Pro wins here (for me). In fact the fit is probably the single biggest fail with the Sony buds. Have a look at my pics and notice how much bigger the Sony buds are. Now remember the whole thing (the big outer part) has to sit between your ears' conch and antihelix, and the actual sound producing part of course goes inside your ear canal. This means the weight of the outer part is dragging on your inner ear quite a bit if not balanced correctly. Since the Sony are so bulky, there's a good chance that parts of it won't ever sit properly in your ears and try to pull out the tips from your ear canal.
Critics would say to just "put them in properly" but this is surprisingly hard to do with the XM4 buds.
You'll also see comments that the way the Sony buds curve is better for ears. IDK, I'm not feeling it. And I'm pretty sure I don't have freak ears. I've never had problems fitting and balancing any buds like the Sony XM4.
The Sony units have a much larger and honestly rather uncomfortably shaped body that houses the ANC chip and microphone.
Even when properly placed in the ears, they stick out.
Weight distribution always seems off to me. I'm a tall man with average sized ears, and it's a chore to make the Sony buds fit comfortably. Once they're in, they often fall out or FEEL like they're about to fall out. This is because the size and weight of the outer parts of the XM4 buds is rather high, at least compared to the Airpods Pro.
Another part of this is the size of the ear tips (see below).
To get the Sony buds in my ear I have to use both hands: one to tug and pull the ears, the other to wedge and move the buds into place. If I don't get it juuuuuust right, they are prone to fall out. Very annoying.
Airpods Pro: one hand, quick move and they're in - and stay in. I have more confidence in that the buds will stay in during movement compared to the Sony XM4. Somehow the weight, size, and ear tips all just work better for me. Your ears may vary.
Side note: the part that goes INSIDE your ear canal has a removable and replaceable ear tips. Those tips come in several sizes and most people find one that fits. Somehow none of the 3 that Sony provides really fit me, but the "Large" are the closest ones. Since they're very tight on me, they provide a better passive noise cancelling. But they're quite uncomfortable. The other 2 are just too small for me. They're also sweaty and pick up lint and dust and (icky alert!) ear wax easily. The fit really matters with these buds, especially considering that they have to compensate somewhat for the extra bulk and weight of the overall unit.
Soundguys claims the Sony have a better fit but I have to disagree. And I really do love Sony headphones in general.
The Airpod Pro on the other hand come with cleaner and better fitting ear tips. They have a neat magnetic thing where you "clip on" the tips. It's a strong connection and yet makes it easier to replace them if you need to. They're also easier to clean (bye ear wax!) Since the buds aren't as bulky or heavy, it feels like the tips stay in the ear canal better. I can use the Medium size tips and they fit perfectly.
BATTERY LIFE
TIE. Assuming you have ANC on all the time, and have the case with you (the case houses a battery which in turn can charge the ear buds batteries), you'll get about the same play time out of either set. Some sites say the Sony get longer playback before needing to be charged, others say the opposite. MY experience is that both have about the same playback time, and both have another 18 or so hours of juice from the case. Again, your use of ANC and other factors change these numbers somewhat.
CHARGING
Sony wins here because you can charge the case using USB-C cables - much faster than Apple's slower Lightning. In my experience, the case charges up about twice as fast as the Airpods Pro case.
I have not tested wireless charging for either.
SOFTWARE
I've not tested Sony's Headphones app much except I downloaded it on both my iPhone, iPad, and Android phone. It works flawlessly on all devices for me. You can change some parameters but overall it's probably not something you'll need to use a lot. I didn't, hence no further ratings
Apple Aiprods Pro work perfectly with iOS devices right out of the box. Pairing is super fast, and all settings can be changed within iOS directly.
OTHER
I find that both connect to all my devices just fine, Bluetooth connectivity is strong on both, and the distance between ear buds and device is about the same before I get connectivity problems.
I do like the seamless switching between iPad, iPhone and Macbook Pro that the Airpods Pro can pull off. It's almost instant and just works - IF you're on iOS or Mac OS
The Sony also work on all devices I tried them on but switching between them is not always as seamless or fast.
I HATE that I can't change volume directly on the buds on either of these. Sony has these awful "touch" pads on the side and I find myself constantly tapping and re-tapping to start or stop the audio because I sometimes miss hitting that tiny spot where you're supposed to touch.
The Airpods have a dedicated little clicky button that just works more reliably in my experience.
You WILL lose one or both of your ear buds at some point. Death, taxes, and losing ear buds. It's a law. And I love how Apple implemented the FIND MY option here. If you lose your Airbuds Pro, simply make them sound an alarm and use the GPS feature on your phone to find them. It works really well.
I didn't find a way to do this on the Sony buds.
SOUND QUALITY
This one's a bit subjective. I find the Sony to be a tad better, with a little more bass and oomph yet they never sound muddy to me. The difference isn't massive and audiophiles probably have their own overly persnickety opinions about either option.
FINAL WORDS
There are several things I either didn't test or don't want to spend time talking about. The apps (equalizer options, voice assistant options, etc) are something you'll need to figure out for yourself if that's important. For me, the default settings are sufficient for both the Sony and the Airpods Pro.
The biggest takeaway for me is that the Airpods Pro fit my ears a lot better and feel more "secure" in my ears than the Sony. The Sony have better noise cancelling.
You'll find online reviews that claim the opposite, other reviews that agree with my findings. You really need to figure it out yourself.
One final suggestion is that if you primarily or solely use Apple devices, your better bet is probably to invest in Airpods Pro - the seamless switching is excellent.
Images in this review
