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[Video, The Verge] Hear how the best ANC headphones handle real world and lab tests
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this post was submitted on 31 Aug 2023
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Technology
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TL;DW: Buy the Sonys. You'll be happy.
Bought them, can't be used while charging, poor for calls, side of the strap broke easily so I have to tape it together
Also while walking sometimes the connection drops, but that is probably on my phone having crappy Bluetooth
I mean, their battery lasts so much...I've never needed to charge them while using them. At some point I might click power without noticing and it will say "battery low"...and then I know after using them this time I'd need to recharge them. But even then, it's not in a hurry, I know I can continue using them comfortably for as long as needed, just this time I need to remember to charge them. Call quality has been improving, and this time they have ANC also for the mics, so your other party gets noise from the street cancelled...this was an issue with my XM2, talking on a noisy street is a no-go, but with these XM5, is now perfectly ok....at least to me in a bustling city full of people and traffic.
Sometimes I forget to turn them off, they'll just be paired to my phone until they go to 0 and die (XM3, btw) so yeah, I need to be able to use them while they have no battery. That is, unless they just disconnect by themselves nowadays
So...bring with you the normal 3.5mm cable. That way even if they're dead they can be used as a normal wired headphone. I still find that feature awesome.
I use them for calls constantly, and I find it's one of the few ways I can hear someone while outside. I had the previous gen 3 of them for almost four years now and have had zero issues with breaking. But the redesign of the strap could be an issue.
Have never needed to recharge while wearing them, and I've used them on flights crossing a quarter of the planet at a time.
I had the third version, maybe they have improved some things in the 4th, but I don't know about the non-folding ones since the case is now much bigger
Yeah, this is my only complain of this redesign. I had the XM2 coming to these, and the non-folding thing irks me the wrong way. Not like the case was small to begin with, but now it's even bigger.
I have em all, XM3, XM4, XM5. The only disappointment was the earbuds, the battery gave up too soon.
Those ear buds suck badly. VERY expensive, very low battery life (typict 3 hours tops), very big, heavy and unwieldy and they always fly though the room when I try to pry them out of the charger case. Noise cancelling is laughable, they continually respond to taps even if it's my hair touching them, sound level is too low, and the batteries are dying after about a year of use.
They. Are. Crap.
Compared to my LG HBS 800 sets, that cost 50 bucks each, I'll chose those LG's any day
If you have the 2022 or earlier versions of the earbuds and not their newest ones, you can at least pretty easily replace the batteries in them as they wear out and get old.
Pretty much the only higher end buds that you can do it with.
I was very disappointed with the ear buds. The fit made them very prone to falling out even when just walking.
I can confirm: Bought them, am happy.
I bought XM4s. Was not happy.
I've had the XM3 for many years now and think they're great. No death from head sweat like the apples, too.
The noise cancelling barely worked I throught so didn't really see what the point was.
Those were broken or you weren't using them properly. I assure you, much as this video reported, the noise cancelling works quite well.
...and has been since the first generation. That's what made them a best selling item from scratch. I remember the first one was commented at the time "a close competitor" to the Bose, but by now they stand their own ground.
Which Sonys?
XM5
Got the Sony's myself. The recommended ones and some older version, the XM2. Happy with both.
I have a pair of Sony headphones over the ear with noise cancelling and I hate them. The wind is picked up and added to the sound when outside. Also any hoodie touching them will add extra noise. In the house they barely cover my AC unit hum, let alone voices. I got some AirPod Pro (in the ear) and they’re incredible compared. I worked for a whole day with them on and was surprised that the window AC was actually on 5 ft away from me. The sound transparency option is also great. Feels like I’m not wearing headphones at all and still hear music naturally as if it was playing in front of me.
Return them under warranty, because your experience does not match how the product works. Flat out. I've had Sony since the gen 3 and I use them while mowing my lawn, snow blowing, snow boarding, business meetings, etc. They work flawlessly in all of those environments and significantly decrease the noise I hear from a riding mower.
Also, watch out for condensation killing those air pods.
Sounds like you have it in Ambient Sound mode. I have a pair of WH-1000XM3 and even though ANC is not perfect, it certainly doesn’t add wind or hoodie rubbing noises.