Who it’s for:
People who enjoy great active noise cancellation and even better sound quality will appreciate the Sony WF-1000XM5 earbuds — the full package. If you’re a Sony loyalist, maybe already a fan of the WH-1000XM5, these earbuds provide impressive performance.
Why we picked this:
Even if you’re not a full-blown audiophile, we’re betting you’d be impressed by just how good these earbuds sound. Though they’re great when you plug and play, the highly customizable equalizer allows these earbuds to really shine. If you’re not quite sure what you enjoy when it comes to EQ, no problem.
The companion app has a “find your equalizer” feature that lets you play a song and select between six EQ settings to find the one that sounds best to your ears. Once you do, you get more options to select, with that choice marking the “custom” EQ you like best. To make sure you’re satisfied, the app then lets you easily compare the new and original settings side by side. That’s just one of several sound features built into the app that allow you to customize your experience, far surpassing every other pair of earbuds on this list.
Wear-wise, the ear tips on these buds forego the usual silicone for a foamier alternative that’s more reminiscent of the material you might expect from earplugs. We found this material to wear comfortably and snugly, staying in place in your ear better than AirPods typically do. On a further design note, these are also a great option for folks who don’t like the stemmed look made popular by AirPods.
Finally, the ANC. You’re paying high-end prices for these earbuds, and they do deliver on high-end ANC. If noise cancellation is your biggest concern, you might want to go for the Bose earbuds instead, but these still do an excellent job (plus, their multipoint pairing actually works, unlike Bose’s). We will say that with ANC on, we did tend to get closer to seven hours of listening time before running out of juice, instead of the eight Sony claims.
These used to be our best earbuds for sound, however, the Panasonic Technics edge them out as they offer clearer, more distinct sound. Plus, the Technics have two extra hours of battery life on the WF-1000XM5s.
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