Review: WF-1000XM4

The WF-1000XM4 are earbuds made by Sony. They are available in two colours, black and silver. I went for the black ones, I like the contrast of black against the gold accents. Out of the box the xm4’s were easy enough to set up (there’s a companion app to download) and can be connected to multiple devices. The Bluetooth connection was very stable, never once dropping out, and linked to my iPhone seamlessly, dare I say it, just as quickly and effortlessly as my AirPods pro’s. The sound is loud, crisp and incredibly clear. The touch sensitive buttons are very responsive and you get that familiar Sony voice telling you which mode your earbuds are in, which I quite like. The noise cancelling is exceptional, at the touch of a button the hustle and bustle of quotidian life fades away, as you are immersed in your own little world. It really is good. I’m a fan of these earbuds, but nothing in life is perfect not even the xm4’s, so here are the issues I discovered during my first few months of using the earbuds. Unboxing them, I was surprised by the size of the earbuds, they were quite large and bulky, with a rounded oval design. This is in stark contrast to the more low profile streamline design of the AirPod pro’s I’ve always used. On first use they were comfortable enough, and although the fit was snug and secure, they also felt quite cumbersome and unwieldy as if they were protruding out of my ears, This feeling gradually dissipated with regular use of the xm4’s, but it took a while. They can be quite awkward to get hold of and extract from the case, they have a tendency to slip, it’s very easy to drop one of them! I know this might not sound like a big deal but it can be trouble. The buttons although responsive can be frustrating at times, they need to be hit dead centre each time for the button press to be registered! This issue disappeared over time, as my aim improved. These minor irritations aside, the XM4’S are exceptionally good and I would definitely recommend picking up a set.