Review: Sony nails it again with the true wireless XM5s

Last year, Sony broke the mould when it came to over-ear headphones with the unfortunately named WH-1000XM5s, and now it has the true wireless in-ear headphone market in its sights with the … WF-1000XM5s, coming in at just under $400.

Terrible naming conventions aside, Sony has a reputation for great sound, comfort and utility in its personal audio products, no mean feat for a company that makes everything from game consoles to Spiderman movies.

With the pedigree of the genre-defining Walkman at its back, many would expect nothing less, but it’s not 1993 any more, and the tech landscape is a vastly different place.

The enduring company has given me a pair to test to see whether the old dog's new tricks are up to scratch.

Can the boomer Sony take on the millennial upstart and undisputed market share leader Apple and its $480 AirPods Pro 2?

Iconic and very Sony design

The case is a sleek matte black that balances curves and sharp edges, creating a geometric shape that manages to be unique but still clean and appealing.

Rather than lying on its back with the charge port on the bottom, the case goes the opposite way, with a flat bottom so it can stand upright and the USB-C charge port on the back.

This means the case sits nicely on a desk normally, but the downside is that it gets a bit awkward when plugged in, and the weight of the cable pulls the case backwards – but if you use a wireless charging pad, this won’t be a problem as the case can charge wirelessly as well.

The black-on-black look never gets old. (Image: BusinessDesk)

The hinge is as smooth as silk, and the magnetic clasp brings the lid down with a satisfying, though unnecessarily loud, snap.

The earbuds themselves have a similar matte finish for the outward-facing touch-sensitive part, while the rest is finished in a glossier plastic.

The matte finish adds a certain elegance that Apple's white sheen lacks. (Image: BusinessDesk)

The outward-facing mics are bronzy metal, the colour matching the Sony logo on the top of the case.

When Sony wants to be fancy, Sony knows how to be fancy, and the look of these headphones is one fancy step up from the prior generation WFXM4s.

Superb sound

First, I tried the WF-XM5s against the Sony WH-XM5 over-the-ear headphones; this was mostly out of curiosity because the odds were stacked against the little fellas.

Of course, the bigger headphones blew its true wireless brothers out of the water – if you are looking for the highest quality headphones overall, true wireless just can’t get close to over-ear by nature of the size.

So next, I tried them against Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 and believe me when I say that the difference was so minimal; I would happily say there was none worthy of note by default except that the WF-XM5s are slightly heavier on bass.

However, that changes when you dig into the Sony Headphones app and dig into the EQ – then it can either sound way worse or a bit better, depending on how long you want to spend playing with the sliders.

Mod-cons

Sony is also known for its active noise cancelling (ANC) tech, and there’s no doubt that it’s present and accounted for in the WF-XM5s.

I swapped between them and the AirPods Pro 2 while walking around the supermarket, and I couldn’t tell the difference between them.

Transparency mode is also equally good.

Battery life is great, boasting up to eight hours with ANC on and 24 in total with the case.

I’ll be honest: I never left them on for eight hours in a row, but I do know someone with the WF-XM4s who sleeps with them in and told me they would last a full night – and the XM5 battery life is purportedly better.

I don't quite understand why they put the charge port on the back. (Image: BusinessDesk)

The touch controls on the outside of the earbuds are really good, intuitive and slightly customisable, but also a reason that the AirPods became my daily driver over the Sony product – I don’t really like touch controls on earbuds.

Whenever I try to adjust the earbuds in my ear, I end up pressing them by mistake and pausing whatever I’m listening to, which is maddening to me – but this is definitely a case of each to their own.

Pairing is easy, with multiple device pairing supported, and switching is also very easy, especially with the app, and doubly so, especially with an Android device.

Comfort

Rather than the standard thin silicon tips that are almost ubiquitous with true wireless headphones, Sony has gone for a thicker matte tip that has a sponge-like texture but is still silicon.

With three sizes to choose from, anyone will find something that suits them, no doubt.

Something I found was that after an hour or so (not uncommon for me on my commute while the Eastern trains are down), they start to ache in my ear a bit.

If this happens with the AirPods, a quick readjustment normally clears that right up, but not so with Sony’s offering.

That said, a quick Google shows me that most people have found them very comfortable, so it’s probably just me.

They are certainly extremely light, and the silicon tips do feel very soft.

Another excellent offering

The Sony WF-100XM5s once again prove that experience really pays when it comes to audio prowess, leading the pack in many ways, proving that we have the world 'classic' for a reason.

I personally prefer the AirPods Pro 2 because of how the controls work and the silk-like interaction with Apple devices.

But if I wanted to save a few dollars, keen for more customisability, or using an Android device, I would not hesitate to pick the WF-XM5s instead.