Today we will talk about Sony’s two best in class noise cancellation Bluetooth headphones. So, today we will compare Sony WH-1000XM4 and Sony WH-1000XM3. Sony WH-1000XM4 is the next generation of its best-in-class noise cancellation headphone that means it is a successor of Sony WH-1000XM3. So we will compare both the old generation and new generation of the Sony WH-1000XM series in possibly every aspect.
Pros and Cons
| 1000XM4 | 1000XM3 |
| Very accurate sound for ANC headphones. | Good sound. |
| Great noise cancelling. | 3.5mm aux port. |
| Legit audio upscaling. | Excellent noise-cancelling. |
| Price is still expensive. | Touch controls feel fiddly at first. |
| Not great for calls. | Over Price. |
General
| 1000XM4 | 1000XM3 | |
| Price | CHECK PRICE | CHECK PRICE |
| Release date | 14 September 2020 | 9 October 2018 |
| Type | Over Ear | Closed, dynamic |
| Colors | Black, Silver | Silver, Black |
| Battery life | 30 Hours | 30 Hours |
| Weight | 0.56 lbs | 0.56 lbs |
| Connectivity | Bluetooth, NFC | Bluetooth, NFC, Wired |
In the last few years, Sony’s WH-1000XM series sets a new benchmark in the Bluetooth noise cancellation headphones segment. The XM4 model looks very identical to the XM3 but there some negligible changes in terms of design, and Sony now updates the XM3 model and gives all new host of features with its successor which makes once again the best in class in its segment. At this point, you may get many options in the market but no one can match the benchmark set by Sony in terms of the sound quality, comfort level, and connectivity options that Sony provides with its WH-1000XM series.
Design
| 1000XM4 | 1000XM3 | |
| Type | Closed, dynamic | Closed, dynamic |
| Wireless | Yes | Yes |
| Noise Cancelling | Yes | Yes |
| Weight | 0.56 lbs | 0.56 lbs |
| Foldable Design | Yes | Yes |
When we compare both XM3 and XM4 in terms of design they look almost identical but there are some negligible ergonomics design changes which not evident when you look at them at first sight. Actually if you out both headphones side by side or face to face you will be confused about which one is XM4 and which one is XM3. If we talk about the size then the XM4 is 10% larger than the XM3 but the increased size doesn’t affect the weight of the headphones, they are fairly light in weight, and with these headphones, one can easily spend hours by listening to songs or watching movies and he/she won’t feel the weight of the headphones.
The headband padding of XM4 is slightly thinner than the XM3 but it doesn’t affect the comfort level of headphones, the provided by the XM4 padding is also improved which one is a very good thing for those who use the headphones for longer hours. The padding used for the ear cups in XM4 is a lot thicker than the padding provided in XM4 which helps hold and hug your ears to a great extent. This will help in improving the overall comfort of the headphone. The material used for padding is leatherette which will give the user a luxurious feeling when the user uses these headphones. The touch and feel of the material of these headphones are very best in its class which is always seen with Sony’s other products as well.
There are some minor changes in the design of earcups but it won’t be evident and we think that no one can easily even guess the change. Other minor changes are the A and C buttons are now the custom buttons because they get the single, double, and long-press functionality for the audio and some other controls.
Features
| 1000XM4 | 1000XM3 | |
| USB | USB-C | USB-C |
| Microphone | Yes | Yes |
| Music Controls | Yes, Touch Sensor | Yes |
| Quick Charge | Yes, 10 Minutes = 5 Hours | Yes, 10 Minutes = 5 Hours |
| Stereo speakers | Yes | Yes |
The XM3 was not so good in terms of noise cancellation during calls but the XM4 is improved greatly in terms of noise cancellation during the call. With XM4 now you will get Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity instead of 4.0 which will provide solid connectivity as well as it will surely improve the speed of data transfer and installation of the firmware. Bluetooth 5.0 also means a more stable and solid connection, with an improved range of connectivity.
However, with XM4 you will lose the support of aptx codec and aptx HD codec. If we talk about the audio and video lag then in this term also Sony improved the performance of the XM4, although the XM3 has a very little lag, in XM4 you won’t face this issue and this is a good thing for those who used to watch videos daily on YouTube and continuously play the game.
You will get the multiple pairing options with XM4 which was not possible with the XM3 this function will very helpful for those who use the headphones simultaneously with the mobile and laptop. It will also get a speak-to-chat feature, adaptive sound control which will provide great sound quality. The auto pause and resume function on XM4 works very effortlessly great. We can certainly say that the useability, practicality, and functionality of the XM series are improved with the introduction of the new XM4.
Battery
| 1000XM4 | 1000XM3 | |
| Battery Type | Li-polymer | Li-polymer |
| Battery Life | 30 Hours | 30 Hours |
| Charge Time | Approx. 3 hrs | Approx. 3 hours |
| Charging Port | USB-C | USB-C |
If we talk about battery life, then both headphones are Identical to each other and provide an impressive battery life of 30 hours with ANC on and 38 hours with ANC off. Additionally, both headphones can be charged in just 10 minutes for 5 hours of playtime which is a great thing about these headphones.
Connectivity
| 1000XM4 | 1000XM3 | |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 5.0 | Bluetooth 4.2 |
| Bluetooth Range | Approx. 15 meter | Approx. 11 meter |
| NFC | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-Device Connection | Yes | No |
The XM3 works with Bluetooth 4.0 but you will get Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity with XM4 which results in more stable and more connectivity also it gets an improved range of connectivity which a very good thing. Also, both of the headphones get full support of the ‘Sony headphones connect App’ which gives you the freedom to change the gestures and equalizer settings.
Which is better!
We already told you that the XM4 model is the successor of XM3 so it is simply another generational update for Sony’s popular WH-1000XM series. In the XM4 model, the practicality and the functionality of the headphones are improved as well as it will get some new and very important features like multiple source connectivity which improves the conveniences of the user. Also, the sound quality of the XM4 is better than XM3. So we can suggest that if you have the extra 100$ to spend on headphones you should definitely choose XM4 over the XM3 because it will worth every single penny you spend on it.
