I thought I did my research before purchasing the Sony WH-1000XM4 Bluetooth noise-cancelling headphones, however there was one thing I discovered once I had them in my hands:
- When paired with 2 devices “simultaneously”, the use of the LDAC codec is disabled.
Most people won’t notice the drop in audio quality, but I thought it was worth mentioning.
I see the most common use case of these headphones would be paired with a cell phone and a computer (or tablet) for a work day.
Of all the Bluetooth headphones I’ve used, the Sony WH-1000XM4 are almost flawless at automatically switching to the cell phone for an incoming/outgoing call.
Other features I have grown to love are:
- auto-pause when the headphones are removed from your head (thanks to a sensor in the left ear cup)
- placing your hand over the right ear cup to lower the volume and allow ambient sound (when you need to hear what someone is saying)
- auto power off
- fantastic battery life
- great noise-cancelling
- USB-C charging
In the past I preferred a decent pair of ear buds with Comply Foam tips - I can comfortably wear them for days (I actually sleep with some in, link below).
When it comes to the days of working from home, there are interruptions and distracting noises, and constantly pulling an earbud out of one ear drove me to a pair of over ear headphones:
- A big pair of headphones on your head is an easy way for others to see you are unlikely to respond if they start talking to you.
The Sony WH-1000XM4 are probably the perfect pair of headphones for those working and expect the occasionally “shoulder tap”.
Links:
Sony WH-1000XM4
RHA S500 Earbuds
Comply Foam Tips (for RHA S500)
Other products I use:
kit.co/mitch