Sony recently released its WF-1000XM3 wireless noise-cancelling earbuds, and after I took them for a spin, I’d be pretty upset if we had recently spent any money a pair of AirPods.
Yes, the WF-1000XM3 costs more, but you’re getting a much better sound, a better fit, slightly better battery life, and really good noise cancelling. What you won’t get is AirPods’ fancy auto-pairing connectivity with Apple devices, and I wish Sony made it easier to switch the connection to different devices. Still, if you value sound quality, fit and noise cancelling, and you’re willing to spend over UGX 700k (US$200), the Sony WF-1000XM3 should be at the very top of your list.
The Sony WF-1000XM3
By design, Sony’s WF-1000XM3 wireless earbuds have a sleek, more-or-less compact charging case. It is larger than the AirPods case and won’t fit quite as well in a pocket, but it has been living in my backpack’s side pocket for weeks now without any trouble. But the huge size come better battery life compared to the competition.
There is no wireless charging like on the Airpods 2, the WF-1000XM3 uses USB-C and keeps a charge of up to 24 hours. It charges the earbuds quickly and I’ve barely had to charge the case. But it is also lacking wireless charging, which is a shame.
The Sony WF-1000XM3 earbuds last about six hours on a single charge according to the company, which is good for earphones that are this small and portable. Battery life was never an issue, except for one day when I forgot to put them back into the charging case after I stopped using them at work. I got the low battery signal during my commute home, charged the earbuds for about 10 minutes, and I was good to go again.
The earbuds present themselves nicely in the case. They’re easy to remove and replace. When you replace the earbuds into the case, they magnetically – and satisfyingly – snap into their enclosures.
There’s no quick-pairing like you would find on Apple’s AirPods. You have to go through the old-fashioned way of Bluetooth pairing, which is fine. But you can use NFC to quickly pair your phone to the Sony WF-1000XM3. They reconnect to your previously connected devices quickly and without any fuss the moment you place the earbuds in your ears.
Sound quality and active noise-cancelling
Importantly, the Sony WF-1000XM3 earbuds themselves sound amazing. After tweaking the sound settings in the Sony Headphones app, I got exactly the sound I wanted out of them. They have strong bass, and they sound rich and clear. It’s amazing such tiny things can make such big — and good — sound.
These things also have active noise cancellation, and the in-ear design blocks out some noise, too. That combination makes for similar noise-cancelling performance as larger over-ear headphones.
You can tap the sensors on the earbuds to control playback, such as pause, play the next track, or play the previous track. They pause automatically when you take them off, too. There’s no volume control, but controls are going to be limited on such small earbuds. If you’re interested, you can tap an earbud to summon Google Assistant or Amazon’s Alexa, too.
My biggest complaint is that it has not as easy as it should be to switch the connection to a different device. Still, it was not difficult, either.
The WF-1000XM3 lacks Bluetooth Multipoint technology that lets you connect the earphones to more than one device at a time. To switch the connection from my smartphone to my laptop, I have to put the earbuds into pairing mode and connect the earbuds manually through my device’s settings.
No water resistance
Putting the earbuds into pairing mode isn’t difficult. You tap and hold the sensors on both earbuds for a few seconds until you hear the pairing prompt. It looks like your plugging your ears with your fingers, which might look a little odd to passers-by. But who cares what other people think, right? I’m pairing here!
It’s not the worst thing to have to do. I’m willing to tolerate this slight complication in exchange for great sound and battery life. If Sony added Multipoint to its WF-1000XM3 headphones, these would be near-perfect.
If you’re looking for a workout pair of headphones, however, these aren’t for you. The earbuds are not water-resistant, so sweat could be an issue.
The Sony WF-1000XM3 earbuds are a no-brainer for anyone who wants small, wireless earbuds similar to Apple’s AirPods and cares about sound, fit and noise cancelling. But for Apple users who prefer seamless connectivity and the Apple ecosystem, the WF-1000XM3 might not do the trick.
