Sony’sWF-1000XM5are the successor to theWF-1000XM4 , and in many ways we feel they ’ve surpassed its predecessor . But how do they fare against the rivalBose QuietComfort Earbuds II ?
The battle between Sony and Bose has moved across over - ears and true wireless earphones . Both the WF-1000XM5 and QuietComfort Earbuds II receive five star in their respective reviews – both premium true wireless offer a high quality execution .
So , which out of the Sony WF-1000XM5 vs Bose QuietComfort Earbuds is the good ? take on to find out .
Price
The WF-1000XM5 go on sales event August 2023 , and have an RRP of £ 259 / $ 299 / € 320 . Compared to the WF-1000XM4 , the Leontyne Price has gone slightly up in the UK , $ 20 in the US and € 40 more in Europe .
The Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II are £ 279 / $ 299 / € 279 / CA$379 / AU$429 , though as they ’ve been useable since previous 2022 , you could observe them for cheaper than the WF-1000XM5 . Currys UK has them at £ 229 and at Amazon UK they ’re at £ 239.95 at the time of writing .
Design
The Sony WF-1000XM5 are more compact than the QuietComfort Earbuds II , which you might account as being the chunkier of the two bud . Both put up a strong disturbance - insulate seal against international sounds , although in our experience we found the Bose were a little easier to get resolve in our ear , though over longer habit we found the Sony more easy to wear out .
Each comes with a chain of mountains of ear - tips , the WF-1000XM5 comes with excess small to large pinna - tips in the promotional material , while the Bose has three sizes : small , medium , and enceinte . If you want extra small or extra bombastic spike - wind , you ’ll need to go through Bose Support to regularise them .
Both employ touch ascendency and out of the two we ’d say the Sony are a little well-off to operate as on the Bose some taps can be rede as swipe , which unwittingly increase the volume . IPX4 sweat / water resistanceis breed across both earphones for those who might consider using these earbuds in the gym .
We suppose the Sony WF-1000XM5 have the estimable overall designing but there ’s not much to knock the Bose for . The Sony are smaller , ( slightly ) lighter , and arguably more well-off to fatigue .
Features
We wo n’t go through all the features presented on these wireless phone as you might be here all day , but in terms of the amount of feature on pass , then the Sony win well . The spread of the overbold , convenient feature film is telling . There is n’t a wireless earbuds as feature - rich as the WF-1000XM5 .
Amazon AlexaandGoogle Assistantare built - in on the WF-1000XM5 ( that ’s not the case on the Bose ) . There ’s also greater flexibility in term of customising the experience from the audio EQ , wireless performance , racket - cancel modal value , upscaling of audio . The Sony presents more choice with which to tailor the performance to your liking .
Battery life is longer on the Sony with eight hours compared to the QuietComfort Earbuds II ’s six . However , overall battery if you include the charging case is the same with disturbance - cancel on ( 24 hours ) . Wireless charging is supported on the Sony but not on the Bose ( we do n’t think it ’s that large a misfire ) .
In terms of its wireless performance , we would say that the Bose is more static and resilient to interference over a Bluetooth link . The Sony does support the gamy qualityLDAC codecfor an improved audio performance though , and we ’re yet to see theaptX Adaptive / Snapdragon Soundsupport that was announced several months ago . You also get Bluetooth multipoint on the Sony for those who like to multi - task .
Or course , the actual test is how well they perform in cancelling sounds , and in this sphere we ’d give the win to the Bose QuietComfort Earbuds II . Both strike down noise very well , though we find the Bose suppresses sounds a little stronger , while the Sony ’s dissonance - cancelling adopt a more natural tone ( the Bose can sound process ) .
The transparency mode is slightly absolved and more elaborate on the Bose too , but the difference is not a Brobdingnagian amount . The Bose also has a coolheaded feature whereby in its ‘ Aware ’ mood , Bose ’s ActiveSense technology kicks in and suppresses any loud sounds so you ’re not short surprised by them . It process very in effect .
Call quality on both is mixed . Both have a tendency to permit racket in when you ’re speaking , though it is bad on the Bose as in busy surface area it can arrive at the decimal point where the sounds of the surround can be deflect .
Overall , the Sony offer the wider range of features , especially for those who wish to tailor-make their experience to fit their daily number . Though we ’d append a bank bill to say that the noise - cancelling on the Bose is better .
Sound Quality
If sound is the most authoritative aspect for you , then again we ’d say that the Sony would be the in force option . Like the Bose their advance is a balanced one , but we find the Sony to be the more musical - sound pair with the racetrack we listen .
Support for LDAC does avail in this linguistic context , but even so , with the new Dynamic Driver X , they put in an gumptious , detailed and absolved performance with music . To our ear they go more natural than the QuietComfort Earbuds II .
However , the Sony do n’t bid the same bass impact as the Bose . The Bose buds volunteer a bigger , weightier bass voice public presentation while the Sony takes a more measured approach to the humiliated frequency . If you like you bass the QuietComfort Earbuds would be the earbuds to take a closer looking at , though be aware that you could get a similar basso performance by change the WF-1000XM5 ’s EQ configurations .
Verdict
Although we ’ve given the Sony WF-1000XM5 the win in each category , it would not be straight to say that they are far and aside the better truthful wireless earbud .
They are the better - sounding of the two , but in terms of noise - cancellation we prefer the Bose . The range of mountains of features on the Sony is much greater , and offer more contraption , while the compact design and slightly better comfort level are further region where we find the Sony adjoin ahead .
Both are great buys . As an overall software program , the WF-1000XM5 check most , if not all , the command boxes . Nevertheless , if you want the good noise - cancellation currently available , then the QuietComfort Earbuds II are the buds to get .
