Sony WH-1000XM4 vs. Sony WH-1000XM3 vs. Sony WH-XB900N: Which is The Most Worth It?

Sony WH-1000XM4 vs. Sony WH-1000XM3 vs. Sony WH-XB900N: Side-by-Side Comparison

	Sony WH-1000XM4	Sony WH-1000XM3	Sony WH-XB900N
Type	Over-ear	Over-ear	Over-ear
Enclosure	Closed-Back	Closed-Back	Closed-Back
Wireless	Yes	Yes	Yes
Noise Cancelling	Yes	Yes	Yes
Mic	Yes	Yes	Yes
Transducer	Dynamic	Dynamic	Dynamic
Weight	0.6 lbs	0.6 lbs	0.56 lbs
Clamping Force	1 lbs	0.8 lbs	1.1 lbs
Controls
OS Compatibility	Not OS specific	Not OS specific	Not OS specific
Ease Of Use	Good	Good	Good
Feedback	Decent	Decent	Good
Call/Music Control	Yes	Yes	Yes
Volume Control	Yes	Yes	Yes
Microphone Control	No	No	No
Channel Mixing	No	No	No
Noise Cancelling Control	On/Off	On/Off	On/Off
Talk-Through	On/Off	On/Off	On/Off
Additional Controls	Voice Assistant	Voice Assistant	Voice Assistant
Sound Profile
Bass Amount	3.24 dB	3.25 dB	5.31 dB
Treble Amount	-1.53 dB	-3.05 dB	-1.76 dB
Virtual Soundstage
Head Modeling	No	On/Off	On/Off
Speaker Modeling	No	On/Off	On/Off
Room Ambience	No	Presets	Presets
Head Tracking	No	No	No
Virtual Surround	No	Yes	Yes
Test Settings
Firmware	2.0.6	Unknown	1.0.2
Power	On	On	On
Connection	Bluetooth 5.0	Unknown	Bluetooth 4.0
Codec	SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz	aptX, 16-bit, 48kHz	aptX, 16-bit, 48kHz
EQ	Off	Off	Off
ANC	On	On	On
Tip/Pad	Default	Default	Default
Microphone	Integrated	Integrated	Integrated
Noise Isolation
Overall Attenuation	-28.73 dB	-29.9 dB	-16.74 dB
Bass	-24.33 dB	-23.03 dB	-5.39 dB
Mid	-22.39 dB	-27.24 dB	-14.48 dB
Treble	-38.96 dB	-39.7 dB	-31.12 dB
Microphone
Integrated	Yes	Yes	Yes
In-Line	No	No	No
Boom	No	No	No
Detachable Boom	No	No	No
Battery
Battery Type	Rechargable	Rechargable	Rechargable
Continuous Battery Life	37.7 hrs	27 hrs	38.3 hrs
Additional Charges	0.0	0.0	0.0
Total Battery Life	37.7 hrs	27 hrs	38.3 hrs
Charge Time	2.3 hrs	2.2 hrs	5.9 hrs
Power-Saving Feature	Auto-Off Timer	No	No
Audio While Charging	No	No	No
Passive Playback	Yes	Yes	Yes
Charging Port	USB-C	USB-C	USB-C
App Support
App Name	Sony| Headphones Connect	Sony| Headphones Connect	Sony| Headphones Connect
iOS	Yes	Yes	Yes
Android	Yes	Yes	Yes
macOS	No	No	No
Windows	No	No	No
Equalizer	Graphic + Presets	Graphic + Presets	Graphic + Presets
ANC Control	On/Off	On/Off	On/Off
Mic Control	No	No	No
Room Effects	No	Yes	Yes
Playback Control	Yes	Yes	Yes
Button Mapping	Yes	Yes	Yes
Surround Support	No	Yes	Yes
Bluetooth
Bluetooth Version	5.0	4.2	4.2
Multi-Device Pairing	2 Devices	No	No
NFC Pairing	Yes	Yes	Yes
Line Of Sight Range	299.00 ft (91.14 m)	185.00 ft (56.39 m)	196.00 ft (59.74 m)
PC Latency (SBC)	212 ms	230 ms	254 ms
PC Latency (aptX)	N/A	196 ms	162 ms
PC Latency (aptX HD)	N/A	199 ms	N/A
PC Latency (aptX-LL)	N/A	N/A	N/A
iOS Latency	38 ms	30 ms	157 ms
Android Latency	60 ms	55 ms	125 ms
Wired
Analog Audio	Yes	Yes	Yes
USB Audio	No	No	No
Detachable	Yes	Yes	Yes
Length	4.00 ft (1.22 m)	5.00 ft (1.52 m)	4.10 ft (1.25 m)
Connection	1/8" TRRS	1/8" TRRS	1/8" TRRS
Analog /USB Audio Latency	0 ms	0 ms	0 ms
PC / PS4 Compatibility
PC/PS4 Analog	Audio Only	Audio Only	Audio + Microphone
PC/PS4 Wired USB	No	No	No
PC/PS4 Non-BT Wireless	No	No	No
Xbox One Compatibility
Xbox One Analog	Audio Only	Audio Only	Audio Only
Xbox One Wired USB	No	No	No
Xbox One Non-BT Wireless	No	No	No

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Sony WH-1000XM4, Sony WH-1000XM3 and Sony WH-XB900N Review

| #1  Sony WH-1000XM4 Wireless Noise-Cancelling Over-the-Ear Headphones

Google Users Rating: 4.6/5

• Bestbuy: $248

• Walmart: $248

The Sony WH-1000XM4 is the new flagship headphone offered by Sony and it certainly lives up to its reputation. Not many wireless headphones can compete with these headphones in terms of features, ANC performance, and sound quality. The new Sony WH-1000XM4  retooled the noise-canceling algorithm and now offers a new Bluetooth SoC to block more noise in the mid-range and higher frequencies. As a great noise canceler, the Sony WH-1000XM4 doesn't just cancel noise: it adapts to both your environment (read: changes in barometric pressure) and your movement/activity (sitting, walking, running, etc.) to intelligently and effectively block noise. In addition, the Sony WH-1000XM4 uses a new technology called Precise Voice Pick Up to help your voice come through loud and clear. It works by using the four microphones on each earcup to hone in your voice while talking and reduce the amount of ambient noise that it picks up.

The Sony WH-1000XM4 also adds the auto-play function sensing when you take the headphones off and pause the music. As well as playing music once you put them back on. It comes equipped with Bluetooth version 5, which does have some extra functionality. The biggest is multi-point connections. This allows the headphones to be connected to more than one device at a time, which makes switching between devices seamless. In a word, Admittedly, the Sony WH-1000XM4 has pretty much improved on every aspect – even making small tweaks like the trimmed down padding on the bridge and additional padding around the earcups to reduce pressure. The only pity is that the XM4 only supports AAC and Sony’s LDAC but does not come with aptX support.

PROS	CONS
Comfortable and has hinges for folding	No IP rating
Dynamic, detail-rich sound	No aptX or aptX HD support
DSEE Extreme audio upscaling
Superior call quality with precise voice pickup
Improved noise-cancellation
Seamless multiple-device pairing
Auto-play/pause and conversation awareness
Intuitive app-based controls
30 hours of battery life

| #2  SONY WH-1000XM3 Wireless Noise canceling Stereo Headset

Google Users Rating: 4.7/5

• Amazon: $205.99

• Adorama: $179

The Sony WH-1000XM3 wireless headphones are a superb pair of noise-canceling headphones. Even though it has a few years old and it has been usurped by the Sony WH-1000XM4, it is still well worth buying.  The WH-1000XM3 shares many of the same hallmarks as the WH-1000XM4, such as outstanding ANC performance, 30-hour battery life with ANC enabled, and excellent sound quality. Battery life isn't the best on the market, but it's close, and they include fast charging, which means you won't have to wait long when your headphones do die. The only downside when it comes to the battery is that you can't listen and charge simultaneously.

ANC is the biggest reason to get the WH-1000XM3, which should sell at a much lower price than the Sony WH-1000XM4. The WH-1000XM3 virtually blocks out all noise when you have them on and work particularly well in situations like commuting on planes, trains, or buses. They do a stellar job of blocking out low-end noise and decently well with mid-range and treble noise, especially when you have audio playing. Audio quality is also good, the WH-1000XM4 can produce a dynamic and lively sound that lends itself perfectly to any music genre. So if the Sony WH-1000XM4 is out of your budget, the Sony WH-1000XM3 is also a great choice.

PROS	CONS
Great stylish design	Mediocre call quality
Comfortable fit	Can't charge and listen simultaneously
Natural, all-round sound quality	Can only connect to one device at a time
Excellent ANC
Lots of personalization options via the app
Generous battery life
Can be find at a discount

| #3  Sony WH-XB900N Wireless Noise Cancelling Over-the-Ear Headphones

Google Users Rating: 4.6/5

• Bestbuy: $128

• eBay: $119

The Sony WH-XB900N Wireless are fairly versatile headphones and are a more affordable alternative to the Sony WH-1000XM3 Wireless. They share many of the same features, but the XB900N is entirely its own pair of headphones with stronger bass response. It is part of Sony's "Extra Bass" collection, which aims to pump even more bass than usual into your ears. The WH-XB900N is low-end-forward, with a midrange and treble that is slightly recessed, giving the headphones an overall darker sound signature. Of course, you can use the Sony Headphones app to help tweak the sonics to suit your personal taste and give you the option to adjust ambient listening modes to hear your surroundings more clearly.

The WH-XB900N crosses that fine line between an entry-level and luxury headphone, packaging all of Sony's beloved sound technologies into a slightly cheaper bundle. This is a comfortable headphone, has USB-C charging, good battery life, and effective noise-canceling. It works well as a headset for making calls, and the sound quality is quite good as long as you don't mind a preponderance of bass. So if you have a small budget , this headset is still worth considering.

PROS	CONS
Comfortable design	Very long recharge time
Good active noise canceling and isolation	Not very breathable
Dark, bass-heavy sound signature	The bass-heavy sound style isn't for everyone
Good mic intelligibility
Several listening modes
Great app support with customization options
LDAC, aptX, aptX HD support
Over 38-hour continuous battery life

Bottom Line

Sony WH-1000XM4 vs. Sony WH-1000XM3 vs. Sony WH-XB900N: Which is The Most Worth It?

No surprise there. The Sony WH-1000XM4 is the best pair of headphones.  It doesn't improve in every single area, but it has enough improvements over its predecessors. The Sony WH-1000XM4 has offered class-leading noise cancellation thanks to an upgraded algorithm and new Bluetooth SoC, as well as improved call quality and music upscaling thanks to DSEE Extreme. The new headphones also have Bluetooth 5.0, multi-point Bluetooth pairing, and a built-in sensor that can automatically pause the music when you take the headphones off – all valuable extra features you should be looking for when buying your next pair of wireless headphones.

So, should you pay full price for the WH-1000XM4 headphones when you could pick up the old model: Sony WH-1000XM3 and Sony WH-XB900N at a hefty discount? The choice is yours and it comes down to your budget and demand. If you want top-notch noise-cancellation, stunning audio, precise Voice Pick Up, more comfortable design, and some extra functionality like multi-point connections,  auto-play/pause, etc., and don't care about the high price,  the Sony WH-1000XM4 is best for you.

If price is one of the important factors you consider, I can also assure you that buying the Sony WH-1000XM43 also will not be the wrong choice. When Sony created the  WH-1000XM3, it got the recipe spot on. At the time, they were as close to a perfect pair of noise-cancellers as one could find. Today, they're still great all-rounders and a superb buy for the money.

In addition,  the Sony WH-XB900N is the more budget-friendly alternative. Although its noise canceling is nowhere near as good as that of the WH-1000XM3 and WH-1000XM4, it is comfortable, decently well built, and fairly easy to use. The Sony WH-XB900N also has an excellent wireless range, a very long battery life, and a bass-heavy sound.  It is the ideal choice for bass lovers who like their music to have a more low-end emphasis but need an alternative to Beats headphones.