Wireless in-ear WI-1000XM2 noise canceling headphones from Sony cost 330 euros330

Sony will release the WI-1000XM2 headphones in January 2020. These in-ear earbuds work with noise cancellation and are connected to a silicone neckband. The controls and most of the hardware is in that neckband. The headphones should cost 330 euros.

According to Sony, the WI-1000XM2 has a neckband ‘with great wearing comfort’ that is also ‘functional in use’. For example, the neckband vibrates during incoming phone calls. Presumably, that neckband contains a large part of the hardware of the headphones. The headphones have a battery life of ten hours when noise canceling is switched on and with ten minutes of charging the battery should last another eighty minutes. Sony does not say how long the battery will last if noise canceling is not enabled.

The earphones contain 9mm audio drivers and according to Sony, the device can handle ldac, dsee hx and s-master hx, sound technologies that the company believes should provide better audio. For noise canceling there is a feedforward and a feedback microphone. The headphones use the built-in QN1 chip to analyze the captured sound waves and then reduce them ‘to a minimum’.

For connections, the headphones have NFC and Bluetooth. The WI-1000XM2 can also be connected to Sony’s Headphones Connect app, which includes an equalizer and other audio settings. In that app, the Adaptive Sound Control function is also adjustable, which can adjust the noise reduction according to the moment of use. Sony gives the example of announcements at airports that are let through, while the headphones suppress other noises.

The device also works with Google Assistant and if the earbuds fall out, the headphones automatically pause the music. When the earbuds are back in the ear, the music continues. The headphones also have a built-in microphone. The WI-1000XM2 will be available in the Benelux from January next year for 330 euros.