Sony WF-1000XM5 Earbuds Long-term Review: Quite similar to its predecessor but noticeably smaller

Pros:
- Excellent sound quality
- Significantly smaller as compared to XM4
- Comfortable in-ear fit, great passive noise isolation
- Impressive ANC and ambient mode
- Wear detection, multipoint support
- Support for LDAC codecs even when paired with two devices
- Useful companion app, smart sound tweaks
- Good battery backup, supports wireless charging

Cons:
- Configuration of controls is still not granular
- ANC, though good, isn’t better than its predecessor
- Pricing could have been more competitive

Price: Rs 22,290 to Rs 24,990
Rating: 4/5

Sony launched its flagship and much-awaited WF-1000XM5 TWS earbuds in India in October last year. For reasons unknown, it took a lot longer than usual to reach us. So instead of rushing through the test process, we thought of spending even more time with it and compiling a long-term review. And to be fair, this is one product that you are supposed to sit back and enjoy after all.

After having used its predecessor, the Sony WF-1000XM4 extensively, we are well aware of its strengths and shortcomings. It still remains one of the best TWS (true wireless) earphones around, and Sony had a tough task on their hands to beat it despite having over two years to release its successor. One glaring issue with the XM4 was its bulk, and that has definitely been addressed. But can the Sony WF-1000XM5 outperform it in other departments? Let’s find out.

Sony WF-1000XM5 Earphones: Design and comfort (8/10)
Though the shape is somewhat similar, these earbuds are noticeably smaller and lighter than the WF-1000XM4. Though not as small as the Linkbuds S, they are about 25 per cent smaller and 20 per cent lighter than their predecessor, as per the company. Each earbud weighs about 5.9 grams; not the lightest around but not heavy either. More importantly, they feel comfortable in the ear and offer a fairly snug fit if you wear them right. They don’t stick out the ears as much as the 1000XM4 did.

Unlike most earbuds that are fitted with silicone ear-tips, you get polyurethane foam tips here that adjust to the shape of your ear canals and provide excellent passive noise isolation. So much so that it is better than active noise cancellation (ANC) offered by several budgets to midrange earbuds. Three more pairs of tips are bundled, in case the default ones aren’t the best fit for you. Do spend a couple of minutes choosing the right ones.

The build quality of the product is solid, and you get a combination of glossy and smooth matte finish with sizable touch zones at the back of the buds. The glossy finish makes things a little slippery when removing the buds from the case at times. The compact and pocketable charging case has a matte finish and weighs under 40 grams. The case has a USB-C charging port and a Bluetooth pairing/reset button at the back and a charge status LED at the front. You get two colour variants of the WF-1000XM5 - black and silver (beige).

Sony continues with its environment-friendly initiative which we appreciate. The earphones and case are supposedly made using a variety of recycled plastic materials, and the outer packaging is pretty much void of any plastic to keep things green.

Sony WF-1000XM5 Earphones: Features and specifications (8.5/10)
Despite the smaller footprint, each earbud hosts a larger 8.4 mm dynamic driver and three microphones - two for ANC and one for calling. In addition to that, you now get two processors instead of one. While Sony’s newer V2 processor takes care of the sound processing, a dedicated QN2e chip handles the ANC. Keeping the weight of each bud under 6 grams with all that circuitry, and without compromising on the battery backup, is an achievement in itself.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 supports SBC, AAC, LDAC and LC3 codecs over Bluetooth 5.3. You get to choose between sound quality or a stable connection, and a codec is assigned accordingly. As long as the buds and the source device are in the same room, it’s best to choose the former and use LDAC codecs. These earbuds support dual-pairing and they can be paired with two devices simultaneously. Even better, you can use LDAC codec on both devices; a feature missing in the XM4 at launch.

You also get wear detection sensors to pause the audio when you remove a bud from your ear and resume when you put it back on. The back of the earbuds are touch-enabled and let you perform a handful of tasks using single tap, double tap and triple tap gestures. The functions can be configured using Sony’s Headphones app. However, things are still not as granular as we would like them to be. The functions are available in sets and you cannot assign a specific function for a specific gesture.

For instance, if you choose Playback for the right earbud, a single tap is used for play/pause, a double tap for the next track and a triple tap for the previous track. You cannot change that. Similarly, if you assign ANC for the left bud, it can be used to cycle through different ANC modes, and that too only with a single tap. You can separately assign quick access for Spotify Tap or Amazon Music Play Now using double or triple tap. These earbuds have an IPX4 rating for sweat resistance and can be worn during workouts or a jog.

Sony WF-1000XM5 Earphones: Performance (8.5/10)
The wireless range is good with a stable connection even at 10 metres with a clear line of sight between the buds and the source device. There were no latency issues either when streaming videos. Like most Sony TWS buds with ANC, you get three listening modes here - Noise Cancellation On, Ambient Sounds On and Normal mode (both off). You can choose any two or all three to cycle through from the Sony Headphones app; an app we have grown to like over time.

The passive noise isolation is so good here that one can easily be fooled into believing that ANC has been switched on. When you actually turn on ANC, it further cuts down on certain low and midrange frequency sounds like the whirr of a fan or even traffic noises. Human chatter is greatly reduced but not eliminated. Now, while the noise cancellation is excellent, it doesn’t feel any better than that of its predecessor. I did have access to a XM4 unit for comparison and expected a little better from the dedicated QN2e processor on the XM5.

The ambient mode here is one of the finest around with things sounding natural with the odd wind noise to deal with occasionally. I managed to have conversations with people on the street and with a cab driver without removing the buds from the ear. One can toggle through the ANC modes by tapping the left earbud once. You can also opt for Adaptive Sound Control to automatically switch ANC and ambient modes on and off depending on your location. Features like head gestures, DSEE Extreme audio upscaling, 360 Reality Audio and more are also available through the app on these earphones.

Now let’s talk about the sound output. The Sony WF-1000XM5 is sufficiently loud at 60% volume level. Strangely, the default sound is a little bass heavy for a pair of premium earphones. Don’t worry, it isn’t as bass heavy as some of the midrange earphones you get for less than a quarter of its price, nor does it sound like something from Sony’s old XB series. Having said that, the Sony 1000X series has never claimed to produce neutral sound, and always had a slightly warm but pleasant sound. The XM5 is no different after some minor tweaks from the companion app.

You can either try one of the preloaded audio presets in the app or play around with the equaliser to create your own. For those who aren’t comfortable using a multi-band equaliser, Sony has come up with a simple way of creating your own custom EQ. Just play any audio and tap on the different numbered circles that appear on the screen to find the sound output that suits your taste. Simple, effective and one doesn’t need to know about the intricacies of different frequency ranges. Just trust your ears and choose what you like best.

After a bit of fine-tuning, the Sony WF-1000XM5 produces a detailed, balanced and highly enjoyable output. Yes, it still favours the low-end frequencies, but the bass is deep and tight and does not overshadow the midrange frequencies. The vocals are clean and the instrument separation is very good. The highs are sharp, yet perfectly tempered so that they do not sound sibilant. The soundstage is wonderfully broad for a pair of TWS earbuds making the overall experience more enjoyable across various genres of music and video content.

Again, the overall sound output isn’t significantly better than that of the 1000XM4, which itself was excellent, but it is ever so slightly more refined, and the soundstage definitely feels broader here. I think the biggest challenge for Sony this time was to retain all the goodness of the XM4 in a smaller shell, and I can safely say, they have succeeded.

Sony WF-1000XM5 Earphones: Call quality (7.5/10)
The call quality of the 1000XM5 is pretty decent. The person on the line was clearly audible, and I was heard with reasonable clarity too, but the transmitted voice could have been a tad sharper. When outdoors, the microphones do pick up some ambient noise but not excessively to impact the conversation. The noise suppression algorithm works reasonably well, but probably ends up softening the transmitted voice in noisy areas.

Sony WF-1000XM5 Earphones: Battery life (8/10)
Sony claims a battery backup of 8 hours for the buds with ANC on and a total of 24 hours with the charging case; same as that of the XM4. However, those numbers are probably true when using AAC codec. During my testing using LDAC codec, I got a little over 6 hours out of the buds with ANC switched on all the time. The case can recharge these buds fully twice more, thus taking the total battery backup close to 18 hours.

As I mentioned earlier, the passive noise isolation here is one of the best, and it cuts out the background noise significantly even without turning ANC on. With ANC off, these earbuds lasted over 9 hours on a full charge, which is excellent. With this case, you get a total of about 28 hours. Thus, if you use ANC sparingly, you can actually get close to 24 hours of playtime out of the buds and the case, which is not bad at all when using LDAC codec.

The battery status of each earbud as well as the charging case is visible on the paired phone or in the companion app. The app also prompts you when the charge on the case drops below 30%. It takes about 90 minutes to charge the buds and case fully using a standard USB-C charger. The XM5 supports fast charging with 3 minutes of charge providing an hour of music playback; a handy feature to have. The case also supports Qi wireless charging.

Sony WF-1000XM5 Earphones: Price and verdict
The Sony WF-1000XM5 TWS earphones launched at Rs 24,990 in India with a one-year warranty. They can now be purchased closer to 22K. This is one area where Sony could have done better with a more competitive pricing. The WF-1000XM4 debuted at Rs 19,990 here, and a price tag closer to that at launch would have been ideal, given the similarity in performance between the two.

Yes, the XM5 is noticeably smaller, lighter, more comfortable and doesn’t miss out on any key feature of the XM4, and is undoubtedly among the best TWS earbuds available in India at the moment. But it doesn’t sound significantly better than its predecessor, nor is the ANC superior in comparison. So if you are fine with slightly larger earbuds and the extra gram and a half weight in each ear, the Sony WF-1000XM4 can be yours under 14K and even as low as Rs 12,490 if you get lucky. That translates into far better value for money till you spot its successor selling under 20K.