Sony WF-1000XM3 HD

The follow-up model to a successful original proves even better. Sony’s true wireless buds offer noise-cancelling in addition to excellent all-round performance.

Model numbers are hard enough without companies having one product called the WH-1000XM3 (over-ear noise-cancellers) and another, these true wireless earbuds, called the WF-1000XM3. But the point is presumably that the buds successfully capture everything that made their over-ear counterparts such a success. With only a few minor caveats, these are a super-compact alternative to their larger brethren.

First and foremost, there’s noise-cancelling, and it’s just as exceptional as on the full-size headphones, and so can be considered the best on the consumer market right now. Sporting an updated version of Sony’s dedicated processor (the QN1e chip), each bud utilises two microphones to intelligently identify environmental noises and aggressively block them out. The results are spectacular — particularly for typical use cases such as commuting, city noise or chatty offices. Further customisation within the Sony headphone app allows for varying degrees of intensity, even an option to let in voices only.

The audio quality, too, is a lesson learned directly from the WH-1000XM3 playbook. While the aforementioned Sony app has the option to adjust the equalisation of your sound (along with some interesting fidelity-boosting tricks), the out-of-the-box sound profile is incredibly pleasing. While well-balanced, clear and producing an excellent sense of space (though inevitably not quite as spacious as the over-ear alternative), the sound profile of these buds tends to the bassier side of things, but not overwhelmingly or distractingly so.

Thanks to a customisable touch control on each bud, you can answer calls, play and pause music, skip tracks or change noise-cancelling modes with ease. Sony’s Quick Attention mode is present here too, allowing you to hold your finger to a control to momentarily let through external sound, useful when you’re asked whether you want beef or chicken, should you ever get to board a plane again.

The battery case has a premium aesthetic and the ability to quadruple the buds battery life. Without any recharging, the WF-1000XM3 will last a good six hours with ANC engaged or eight without, while the case holds an extra 18-24 hours, again dependent on whether you’re using noise-cancelling or not.

As with the case, the buds themselves are a little large and aren’t necessarily secure enough to withstand heavy jostling, but their elegant design and smarts justify their size.

Two drawbacks: missing here, strangely for Sony, is any higher Bluetooth codec for Android users — no aptX (which the Sennheisers opposite do offer) nor Sony’s own LDAC, though Apple users benefit from AAC. The other is their lack of any kind of sweat or water resistance, which rules them out for most workout uses, especially given the somewhat bulky shape. However, situations in which noise-cancelling is useful tend to be the opposite of those where you’d be exercising — blocking out traffic noises while jogging is a terrible idea! So we mostly forgive them on this front. And in their favour is the pricing — $319 (down from $399), yet they match the Sennheiser for sound and top them with noise-cancelling. If you have to pick a winner in this group test, it’s the Sonys. HD