Sony opens preorders for noise-cancelling, fully wireless WF-1000XM3 earbuds

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in iPhone
Sony on Friday launched preorders for the WF-1000XM3, a rare example of fully wireless earbuds equipped with active noise cancellation (ANC).

Sony WF-1000XM3


The buds use a new noise cancelling chip, the QN1e, said to be a more power-efficient version of the QN1 in Sony's popular WH-1000XM3 over-the-ear headphones. The company is also using a new Bluetooth 5 chip and "optimized antenna structure" to ensure maximum signal reliability. In fact both buds connect to the host device simultaneously, unlike many wireless rivals, in which one bud is just a satellite of the other.

Sony is promising 6 hours of on-bud battery life with ANC activated, and up to 24 hours of use with an included charging case. Switching off ANC extends overall life to 32 hours.

Mac and iPad Pro owners may appreciate the case's use of USB-C. With or without an Apple device, a 10-minute charge is said to provide up to 90 minutes of audio.

Another similarity with the WH-1000XM3 is the use of touch gestures for commands like controlling playback, triggering Siri, and toggling ANC. Removing a bud will automatically pause music, and a "Quick Attention" mode will let people briefly hear ambient sound.

Sony WF-1000XM3


Like AirPods, the Sony buds aren't officially sweat- or water-resistant.

The WF-1000XM3 costs $229.99, and will ship on August 5 in black and silver colors.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 19
    iqatedoiqatedo Posts: 1,822member
    I remember active noise cancellation talked about in the 1970s as a possible means to quietening jack hammer compressor noise. How far the tech has come though with microelectronics. I recently purchased Sony's WH-1000XM3 wired headset and find the loss of outside audio cues almost overwhelming. The systems plays well with Macs and the iPhone too.
  • Reply 2 of 19
    thttht Posts: 5,421member
    I might give these a chance. I will wait for them to be shipping and to be in retail however. 

    Powerbeats Pro for exercise
    Sony WF-1000XM3 for music
    Airpods for casual listening

    ?

    That’s like $700 in headphones though...
  • Reply 3 of 19
    xbitxbit Posts: 390member
    Not Sony’s most aesthetically pleasing design ever but that’s a great feature list.
    AppleExposed
  • Reply 4 of 19
    matrix077matrix077 Posts: 868member
    Sounds like a great earphone. One up AirPods possibly. The price is OK too even though I would love this set of features in a $199 price point. 

    A feature set like this in an AirPods and it will be an instant buy. 
    edited July 2019
  • Reply 5 of 19
    baka-dubbsbaka-dubbs Posts: 175member
    iqatedo said:
    I remember active noise cancellation talked about in the 1970s as a possible means to quietening jack hammer compressor noise. How far the tech has come though with microelectronics. I recently purchased Sony's WH-1000XM3 wired headset and find the loss of outside audio cues almost overwhelming. The systems plays well with Macs and the iPhone too.

    I bought the XM3's prior to a flight earlier this year, I tend to stress out from all of the ambient noise(plane engines, people, crying kids, etc) and these things completely changed the flying process for me.  Its definitely disconcerting at first, but now I would not step on a plane without them(or Bose Quite Comfort, which supposedly are very similar).  Assuming I can toggle the noise cancelling on and off without having to go into the app and that they work half as well as the over ear version, these will be a day one purchase.
    bakedbananas
  • Reply 6 of 19
    AppleExposedAppleExposed Posts: 1,805unconfirmed, member
    Pathetic. Sony has been a copy cat since Playstation.

    Sony was great pre-1995
  • Reply 7 of 19
    avon b7avon b7 Posts: 7,622member
    250€ on pre-order at Amazon Spain. A little above the sweet spot of 199€ but I'll wait it out and see if there is an offer on Prime Day.

    These look good as they have silicon caps to better hold their position.

    I already have a pair of Sennheiser NR PXC 550 headphones for home use.
  • Reply 8 of 19
    Pathetic. Sony has been a copy cat since Playstation.

    Sony was great pre-1995

    Yeah.... .... copying who sorry? You can’t mean Apple as they don’t have headphones with active noise cancelling. 

    This is exactly what I want on my Airpods. Though I’m sure ANC will be difficult given the lack of area to fit the tech into on the Airpods. if somehow they got them into the Airpods and kept the same form factor it would be amazing. 

    I may give these a try, nicely done Sony. Hopefully Apple manages to get noise cancelling into the Airpods soon. 
    bakedbananas
  • Reply 9 of 19
    robin huberrobin huber Posts: 3,949member
    Tight fit in ear canal is better for me than noise cancelling. Costs less too. If they fit snugly and the batteries don’t die after two years like AirPods, it’s a buy for me. Oh, and needed be able to check power on iPhone. 
    bakedbananas
  • Reply 10 of 19
    rolsrols Posts: 68member
    I have the 'can' style Sony 1000XM3s and their noise cancelling is very good. On a plane they cut ambient noise by somewhere around "most of it" and I wear them at work when I need to concentrate and my coworkers are being a little rambunctious. If Sony have put that noise cancelling tech in this form factor I'm definitely going to pick these up. 
    That may end up being a loss for Apple. They've delayed the launch of power beats pro twice here and they still aren't scheduled to be available until an unknown date in July unless of course they slip again. I've been waiting for the powerbeats but if I can find a way to get on the pre-order for the Sonys, even if it's August 5th that's a definite date instead of a moving one and probably a better product for me. 
  • Reply 11 of 19
    thttht Posts: 5,421member
    This image is kind of making me hesitate:

    That’s a pretty big case! It’s big enough such that the trade off to tin cans doesn’t seem like that big of a step. This case is too big for my pants pockets. 

    The Powerbeats Pro I would use for exercise, with my glasses off, primarily at home, so the big case size is not that big of a deal. More worried about the comfort of the hooks. 

    AirPods are basically the always with you pair of headphones. They are great from this perspective. 

    Wait and see.
  • Reply 12 of 19
    tomasulutomasulu Posts: 54member
    I’ve the big bro wh1000xm3 and sold it. The biggest problem with these is that they won’t connect to more than one device at the same time. So you’ve to disconnect your iPhone to get it to pair to your ipad. And even after disconnecting iPhone it doesn’t automatically paired itself to ipad. 

    Just get the Bose 500. 
  • Reply 13 of 19
    matrix077matrix077 Posts: 868member
    tomasulu said:
    I’ve the big bro wh1000xm3 and sold it. The biggest problem with these is that they won’t connect to more than one device at the same time. So you’ve to disconnect your iPhone to get it to pair to your ipad. And even after disconnecting iPhone it doesn’t automatically paired itself to ipad. 

    Just get the Bose 500. 
    It’s strange that in this day and age earphone can’t connect and re-connect automatically.  
  • Reply 14 of 19
    So you mean Apple never copies anyone?
    Pathetic. Sony has been a copy cat since Playstation.

    Sony was great pre-1995
  • Reply 15 of 19
    palegolaspalegolas Posts: 1,361member
    Looks a little bit big and wonky, no?
    Smaller than the Bose though, I think.
  • Reply 16 of 19
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    Pathetic. Sony has been a copy cat since Playstation.

    Sony was great pre-1995
    Oh come on, they have always been at the top in the professional video market and now with the likes of the Sony a7 iii they are killing Canon and Nikon in the mirrorless market.  OK so Sony missed the boat on the iPod market (heck Microsoft missed the mobile phone market)  but they are a great company that makes very high-quality equipment and supplies many other companies with parts such as camera sensors and their TVs are superb.
  • Reply 17 of 19
    MacProMacPro Posts: 19,718member
    I hope Apple updates its earbuds to at least offer an option of noise cancellation coupled with a wireless plug-in transmitter/adapter for airplane seats. I fly a hell of a lot and it's impossible to really enjoy a movie with the engine noise modern airplane manufacturers allow in the cabins.

    On a sidebar, I have recordings of decibel levels recorded over the Atlantic that would require ear protection on building sites taken in Delta aircraft, it's a lawsuit waiting to happen IMHO. I would bet there are thousands if not millions of people with severe ear damage thanks to airline s saving a few bucks on soundproofing.
    edited July 2019 avon b7
  • Reply 18 of 19
    MacPro said:
    Pathetic. Sony has been a copy cat since Playstation.

    Sony was great pre-1995
    Oh come on, they have always been at the top in the professional video market and now with the likes of the Sony a7 iii they are killing Canon and Nikon in the mirrorless market.  OK so Sony missed the boat on the iPod market (heck Microsoft missed the mobile phone market)  but they are a great company that makes very high-quality equipment and supplies many other companies with parts such as camera sensors and their TVs are superb.


    Yes, the Sony Alpha series are a real surprise in the camera market.

    Overall, I still love Sony products. My last phone before the iPhone was a Sony Ericsson.

  • Reply 19 of 19
    fastasleepfastasleep Posts: 6,408member
    Pathetic. Sony has been a copy cat since Playstation.

    Sony was great pre-1995
    Please. Sony makes great products, not sure what motivation you'd have to call these pathetic. Their headphones are great. They're killing it with the PS4 and PSVR. Their entries in the mirrorless camera market have been incredible over the last 5 years or so. Their pro video equipment is great. Pre 1995?
    aramo
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