Apple AirPods Max (Lightning) vs Sony WH-1000XM4

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AirPods Max (Lightning) compared with WH-1000XM4

	AppleAirPods Max (Lightning)	SonyWH-1000XM4
Overview
Released
Released	December 2020	August 2020
Sound
Type
Type	Over-ear	Over-ear
Noise cancelling
Noise cancelling	Yes	Yes
Transparency mode
Transparency mode	Yes	Yes
Spatial audio with head tracking
Spatial audio with head tracking	Yes	–
Driver size
Driver size	40 mm	40 mm
Bluetooth codecs
Bluetooth codecs	SBC and AAC	SBC, AAC and LDAC
Lossless over USB-C
Lossless over USB-C	No	No
Chip
Chip	H1	QN1
Drivers
Drivers	Apple-designed dynamic drivers with dual neodymium ring magnet motors	40 mm dome-type driver with an aluminium-coated LCP diaphragm, CCAW voice coil and neodymium magnet; 4 Hz to 40,000 Hz (JEITA); sensitivity 105 dB/mW switched on, 101 dB/mW switched off; impedance 40 Ω switched on, 16 Ω switched off (1 kHz, wired)
Chip
Chip	H1 in each ear cup	HD Noise Cancelling Processor QN1 (with an integrated analogue amplifier) and a Bluetooth Audio SoC
Noise cancelling detail
Noise cancelling detail	Eight microphones for Active Noise Cancellation; Transparency mode	Dual Noise Sensor technology, with two noise-cancelling microphones on each ear cup (one outside, one inside); Personal NC Optimizer and Atmospheric Pressure Optimising; Ambient Sound Mode with Voice focus; Adaptive Sound Control; Quick Attention Mode; Speak-to-Chat
Audio features
Audio features	Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking; Adaptive EQ; Audio Sharing; AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs (SoundGuys); analogue wired listening through a separately sold Lightning to 3.5 mm audio cable	LDAC up to 990 kbps (Hi-Res Audio Wireless); High-Resolution Audio over the headphone cable; DSEE Extreme upscaling; 360 Reality Audio certified; equaliser in the app
Battery
Listening time (maker's claim)
Listening time (maker's claim)	Up to 20 hours	Up to 30 hours
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Up to 20 hours of movie playback with Spatial Audio; Smart Case puts headphones in an ultra-low-power state; charging via Lightning	Up to 38 hours with noise cancelling off (AAC or SBC); with LDAC, 24 hours with noise cancelling on or 30 hours off; with DSEE Extreme on, 18 hours with noise cancelling on (16 hours with LDAC); Speak-to-Chat shortens battery life by about 30%; talk time up to 24 hours (30 hours with noise cancelling off); standby up to 30 hours with noise cancelling on (200 hours off); up to 22 hours on the headphone cable with noise cancelling on (36 hours off); can't be used while charging
Fast charging
Fast charging	Around 1.5 hours of listening after 5 minutes of charging	10 minutes gives about 5 hours of playback with a 1.5 A or higher USB adaptor; full charge in about 3 hours
Design
Weight
Weight	384.8 g	254 g (better)
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	5.0	5.0
Two devices at once
Two devices at once	–	Yes
Headphone cable
Headphone cable	Yes	Yes
Controls
Controls	Digital Crown for volume, playback, calls and Siri; listening mode button for ANC/Transparency; “Hey Siri”	Touch sensor control panel on the right ear cup (double-tap to play, pause or answer calls; swipe forwards or backwards to skip; swipe up or down for volume; hold for the voice assistant; cover with your hand for Quick Attention Mode); power and CUSTOM buttons; a proximity sensor and two acceleration sensors pause music when the headphones are taken off and switch them off after 15 minutes; NFC one-touch pairing
Microphones
Microphones	Nine microphones, three for voice pickup (two shared with ANC); optical, position and case-detect sensors and accelerometer in each cup, gyroscope in left cup	Five microphones for calls and Speak-to-Chat (Precise Voice Pickup Technology); MEMS, omnidirectional, 50 Hz to 8,000 Hz
Fit and ear tips
Fit and ear tips	Stainless steel frame, telescoping arms and knit mesh canopy; memory foam cushions; aluminium ear cups	Closed, circumaural; foamed urethane earpads; stepless slider; ear cups swivel and fold inwards for the carrying case
Water resistance detail
Water resistance detail	–	No water resistance rating; Sony says the headphones are not waterproof
Case weight
Case weight	134.5 g (Smart Case)	–
Dimensions
Dimensions	187.3 × 168.6 × 83.4 mm (height × width × depth), including cushions	–
Works with
Works with	Apple devices with current iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS or tvOS; Bluetooth audio with older Apple software and non-Apple devices, with limited features	Sony | Sound Connect app (formerly Headphones Connect) for iOS and Android; multipoint connection to two devices (AAC or SBC only while connected to two); Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa built in; Google Fast Pair; Bluetooth 5.0 Class 1, about 10 m range; A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP
Colours
Colours	Space Grey, Silver, Sky Blue, Green, Pink	Black, Platinum Silver; limited-edition Silent White sold in Europe from May 2021
In the box
In the box	AirPods Max, Smart Case, Lightning to USB-C cable, documentation	Headphones, USB-C cable (USB-A to USB-C, about 20 cm), headphone cable (about 1.2 m, gold-plated L-shaped stereo mini plug), plug adaptor for in-flight use, carrying case