Sony WF-1000X vs Sony WF-1000XM4

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WF-1000X compared with WF-1000XM4

	SonyWF-1000X	SonyWF-1000XM4
Overview
Released
Released	September 2017	June 2021
Sound
Type
Type	In-ear	In-ear
Noise cancelling
Noise cancelling	Yes	Yes
Transparency mode
Transparency mode	Yes	Yes
Driver size
Driver size	6 mm	6 mm
Bluetooth codecs
Bluetooth codecs	SBC and AAC	SBC, AAC and LDAC
Chip
Chip	–	Integrated Processor V1
Drivers
Drivers	Closed dynamic 6 mm drivers with CCAW voice coils and neodymium magnets	6 mm drivers with high-power neodymium magnets
Noise cancelling detail
Noise cancelling detail	Active noise cancelling and Ambient Sound Mode with normal or voice settings; Adaptive Sound Control changes modes according to the paired phone's movement sensors	Feedforward and feedback noise-sensing microphones on each earbud; Ambient Sound Mode, Quick Attention, Adaptive Sound Control and automatic wind noise reduction
Audio features
Audio features	Sony Headphones Connect provides sound-quality/connection-priority settings and equaliser presets; the launch maker page dates equaliser support to a later October 2017 app update	DSEE Extreme upscaling; 360 Reality Audio with compatible services; Bluetooth frequency response of 20 Hz–20 kHz at 44.1 kHz sampling, or 20 Hz–40 kHz with LDAC at 96 kHz and 990 kbps
Battery
Listening time (maker's claim)
Listening time (maker's claim)	Up to 3 hours	Up to 8 hours
With the case
With the case	Up to 9 hours	Up to 24 hours
Wireless charging
Wireless charging	–	Yes
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	AAC playback up to three hours with noise cancelling, Ambient Sound Mode or both off; SBC up to two hours with noise cancelling or ambient sound, or 2.5 hours off. Maker press release states nine hours total with two case recharges. Standby figures of eight or 35 hours are not playback life.	With DSEE Extreme off, the manual lists AAC playback up to 8 hours with noise cancelling or 12 hours off; SBC up to 7.5 hours on or 11 hours off; LDAC up to 5 hours on or 6 hours off. LDAC with DSEE Extreme set to AUTO and noise cancelling on is up to 3.5 hours. The launch release claims 24 hours with the case with noise cancelling, or 36 hours off; talk time up to 5.5 hours with noise cancelling and 6 hours off.
Charging case
Charging case	Micro-USB charging; earbuds approximately 1.5 hours, charging case approximately three hours for a full charge according to the Japanese maker specifications; NFC pairing built into the case	USB-C and Qi wireless charging; about 1.5 hours to charge the earbuds and 3 hours for the case
Fast charging
Fast charging	Maker help guide states approximately 70 minutes playback after 15 minutes charging; TechRadar's 75-minute claim is not substituted	5 minutes of charging gives about 1 hour of playback
Design
Weight (each earbud)
Weight (each earbud)	6.8 g (better)	7.3 g
Water and sweat resistance
Water and sweat resistance	–	IPX4
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	4.1	5.2
Two devices at once
Two devices at once	–	Yes
Controls
Controls	Left button controls power, pairing and sound modes; right button controls playback, tracks, calls and voice-assistant activation; no earbud volume adjustment	Touch controls for playback, volume and sound modes; Quick Attention lowers music volume while a finger is held on the left earbud; Speak-to-Chat pauses music and admits outside sound when speech is detected; wear detection pauses playback when an earbud is removed
Microphones
Microphones	Omnidirectional electret-condenser microphone; hands-free calls use the left unit and call audio is heard from the left only	Dual noise-sensing microphones per earbud; Precise Voice Pickup uses beamforming and a bone-conduction sensor for calls
Fit and ear tips
Fit and ear tips	Long Hybrid silicone tips in SS, S, M and L; Triple-comfort tips in S, M and L; fitting supporters in M and L	Polyurethane foam Noise Isolation Earbud Tips in S, M and L; an app test checks the seal
Case weight
Case weight	Approximately 70 g; maker earbud weight is approximately 6.8 g each	About 41 g; the UK support specifications put this under an unqualified weight heading, while the manual distinguishes the case from each 7.3 g earbud with M tips fitted
Water resistance detail
Water resistance detail	Maker manual states the headset is not waterproof; no IP rating published	IPX4 for the earbuds only, excluding the sound outlets, ventilation holes and microphone holes; the charging case is not water resistant
Works with
Works with	Bluetooth A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP; remembers up to eight paired devices, but the manual states music plays from one paired device at a time. Sony warns that Bluetooth playback can lag video or games. Maker US availability was September 2017; Japanese first sale was 7 October 2017. Sony announced a connection-stability update on 30 November 2017 to reduce audio interruptions; review observations are retained without asserting that every dropout was resolved	Bluetooth A2DP, AVRCP, HFP and HSP; Google Fast Pair and Microsoft Swift Pair; the current manual describes two-device multipoint, which Sony's firmware notes list as an added feature; LDAC needs a compatible source
Colours
Colours	Black or Champagne Gold	Black, Silver; official press photo shows Silver
In the box
In the box	Earbuds, charging case, approximately 50 cm Micro-USB cable, silicone and Triple-comfort tips, fitting supporters and documentation	Earbuds, charging case, Noise Isolation Earbud Tips in S, M and L, USB-A to USB-C charging cable