Let me show you the capacity limit of true wireless noise canceling headphones? Sony WF- 1000XM4 experience

According to the "20021Quarterly Tracking Report of China Wireless Headset Market in the Second Quarter" released by IDC some time ago, the domestic real wireless headset market shipments reached 36.25 million units in the first half of this year. It shows that the cake in the real wireless headset market is still popular, and many enterprises have begun to continue to innovate in the direction of active noise reduction. But when it comes to experience, all kinds of true wireless headphones on the market are obviously uneven. In order to explore the upper limit of the experience of true wireless headphones, I started with Sony WF- 1000XM4 true wireless noise-reducing headphones which were upgraded again two years later. See if we can change some users' preconceptions about wireless headsets.

As a visionary design practitioner, I was first attracted by the packaging after tearing open the envelope. It is reported that this is a sustainable paper material "original mixed material" developed by Sony, which is made of bamboo, sugarcane fiber and post-consumption recycled paper. Different from the soft couch feeling of environmental recycled paper in the past, the packaging material of WF- 1000XM4 gives people a preliminary impression of environmental protection and texture in visual perception and touch.

In addition to the machine, manual and Type-C power cord, this exquisite environmental protection box also provides two pairs of earmuffs with different sizes to ensure the best in-ear experience for all kinds of people.

Sony WF- 1000XM4 true wireless noise reduction headphones have two color schemes. The dark black version is actually quite textured and commercial, but this gray-white version (officially known as platinum and silver) makes me shine. Compared with the previous generation, this WF- 1000XM4 is not a small iteration at all, and the charging box is completely designed and smaller. The new indicator light in front is very eye-catching and inconspicuous.

The top of the matte senior gray charging box has no other decoration except Sony LOGO. This golden logo is only decorated with charging boxes that brighten the rock ash, which adds a sense of quality.

Sony's product design will never let people down. Magnifying the surface details of the charging box with a microscope, we can see the gray shell with fine random embellishment, which enriches the texture and impression of the shell. After enlarging Sony's gilded LOGO, the texture details inside are amazing and the edges are still meticulous.

The bottom of the earphone charging box is printed with relevant model parameters, and it can be seen that this product is made in Malaysia. As I said before, the feel of this charging box is quite good. As a traveling EDC, I often play with it in my hand, which also benefits from the great curvature of the bottom. When the bottom is held in the palm of your hand, it will have an excellent feel.

Thanks to Sony's self-developed V 1 integrated processor and Bluetooth 5.2, the charging box and headphones can provide up to 36 hours of battery life, while also supporting fast charging. The headset can last for about 60 minutes after charging for about 5 minutes.

Sony WF- 1000XM4 headphones, as the flagship positioning, naturally support wireless charging, as long as the wireless charging board at home is Qi standard. It happens that several rooms in my home and desks in my studio have wireless charging boards, and I put this charging box on it most of the time. For several weeks, I haven't used the data cable to charge once. It can be said that it makes me no longer anxious about electricity.

Not afraid of 10 thousand, just in case. Once I went out of town, I found that the charging box was almost dead on the way. Taking advantage of the gap, I directly used the reverse wireless charging of my mobile phone, and I can also provide emergency charging for Sony WF- 1000XM4 headphones that support wireless charging. It can be said that this is a real omni-directional wireless headset.

In addition to the pursuit of workmanship as always, it can be said that there is almost no shadow of the previous generation in WF-1000xm4. This headset has been completely redesigned from the charging box to the inside, and it has returned to the circle again. Unlike official website's pictures, I think this is one of the few products with beautiful objects. Whether it's the earmuffs, the outline of headphones, or the golden decorative pickup hole that makes the finishing point, the arc design language runs through it, which is quite. In terms of volume, it has shrunk further compared with the previous generation.

There is also a microphone pickup hole at the top of the earphone. Note that on the edge of this pickup hole, Sony also added a small circle of Phnom Penh on it, which is in line with Sony's persistent pursuit of design details.

Headphones are printed with left and right logos, with detailed design. Only the R logo on the right is red, and the L on the left is gray, so you can tell by looking at the color directly when you wear it, without squinting. On the other side of the metal contact, there is an infrared distance sensor to detect the wear state. A small opening at the edge is a decompression tuning hole.

By default, the green earmuffs are assembled, that is, number M. Generally speaking, we Asians are in shape, so it is enough to use the default M size or the attached S size. ..

The inner earmuffs of this earphone are made of different colors of silicone materials, which can firmly connect the earphone, while the outer layer is a foam material called polyurethane, which has the characteristics of slow rebound and can well fill the gap between the earmuffs, thus providing a better wearing experience. Regarding wearing, I brushed some on the Internet and said it was uncomfortable to wear. Maybe I'm not wearing it. Ha ha. I also want to remind you that it is best to pinch the earplugs before putting them on, and then put them in your ears. At the same time, you can rotate it up and down after wearing it, so that the earphone can slowly expand in the ear canal, so that the adaptability between the earphone and the ear canal will be higher.

This time, Sony WF- 1000XM4 also introduced a bone conduction sensor. Compared with the traditional air pickup, it can better distinguish sound from ambient sound. Combined with microphone beamforming technology, the built-in four microphones and sensors can provide clearer voice and change the experience of wireless headphones in the past.

Sony attaches great importance to the details of user interaction experience in product development. For example, the smart no-pick function launched this time-when you play a song with headphones and need to talk to people around you temporarily, you don't need to manually stop playing music or take off your headphones as usual. As long as you speak, the headset will automatically recognize and stop playing sound, which is a lazy function to improve efficiency. Of course, don't worry about false triggering, you can adjust the sensitivity through the APP.

Before using WF- 1000XM4, you need to download Sony's wireless headset APP "Headphones" to connect headphones, so as to better adapt. As a designer, my first impression when I saw this APP was that the APP developed by Sony engineers was quite formal, and there was no misuse of custom space, which followed the design specifications of Android to the greatest extent. What impressed me most was its adaptive voice control function. After it is turned on, it can automatically monitor the user's activity state and position, and automatically switch the preset noise reduction scheme and ambient sound, bringing a more natural and smooth noise reduction experience.

At the top of this APP, the status of headphones and charging box is displayed intuitively. Here, you need to pay attention to one detail See the LDAC logo at the top. If you don't display LDAC at the top of your APP, but SBC, you need to manually select a higher quality LDAC code in the corresponding Bluetooth connection device of Android phone. At least at present, the LDAC coding protocol developed by Sony is the first choice to provide higher bit rate and sound quality. Back to the APP, in my opinion, Sony's APP is this 360 realistic audio in addition to adaptive voice control and noise reduction level control. You can analyze your ears by taking pictures and optimize the playback in a targeted manner to make the audio experience more immersive.

As a real wireless noise-reducing earphone, the APP of WF- 1000XM4 provides a wealth of environmental sound control options. In addition to turning off and enabling noise reduction, it also supports 20 levels of adjustable ambient sound mode, that is, transparent mode. There are also special adjustment options for annoying wind noise, which can be said to be very thorough.

Different from other TWS headset apps, Sony's setting options are quite rich, basically covering all the functions of mainstream TWS headsets. The left and right ear touch adjustment options are also rich, supporting trigger conditions such as clicking, double clicking, triple clicking and long pressing, and even providing air density detection options for some users who wear WF- 1000XM4 for the first time to help you determine the best size of earplugs. In general, the practicality of headphones is higher than that of many headset apps that are not used once they are turned on.

I thought that wearing without multi-point support might not be so strong, but the actual experience is not the case. Thanks to the polyurethane sponge earplug sleeve that fills the ear canal, the ear is full as a whole, and the feeling of foreign body filling after entering the ear is not as strong as that of the previous earphone. Provide better noise reduction and comfortable wearing experience.

In terms of interaction, clicking on the left ear can switch between noise reduction and ambient sound, double-clicking can answer and hang up the phone, and long-pressing can temporarily switch to transparent mode to clearly hear the external sound. By default, clicking on the right ear means playing pause, double-clicking is the next song or answering the phone, and triple-clicking is the previous song. Click Continue to press Yes to start the voice assistant or refuse to answer the phone. For myself, besides answering the phone and listening to songs, the voice assistant function is the most commonly used function.

As Sony's first true wireless noise-reducing earphone with Hi-Res wireless sound quality certification, I have great expectations for its listening performance, and the actual experience has not let me down. Taking Chyi Yu's Song of the Boat as an example, the near-field listening sense is strong and imposing, the high-pitched sound line is clear, then the drums and bass are deep, the low-frequency is solid and cohesive, but not tight, and the spatial level separated from the human voice is naturally and highly restored. This song has been with me for many years, and I feel different every time I listen to it. But this is the first time I heard that long-lost melancholy charm and obsession on TWS headphones.

The active noise reduction function of most domestic headphones is really like playing house, without running software and other tools to visually present the sound sense, which makes many headphones with passive noise reduction function use the information difference to brag about how good their noise reduction is. But Sony obviously didn't blow the noise reduction function, which really surprised me, especially at home, wearing headphones, not turning on music, only turning on noise reduction, the noise of the road outside the window, the whirring of the leafless fan in the room, and the noise of the washing machine and dishwasher all disappeared. I also specially recorded an ambient sound and converted it into frequency spectrum to show the effect and give you an image understanding, and its noise reduction is just like this. I can focus more on what's in front of me. Some people will be surprised by the silence at the moment of noise reduction, but they will feel unaccustomed after a while, which can be solved by turning on the ambient sound and adjusting the volume appropriately.

As an active noise-reducing earphone, it has another purpose. You can also use this pair of headphones as pure sound insulation cotton when you rest in the studio at noon, but it is not as disobedient as traditional sound insulation cotton and will not cause embarrassment around you. When you need to hear the external sound clearly, just click the left ear to switch the noise reduction mode.

It has been raining here for two weeks, and the weather is getting colder and colder. Every time I go out to pick up the courier, I will pass an open road. I forgot to take off my headphones several times and took them directly in the rain. However, the IPX4 waterproof level of Sony WF- 1000XM4 headphones does not seem to be afraid of the invasion of light rain.

If you need to find fault, it is that the earphone charging box of this earphone has a slightly stronger magnetic attraction. The sister paper at home complains that it is not so convenient to take out, but then you don't have to worry about the separation of headphones. I tried to shake it under the lid, but I was not afraid to throw it out alone even if I accidentally fell. So this design is a matter of opinion.

After this period of use, it is not an exaggeration to say that the real wireless headset experiences the ceiling. Sony's unique design, self-developed V 1 noise reduction processor, high bit rate LDAC protocol, convenient wireless charging and other highlights make this more versatile Sony WF- 1000XM4 true wireless noise reduction earphone stand out among similar products. It also improves the experience upper limit of true wireless headphones. It is also a positive demonstration for the real wireless headset market where homogenization is rampant at present. It turns out that true wireless headphones can also achieve this level, which is especially suitable for users who have high pursuit of true wireless headphones. Moreover, the pre-sale of the Double Eleven is about to begin, and all major platforms will have many discounts and subsidies. If you pay more attention, you will definitely get a good price for WF-1000XM4.