I have brought the new earbuds since it is summer, and it is too hot to walk in the all-over “platters” during the day (I have Surface Headphones 2). And since I wanted to have the best (or at least what all the reviewers claim to be the best) I went for Sony WF-1000XM4. Truth be told, this is my first pair of true wireless earphones, and that’s why I might be missing something. However, I’m hopeful that my review will help you out. I’ll write about these things: design of both the earphones (5/5) and the case (4.5/5), the sound (5/5), the mic (5/5), the battery life (5/5), ANC and ambient sound (4.5/5), connectivity (4.5/5), their app (4/5), and the comfort (5/5). Of course, my opinions are very subjective; I haven’t received these for review, I just want to be helpful, that’s why I’m writing this review. As I had 8 categories, I give them 4.72, and that’s why my rating is 5 stars. 1. THE DESIGN: 4.75/5 The first thing you’re going to notice about the headphones, is how they look. I’ve bought the white pair, since I’m tired of being a “batman.” The white ones look like they are made of porcelain or something like that. You anticipate a gentle, non-plastic and non-metallic touch, and you won’t be deceived: they are not just pleasant to see but are delightful to touch. There are subtle golden markings, but not too strong. You notice the earbuds, not the “Sony” inscription on them. Good! The only bad thing about them is that line that divides the inner and the outer parts of the earbuds; I think it could be more subtle. However, I think it’s 5 out of 5. The case is no less beautiful, and I really like the white texture of it. When you open it, it glows with green or yellow (depending on several factors). The only bad think about it, is that the lid is slightly wobbly; I’d expect it to be a bit firmer. But as you will see from my video, the buds cannot be shaken out of the case, and at the same time it's quite easy to take them out. The earbuds are magnetically attached to it, and you should not worry about them falling off. I haven’t scratched the case, and I’m not going to conduct any experiments, but people write that it’s quite scratchable. That wobbliness makes me to lower my rating to 4.5. 2. THE SOUND: 5/5 It is beyond my expectations. It is rich in details; I’m listening mostly to some strange music (from Bach to Beck, from Bonobo to Radiohead), something that is not too bass-y, and I must tell you that I am pleased with the sound. I am not a professional, I just have an attentive ear, and what I hear, pleases me a lot. I have Amazon HD, and it definitely helps to have this pair, to be able to take a delight in the quality of sound. Since I have S21 Ultra, I can enjoy LDAC, though I must admit, I can’t really tell the difference between AAC and LDAC; moreover, since the phone’s capabilities are great, even SBC codec sounds nice, and it is sometimes hard to tell, which codec is in use (I’ve conducted some experiments with my girlfriend, and we both were able to tell which codec is in use, yet it required a lot of concentration; the only time I could tell that there is a quality wash-out was when two pairs of headphones were actively connected to the device; then SBC showed its low-quality side) It is hard to explain the sound, beyond the poor man’s word “rich”; I would say, that on LDAC, the Ultra HD tracks, are gently scratching be with their subtle details, causing me to listen more to them. I know, this is too poetic, sorry to that, but that’s how I feel. However, when it comes to comparison with my Surface Headphones 2, I can’t say which sound I prefer more; after all, big headphones have more power in them; but maybe my ears are not too educated, and you should take my (too poetic) words with a grain of salt. 5 out of 5. 3. THE MIC: 5/5 Meanwhile, I have no problems with a mic and how it’s picking up voice. Once I’ve called my brother from a street and he complained that I sound as if I’m in a room, but not on a street. I think that this complaint is actually an endorsement! 5/5. 4. THE BATTERY LIFE: 5/5 The playback on a single charge is reaaaaaly loooooong. Even with ANC, DSEE, and LDAC, they last several hours before discharging. Solid 5. The case seems to hold around 3 charges: If you put completely discharged buds into fully charged case, it goes from 100% to about 67%. Next time, it’s 30%; then it’s 2%; i.e. it’s dead. I’m sorry, these numbers are coming out of my memory and are not precise. But these are the numbers of the new unit and I expect that as with all the batteries, the “longevity” will decrease. I’d give them 6 out of 5, but that would be cheating, I think. On top of that you get wireless charging. Be advised, the right bud is drained slightly faster than the left (I believe since it is the leading bud). 5. ANC & Ambient Sound: 4.5/5 I can’t compare them with other earbuds, but I can tell that Surface Headphone 2 seem to block more of the sound than these tiny creatures. Yet when I sit in my apartment with the open windows, and you cycle through “off – ambient noise – ANC,” you can hear the birds, then you “turn off the birds,” and then when you arrive at the ANC, the silence becomes even more immersive. Yet, to my taste, the overhead Surface Headphones 2 block more of the sounds; I might be mistaken. Moreover, when you use speak-to-chat and “focus on the voice” features, voices are not as loud as I would love to hear them (especially in loud street setups); I feel that this feature still needs more polishing to be of real help. The weirdest thing with these earplugs, is, however, when you use your mic: you begin to hear your surroundings, but there’s some kind of a “tin noise” that you hear. This tin-noise is really weird. That’s why, 4.5/5 6. THE CONNECTIVITY 4.5/5 These buds don’t offer multipoint, but if you pair them with your devices, the switch is fast and painless. There are no dropouts on Android if you’re using SBC, AAC, or even LDAC without tweaking it too much. If you opt for 900kbps, you begin to hear the stutter. There are some accidental dropouts on Windows. (As for now: really accidental, today I haven’t had any of them). However, Windows have no LDAC and there’s no APP for Windows therefore, you can’t know whether you’re on AAC or on LDAC. The sound is less crisp than on the Android, so I suspect it’s SBC. Why no aptX? Why no app for Windows? 7. THE APP: 4/5 I like the options it provides, but for me there is some drawbacks about which I would like to speak. I really like the voice notifications of the buds. If you opt for this feature and for “speak to chat” it will play a chime whenever you begin to talk and shortly after that. Why this specific (and annoying) notification cannot be set up separately? Also, this app is in habit of displaying a “ghost badge number,” so I get a feeling that there’s an update or an important message, while there’s nothing of that sort. Also, as I wrote earlier, there’s no app for Windows, which I don’t like. If I need to tweak anything, I have to pair my earbuds back to my phone. Moreover, at times it randomly shows the battery levels, and this notification is pushed across my devices. The last question is: why does it not support 360 Audio on Amazon HD??? I don’t have Tidal or Deezer and I don’t want to set up a new account. But this is more about Amazon than about Sony. 8. THE COMFORT: 5/5 The buds are big, but I have big ears and I feel quite comfy with them; but I bet that people with the smaller ears might find them quite uncomfortable. I can sit for hours in them, and I don’t feel tired. When in a mask, my ears are less comfy; but I suppose that would happen to any in-ear pair of pods. I like the touch controls and I never had “ghost-touches” or on the contrary, non-registered touches (in this they perform slightly better than Surface Headphones 2). After a lot of thinking, I’ll give them for this as well 5/5