Companies can get cheeky when it comes to new product activations. Case-in-point, when sending over their brand new WH-1000XM4s noise-canceling headphones for review, Sony included the headphones inside a box that looked like one of the floor tiles from the futuristic room at the end of 2001: A Space Odyessy. The notes inside stated that the box was a decibel monitor; the interior of the box contained light sensors that would then display a pattern whenever it detected a noise. All of this is just a fancy way of visually communicating an auditory experience — and to physically show off the audio superiority of Sony’s excellent new noise-canceling headphones.
The XM4 (better known as the 1000X Mark 4, if you want to get fancy) is the 2020 version of Sony’s WH-1000XM3 wireless headphones. Not only were these stellar noise-canceling headphones one of the most popular products with SPY readers in 2019 and 2020, but they were also our top-pick for the best noise-canceling headphones. How can you improve on a product that’s already the best over-the-ear noise-canceling headphone on the market? That’s the challenge Sony looked to face with this iteration, and the results, while subtle, move the needle forward.