Sony is one of the biggest names in the headphone game and in the fiercely competitive overear headphone category, the 1000X is one of the most popular models. The Sony 1000X headphones aim to deliver amazing sound, classleading noise cancellation and comfort. Now in their fifth generation, these headphones still set a high standard for others to follow.
I was lucky enough to be at the 2016 launch of the first generation of Sony’s 1000X headphones and they instantly became my travel headphones of choice. As a technology journalist, I’ve travelled a lot over the years, spending plenty of time on longhaul flights, which is where these headphones are at their best.
Each iteration has made small improvements, and the current generation launched in 2022, the Sony WH1000XM5, still impresses me. I won’t travel without them.
Sony WH1000XM5: At a glance
Sony WH1000XM5
Cons
Key specifications
| Noisecancellation | Yes |
|---|---|
| Battery life | Up to 30 hours (with ANC) |
| Charging | USBC |
| Weight | 250g |
| Colours | Black, Silver, Blue |
Sony WH1000XM5 review
The 1000XM5 iteration is the first time that Sony has significantly changed the design over its predecessors. There’s a sleek look, with the design being all about silence: the shape of the cups are designed to reduce wind noise, while the adjusters smoothly slide, with no clicks or steps. But importantly, this is the first edition of these headphones that don’t fold into a more compact shape.
The cups swivel, so the headphones will sit in a flatter case (which is provided), but the footprint of that case is a little larger than the older models, or rival headphones like the Bose QuietComfort or QuietComfort Ultra. If you travel a lot this could be a slight negative, as the case takes up a little more space, but at the same time, it’s a lot easier to stow these headphones away quickly without the folding that you’d have to do with previous pairs.
Sony WH1000XM5: Comfort
Comfort remains a hallmark of these headphones. Nicely padded across the headband and around the earcups, I’ve worn these headphones for 14hour flights without feeling the need to take them off. I often choose to sleep in them too when flying, thanks to the great noise cancelling that they offer – more on that later.
There’s been a trend of late to boost headphones with more premium materials like metal, but that increases the weight. Sony has kept these nice and light at 250g, noticeably lighter than the Apple AirPods Max or Sonos Ace, but very close in weight to their biggest rivals, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra.
Sony WH1000XM5: Noisecancellation
The Sony 1000XM5 offers touch and button controls, depending on what you want to do. There’s a button to switch from active noisecancelling (ANC) to passthrough (so you can hear both the music and ambient sounds around you). A press of the power button will give you the battery status.
One of the things I really like about these headphones is that they speak to you, so you don’t have to learn to recognise a huge range of different beeps to determine what’s happening.
The ANC is outstanding, too. When activated, it’s like a blanket of silence descends, cutting out travel noises, office noises or any noise really — I rate the 1000XM5 as among the best noisecancelling headphones you can buy. That serves the second purpose of making your music sound so much better — you don’t need loud volume, because it’s not fighting with the rest of the noises out there.
One neat trick is that you can temporarily turn off the ANC by touching the righthand ear cup, which is ideal for a quick conversation, like ordering a coffee.
Sony WH1000XM5: Sound quality
As is customary for Sony headphones, the sound quality is excellent. Rich, immersive audio is here to be enjoyed, whether that’s music that you’re streaming, a movie you are watching, or a podcast. It all sounds great — not too bassy, but with the ability to adjust the sound profile to your preference via the Sony Headphones app on your smartphone.
That app offers other tricks, allowing some customisation of how the headphones work, advanced features and letting you set up voice assistants. That’s right, if you want to talk to Alexa, Google Assistant or Siri through your headphones, you’re free to do so.
Sony WH1000XM5: Battery life
The battery life of the Sony WH1000XM5 is also impressive, offering 30 hours of playback with ANC turned on. Recharging takes 3.5 hours.
While these headphones are designed primarily to be Bluetooth headphones, they will also accept a 3.5mm headphone cable (supplied), which means you can plug them into the inflight entertainment system on aeroplanes. Even when using the cable, noise cancellation still works.
Good Housekeeping’s verdict on the Sony WH1000XM5 headphones
Sony isn’t alone in offering headphones in this category. Many great pairs of overear headphones offer excellent sound quality, noise cancellation and comfort. You can see some of the alternatives in our best wireless overear headphones guide.
But the important thing here is that Sony’s 1000XM5 offer all of this for less than £300, so they’re also excellent value for money. If you’re looking for greatvalue overear headphones to take on trains, planes or use in the office, these are hard to beat.
Chris Hall is a freelance journalist who specialises in consumer technology, pursuing a passion that started over 20 years ago. In 2008 he took on a fulltime Reviews Editor position at technology website Pocketlint.com, before stepping up to EditorinChief in 2012. Chris led coverage over a 15year tenure, exposing him to every gadget, system and technology you’d ever want to know about.
Chris left the EditorinChief position at Pocketlint.com in 2023 having published over 4,000 articles on consumer technology. His experience covers everything from smartphones and headphones to cars and computers. Chris doesn’t just test for reviews, he lives with a lot of technology, building a smart home and looking for a simpler solution to a connected home. This is much to his family’s irritation, because everything is always changing, especially the remote controls.
As a freelance writer, Chris has contributed to The Telegraph, T3.com, TechRadar and Autocar while launching his own technology website The Disconnekt – writing news about the latest technology, guides to help people make the best choices when shopping for technology, as well as reviewing extensively.
Chris has appeared on BBC News and Sky News, BBC Radio and The Times Radio talking technology, and even once played a part on The Apprentice. Chris has also been an expert judge at the GSMA Global Mobile Awards and the Uswitch Awards.
When not writing about technology or rearranging the technology in his home, Chris can be found on his bike, trying to get lost in the Surrey hills.
