Sony
The connected-audio powerhouse whose WH-1000X line sets the benchmark for noise cancellation
- Founded
- 1946
- Country
- Japan
- Warranty
- One-year limited warranty covering manufacturing defects (the category standard); note that some owners report hinge failures being classified as out-of-warranty physical damage.
- Support
- Broad global support and retail presence, plus the feature-rich Headphones Connect app; the headphones are sealed with no user-replaceable battery.
Overview
Sony, founded in 1946 in Tokyo, is a consumer-electronics giant whose WH-1000X headphones have defined the premium noise-cancelling category for a decade. The current WH-1000XM6 leads the field on ANC and feature breadth (LDAC hi-res, adaptive cancellation, a deep app) at a competitive price. The recurring asterisk is build: the line is all-plastic, and recent models have drawn hinge-durability complaints.
Is it worth it?
Sony is worth it for most buyers who want the best noise cancellation and feature set at a fair price, especially Android users who benefit from LDAC. The all-plastic build and hinge-reliability reports are the reasons to weigh alternatives.
Sony reports
All reports
Best OverallSony
Sony WF-1000XM6
Eight microphones, a new QN3e chip, and the deepest noise cancellation anyone has measured in an earbud: the Sony WF-1000XM6 is the flagship the rest of this group gets measured against. It streets closer to $270 despite the $329 sticker, carries LDAC hi-res for Android, and stacks a genuine 10-band EQ, strong multipoint, and class-leading call mics on top. The catches are physical rather than electronic: the housing grew this generation, the foam tips build pressure in some ears, and IPX4 means splash resistance, not workout-proofing. If you want one pair of premium earbuds and refuse to pick a specialty, this is the pair.
Best for Noise CancellingSony
Sony WH-1000XM6
Nothing on this page silences a plane cabin like the Sony WH-1000XM6. The QN3 processor and its 12-microphone array set the class benchmark for noise cancellation, the feature list is the deepest in the group (LDAC hi-res, a parametric EQ, adaptive cancellation, Speak-to-Chat), and the fold-flat design the XM5 abandoned is back. It lists at $449.99 but is routinely on sale near $400, which makes it one of the easier flagships to buy well. So why isn't it our overall pick? Two things our research kept surfacing: an all-plastic build that feels ordinary at this money, and a documented pattern of hinge cracking on the XM5/XM6 line that Sony has reportedly treated as out-of-warranty damage.