Finding peace and quiet can be a challenge in our lives. There’s too much work and social events to attend, and sometimes simple web surfing can be overbearing. At the center of all this, we just need a few minutes to enjoy our own company—alone.
This was my case as I worked in the busy city of Metro Manila. I worked beside a boisterous street, cooped up in my stuffy apartment. The noisy AC made it worse; it was literally by my ear. It was fine at first, but when the frustrating moments of life came knocking, the noisy Wrrrs of the frosty AC just annoyed me. Something had to be done, so I turned to noise-canceling alternatives.
Amongst all the choices, I decided to go with Sony WH-1000XM4. At store price, it was still at ₱20,000, a hefty price that was really close to its latest variant, the WH-100XM5. So I waited for a holiday sale and got it at ₱14,000. It was cheaper, and I honestly preferred its design before the XM5.
From Lego Official GIPHY
This was my first premium device; before that, I was rocking the trusty Hyper X Cloud II. In comparison, the XM4 sounded too sharp against the bass-heavy gaming headphones. Out of the box, the sounds were not to my liking even a bit. So I got on Reddit and saw the best sound profiles people voted on, which increased my listening experience significantly. The default profiles were not bad, but I would recommend a custom adjustment catered specifically to your tastes or at least the popular vote from fellow users of the XM4.
I was not only after the sounds but its noise-cancellation. As stated by several articles and videos, the XM4 is equipped with industry-leading noise-cancellation technology that can tune out the world around it. So along with its sleek build, lengthy battery life, and helpful touch controls, I had a great experience overall.
From Kimmy Ramon Official GIPHY
It didn't completely cancel out all the noise, for transparency's sake. From time to time, I would hear abrupt sounds if it ever happened within earshot. But its noise canceling is amazing; it blocked out the constant sounds emitting from my air conditioning which drove me crazy. It even blocked out the engine sounds you would hear in buses which were very nice because those sounds personally bug me; making them great for travel.
Music-wise, they are great partners, especially with New Jean’s OMG release—yep, I, too, am hooked. Aside from that, my regular music consumption was tireless and fully immersive. I previously mentioned my HyperX headphones, and they were adequate gaming peripherals. For competitive games such as Rainbow Six Seige, I would find myself using my old headphones when we were playing ranked games, but for casual games such as AC Origins, I would turn on noise-canceling and just play the night away.
So are they great in the year 2023? Yeah, they are! In terms of price, they are still expensive, but if you can find a great deal alongside its price reductions, you can score yourself a kick-butt audio peripheral. Amazing sounds, small form factor, and outstanding noise-cancellation all in one device.
From Sony Official Website
Do you know what else is amazing? PLDT Home’s Fiber Plus plans! Grab a stable and speedy Internet connection to stream your favorite music, play your favorite game, and enjoy your favorite shows without interruption.
EDITOR'S NOTE
This article is part of our social experiment on nextupgrade.ph. We call it: "So I Tried It" (stylized via hashtag as #SoITriedIt).
#SoITriedIt is a special series featuring the personal experiences of the Next Upgrade Editorial Team as we embrace the smart home lifestyle ourselves. As we take that first step to do things better and smarter, we hope we will inspire all of you to jumpstart your smart home journey.