Sony WF-1000XM5

This follow-up to Sony's T3-Award-winning WF-1000XM4 sound great and are crammed full of features - but are they still the best buds on the market?

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The outgoing Sony WF1000XM4 were never less than ultra-competitive. And so not only do the WF-1000XM5 have to improve on one of the most acclaimed products Sony has ever delivered, they have to triumph over the numerous rival designs launched in the meantime too.

In the most meaningful respects, the WF-1000XM5 are very good indeed. But that's not the same as them being class-leaders. Sony's certainly done the business when it comes to producing a product that's smaller, lighter and more comfortable - but in other ways, very little seems to have happened in the two years since the WF-1000XM4 launched.

On first acquaintance, the biggest thing about the WF-1000XM5 is how small they are. At 5.5g per earbud and around 37g for the charging case, they're a far more discreet proposition than the product they replace. And they're more comfortable, too. A lot of that is due to the reduced size and weight - but Sony has also supplied ear-tips in four different sizes that are designed to reduce pressure in the ear.

Audio is served by a couple of newly designed drive units. Dynamic Driver X is a 8.4mm dynamic driver, which is significantly larger than the 6mm driver in the outgoing XM4.

Where out-and-out sound quality is concerned, the WF-1000XM5 are a balanced, insightful listen with good soundstaging ability and even better frequency integration and timing.

Treble sounds are crisp but not abrasive, while in the midrange, they grant vocals all the space they need to do their thing. In the bass, there's decent extension, plenty of variation and a straight-edged attack that allows rhythms proper expression.