Sony WF-XB700 Review: Great Sound, Weird Design

The WF-XB700, a brand-new completely wireless product from Sony, was just released in India. When compared to other completely wireless earbuds of similar calibre, the new headphones appear to be a good value. Do they, however, merit the Rs. 9,990 price tag? Should you choose an item from the rivalry instead? Here is what I think about these earphones after using the Sony WF-XB700 for more than a week.

Design and Build

I have no doubt that the build quality will be superb for the majority of Sony items. That applies to the XB700 as well. These earphones have a nice feel to them, but I believe the charging case should have been designed a little bit better. It does appear a little weaker than it is due to the transparency and size of the object. It’s not weak, to be clear. The charging case is dependable and well-made, and it feels wonderful to the touch.

Additionally, the earbuds have an IPX4 splash-proof rating, so you may use them even in moderate rain or while exercising.

However, I’m not really sold on this design. Sure, maybe doing this makes the earbuds fit more snugly in your ears, but it didn’t really make a difference for me. Additionally, this makes the design appear excessively thick. The good news is that most of that mass is hidden from view once you insert the earbuds. However, if you’ve spent your entire life wearing earbuds with a more fashionable appearance, this may feel like a significant adjustment.

All of this is not to imply that I don’t like the XB700’s build quality and design. These earphones are pretty nice, in my opinion. However, I think Sony might have been able to improve on several areas of the design.

However, the larger design does have some benefits—at least for me. I typically use my AirPods Pro for calls and regular music. Because of how light the AirPods Pro are, you may forget you are wearing them. Which means I frequently left the home without remembering to put on my AirPods. That’s good, as you must be thinking, and it is. It’s all fun and games, though, until one of your AirPods falls out of your ear and you are completely unaware of it.

That shouldn’t be a problem with the Sony XB700, in my opinion. They may feel a little more noticeable in the ears due to their design, but you will always be able to tell if they are there or not.

Comfort and Fit

I was unsure about how well the XB700 would fit in my ear and how pleasant they might be when I initially took them out of their case. Thankfully, it transpires that they are remarkably good at both of those things.

You wouldn’t expect it to fit comfortably in your ear based on the design. In general, it’s not a good idea for earphones to have weight at the very edges. The XB700, however, manages it in some manner. Even after wearing them for a few hours, they don’t feel bulky or uncomfortably tight on the ear.

That’s fantastic since I really didn’t want to take these earphones off while I had them on.

The fit has a few incredibly minor flaws. These headphones won’t fall out of your ears when used regularly, but if you’re participating in a dancing workout, you might occasionally need to push them back in. This is a little annoyance, but I also experience it with the AirPods Pro, which are far more expensive, so I can’t really fault them for it.

Sound Quality

The sound quality is primarily to blame for everything for which I refuse to deduct points. When it comes to headphones, earbuds, and speakers, I’ve always been a fan of Sony. Their sound characteristic simply feels better to me in some way. I have been using the Sony MDR-XB950BT headphones since 2017 for this reason.

The XB700 exceeded my expectations in terms of sound quality, which made me delighted. These earbuds include extra bass, as indicated by the XB in the name. That implies that bass-heavy music is optimal for enjoying them. On the other hand, I tried using these headphones to listen to classics like Frank Sinatra and some vintage rock tunes like Bob Seger and Kenny Rogers, and they sound fantastic.

The earbuds do a good job of separating the instruments, and even at maximum volume they preserve the highs and mids while keeping the bass nice and hefty.

Music Control and Interactions

It may appear from the earphones that the large blue portion of the design is used for music control and other earbud-related interactions. That’s not the case here, though. On the underside of the earbud, there are tiny buttons, one for each.

There are quite a few things you can do with the earbuds, all of which are controlled by these buttons.

• Play/Pause: a single press on the right earbud plays and pauses music.
• Next Track: a double press on the right earbud skips to the next track.
• Previous track: a triple press on the right earbud skips back to the previous track.
• Invoke assistant: press and hold on the right earbud.
• Volume up: a single press on the left earbud button increases the volume
• Volume down: press and hold on the left earbud button to reduce volume

This control method functions fine, but it poses a problem if you just intend to use one earbud. Although I hardly ever do it myself, some people do, and if you’re one of them, you’ll have to give up some functionality.

Additionally, wear detection is absent, which is a little disappointing given many modern earbuds costing much less than this do so. It’s also a useful feature to have. I wish the XB700 had had wear detection, but alas, there’s not much you can do.

Connectivity

Moving on, Bluetooth 5.0 is included in the Sony XB700 truly wireless earbuds, which is to be expected at this price point. The earbuds may also be utilised separately, as I already indicated, and pairing them is also a breeze. Simply remove the earbuds from the case and check your phone’s Bluetooth settings to see whether they are there. Once both earbuds are connected to your smartphone with a single swipe, you can immediately begin listening.

However, the XB700 only supports the SBC and AAC codecs, which is a little disappointing. aptX support would have been nice to have, but it’s not present. For me, it’s not a deal breaker because the sound quality is so good. The XB700 might not be for you, though, if you truly want Qualcomm aptX on your earphones.

Battery

The XB700 are no different from other models of Sony headphones and earbuds, which have always had excellent battery life. The earbuds’ battery life on a single charge is 9 hours, which is rather impressive. Additionally, the charging case provides a second full charge, extending the battery life to 18 hours.

The assertion is entirely true based on my experience using these earphones. In three hours of listening to music at a volume of roughly 70%, the earphones only slightly depleted their battery (and some calls in between). That’s very amazing. I have no issues with the earbuds’ battery life. Additionally, I greatly value that the charging case uses USB-C for charging.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Great battery life
• Excellent sound quality
• Build quality is impressive
• Comfortable to use

Cons:

• Design looks a little bulky
• No aptX support
• No wear detection

Sony WF-XB700 Review: A Worthy Pair of Truly Wireless Earbuds

The Sony WF-XB700 fully wireless earphones are unquestionably worth their asking price of Rs. 9,990. They have a sturdy construction and are really cosy to wear. As one would anticipate from Sony, the sound quality is excellent. Although the design may have been improved, I don’t feel that it is a deal-breaker in any way.

Additionally, there isn’t really any competition at this point. You can purchase the original generation Galaxy Buds (Rs 9,987) for around the same price, and they include touch controls in addition to good sound quality. However, I have experience with the Galaxy Buds, and personally, I find Sony’s sound signature to be superior. It’s a tight call, though, and you should absolutely check out the Galaxy Buds if you really want something smaller with wear detection and touch sensors.

Purchase a Sony WF-XB700 (Rs. 9,990)