By default, music resumes playing 30 seconds after your conversation ends in Speak-to-Chat mode. This timeframe can be customized using the Sony | Headphones Connect app.

It's time to once again transform Sony’s excellent wireless noise-cancelling headphones. Treat yourself and add an extra layer of protection to those award winning headphones and fully customise them without compromising the stylish look and feel of the Sony WH1000XM4. The Headphones Connect app has a full equaliser and options for customising noise-cancelling, controls and activating the DSEE Extreme sound enhancer. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian Google Assistant can read notifications on Android and iOS, while Alexa is also an option or you can use your phone’s voice assistant such as Siri on an iPhone. The WH-1000XM5 never missed a beat in terms of registering my actions. As soon as I got up and started moving around, my settings would switch from staying to walking and the same proved true when moving between different registered locations. The technology functioned brilliantly on both the WH-1000XM4 and WF-1000XM5 and works equally well here.

Minor improvements to their predecessor keep the Sony WH-1000XM5 ahead of the chasing pack

They’re engineered in such a way that nothing feels surplus to requirements. The stepless headband slider moves smoothly, making adjusting the size of the headphones extremely easy, while the swivelling sections connected to the narrow headband blend into the earcups in a pleasingly minimalist manner. Low-end frequencies are very effectively reduced and the attenuation of mid-range and higher-pitched frequencies is a step up on the XM5’s predecessor, too. You’ll still be able to hear nearby voices on transport or in the office clearly enough to make out what’s being said if you don’t have music playing, but anything above 30% volume and only the loudest of interruptions will disturb your listening experience. They don’t look and feel quite as solid or premium as some competitors but they fold up for travel and appear durable in lightweight plastic. The are also fairly easy to repair and the battery is replaceable for a reasonable sum. Complementing that excellent noise cancellation is first-rate sonic delivery. The move to the new 30mm drivers has certainly had a positive effect, allowing the WH-1000XM5 to produce a broader soundstage and extract even more detail from source material than their predecessors. They are not neutral, with a default sound that is more mid-bass heavy than some competitors, but they produce well-controlled, deep and full bass, warm mids and sparkling high notes. Unlike many rivals, they have a full equaliser in the app to customise the sound to your liking, as well as music enhancement systems such as Sony’s DSEE Extreme upscale audio to revive tones lost because of compression at the expense of battery life.

The Sony WH-1000XM3 were best-in-class when it came to noise cancellation but this model is even better at regulating the amount of external noise that makes it through to your ears. With noise cancelling in full effect, the WH-1000XM4 let you slip away into your own audio world, free of all-but the loudest and highest-pitched annoyances.Touch controls make a return from the last generation and remain a shining example of how to implement them successfully. Doubling tapping the outer surface of the right earcup plays or pauses your audio while holding your finger to the touch sensor for two seconds engages your voice assistant of choice. Google Assistant, Alexa and Siri are all supported.

The headphones are generally repairable ( iFixit teardown), and replacement parts, including the earpads, headband and mainboard are available. Sony did not comment on the use of recycled materials and does not publish environmental impact reports for headphones. It publishes annual sustainability reports and its roadmap to have zero environmental impact by 2050. Observations When compared to the competition, I would still give a slight edge to the Bose QC45 when it comes to dampening voices but in every other respect, the WH-1000XM5 are at least their equal and, when it comes to intelligent noise cancellation, far superior. The power button triggers pairing mode when held for several seconds from off. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian They are also some of the lightest and most comfortable headphones you can buy, matching the long-term wearing comfort of the Bose QC35 II. Bluetooth connectivity now comes courtesy of version 5.2 with codec support extending to SBC, AAC and Sony LDAC. The latter provides access to Hi-Res streaming quality on most Android devices but can’t be used if you’re connected to two devices via Bluetooth Multipoint.The headphones come with a standard 3.5mm headphones cable that can be used when the headphones are turned on or off. The microphone cannot be used over the 3.5mm cable, however. Sony’s HD Noise Cancelling Processor QN1 isn’t just good at drowning out the outside world though; it’s also extremely smart. When you first put the WH-1000XM4 on, you’ll need to optimise the noise-cancelling via the Sony Headphones app. The headphones detect the shape and size of your head, your hairstyle, whether you wear glasses and the surrounding air pressure to calibrate a noise-cancelling profile tailored to you. The grey headphones have gold accents around the top microphone ports. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs/The Guardian There are four ways to pair the headphones – Google’s Fast Pair or via a single tap with an NFC tag for instant pairing with an Android phone, using the Sony Headphones Connect app for Android or the iPhone and iPad, and manual pairing the old-fashioned way by holding down a button. The WH-1000XM5 share many traits with the model that came before them but have received tweaks in a few notable areas. The most obvious change is a structural one. The WH-1000XM5 have what Sony describes as a “noiseless” design with a stepless slider along with seamless swivels and hangers connecting the headband to the earcups.