SONY WH1000XM3 Bluetooth Wireless Noise Canceling Headphones Silver WH-1000XM3/S (Renewed)

Context: Most of my audio reference is from a recording studio environment. My sound assessment is probably not relevant to the normal consumer.General:I got these refurbished. They came in like new condition and I have not experienced any problems. Before using them I installed the Sony Headphones app and updated the headphones to the latest firmware. The app works as intended.Comfort:They are the most comfortable over ear headphones I have ever worn. Have in mind that the rest of my over the ear headphones are studio headphones. I have not tried the Bose or Beats options.Sound Quality:For a consumer product the sound in excellent. They are a little bass heavy compared to my studio reference headphones but that is to be expected. Very Clear on the highs and good on the mids. With the Sony Headphones app you can use one of their EQ presets or customize it to your taste which is my preference. I would not use them for recording but they are amazing to listen to music or watching tv without disrupting other people.Noise Cancelling:The ability of these headphones to isolate you from the rest of the world is amazing. While on full noise cancellation mode you can barely hear yourself snapping your fingers right in front of your face. You can opt to allow external noise in but it is only really effective if you are listening to your source at low to moderate volume.Controls:Controls are touch sensitive on the right earphone. You have to touch and slide up to raise volume and touch and slide down to lower volume. Touch and slide forward or backward to skip forward or backwards. Double touch for pause play. You get the jist. It feels weird at first because there is no clicky mechanism but you get used to it quickly. They work with both Google Assistant or Alexa.Extras:The storage case is very sturdy and includes USB to USB-C cable for charging and 1/8 cable to connect to non bluetooth audio source like a plane screen. Includes 1/8 splitter which I guess is for when you need to share a source of audio. The headphones provides spoken feedback about powering on, off, device connections etc which is a nice touch.Battery life:I have not been able to prove for a consecutively long amount of hours but I have used for about 6 hours intermittent use without having to charge it.I would highly recommend these headphones if you can afford the 350. You may find them refurb like I did for 250. They are totally worth it.

My wife bought these after I put the Xm2 on her head so she could experience good ANC. She has sensory issues and prefers closed-back over ears for their isolation over open-backs, and their relative comfort over on, or in-ears.TL;DR - The WH-1000Xm3 have become my wife's EDC headphones. She takes them to work, where just using the ANC makes it easier to focus, and offers decent sound quality, a passive only mode, and is extremely portable, lightweight and comfortable.Prior to these, my wife owned a pair of Sony MDR-1A and a pair of Audeze Mobius. She liked being able to use the 1A's for podcasting, and Discord D&D, but the Mobius replaced the 1A's for home duty, and allowed her to wander around and clean without worrying about wires, while the 1A's went to live at work. However, the Mobius are planar, and are pretty heavy for packing in so much tech. Beyond that, both the 1A and the Mobius fold flat, but not to be smaller.The WH-1000Xm3 were a revelation. They're almost as light as the fully-passive 1A's, while still maintaining the ability to use them in full-passive mode, but also having the option of LDAC wireless, with a built in and non-obtrusive mic for making phone calls and playing Discord D&D. Plus, the added benefit of top class ANC means she doesn't have to hear her co-workers breathing, or making phone calls all day, or the hum of the AC, or traffic, or me, if she so chooses.My wife purchased these for herself, and I've heard nothing but great things from her. Having tried them myself, I prefer the sound of the Xm2, but they're quite close in that respect as well as ANC prowess. These are more of an incremental upgrade. However, if you like USB-C over Micro, a slightly bassier sound signature, more comfortable stock pads and an arguably more premium looking exterior, I'd recommend the Xm3 over the Xm2.Bottom Line: These headphones rendered enough of her stable redundant that she's not giving serious thought to selling a lot of them off! For her, once optimized, the ANC has been a godsend, all while offering sound quality on par with it's price (while active), and being light, comfortable, and foldable for easy transport.**NOTE** As of 8/29/19, there may be a new version of these coming down the pipe to compete with Bose's 700 on price. The 700 isn't far-and-away better than these either, so while I think these are still worth their asking price, I wouldn't purchase them at MSRP until after the new version comes out and/or is reviewed.*Disclaimer* - No one has attempted to influence the content of this review. Perception of sound is subjective and statements regarding it should be taken as opinion and not objective fact. My wife and I are human and therefore make mistakes. Also, we haven't heard everything ever. Both of us agree that reviews should not be considered a replacement for getting actual ears-on time with a product.

I'll start by saying I'm an audiophile, bad or subpar sound quality on anything pisses me off. These things are crazy. I've had them for more than 6 months now and the only bad thing to note is the slight fluttering almost wind sound in the left earcup.Sound quality is superb and balanced. I've produced and mixed on them, they hit heavy bass and clear sharp mids and highs.Touch controls work with gloves on or light touches, but sometimes you might try to change the track and accidentally change volume or vice versa. The ambient access via hand press is slightly laggy but really convenient.Noise cancelation is so good to the point that I've used them even with no audio going as light ear protection. Work that has constant noise is deadened to just you and your sound.If your ears sweat easily, the earcups do hold heat, but the overall design is sleek and comfortable. I wear them at work for sometimes up to 6 hours at a time and can almost forget they're there.The battery life is almost concerning in a very good way, when you charge it for an hour or so (100%) and it takes a week of daily use to use up the battery (10% for an audible warning)Overall, it's some of the best money I've ever spent, car included in that list. They're really good for just everything that you could think of using them for.