Design and features:The earphones work with or without the noise canceling feature being turned on, and you can use the noise-canceling feature without listening to music. The WF-1000XM3 has integrated microphones, a music player and call connect/disconnect touch control that works with paired Bluetooth devices, and a touch control to switch between noise canceling on/off and ambient sound monitoring. They support Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant digital voice assistants when they are used with Bluetooth capable devices that have those features. This model comes with seven pairs of ear pieces in various sizes and materials, a USB charging cable, and a charging cradle/recharger battery/carrying case that the manufacturer claims can be used to recharge the earphone batteries up to 3 times between its own charges. The Sony Headphones Connect app download for Apple and Android mobile devices can act as a audio program player and provides other features such as tonal balance equalization, customization of the earphone's touch control functions, and updates to the earphone's firmware.
Sound quality: We found the WF-1000XM3 provides Excellent active noise reduction and delivers sound quality that falls in the Excellent range; while no headphone is perfect, the shortcomings of this model are minor. The overall sound can best be summarized as a bit bassy and hazy. With the noise canceling feature turned on the bass (as in bass drums, bass guitars, stand-up bass, etc.) has good impact and goes deep, but is a bit prominent and boomy. The midrange (voices, guitars, horns, etc.) is even, but a bit hazy and a touch grainy. The treble (cymbals, the upper range of violins, etc.) is extended, but is a bit prominent and a touch sizzly (sounds that should have a delicate shimmer have a sound reminiscent of bacon frying). This model does a good job of recovering the room ambience of a recording (the sense of the acoustic space in which the audio program that's being listened to was recorded). The sound also has a good sense of liveliness and is open--sound-wise it seems like you don't have anything plugging up your ears. When the noise canceling feature is turned off the sound is the same except the bass isn't prominent and is only a touch boomy. These earphones provide Excellent noise reduction across the entire frequency range with the low frequencies reduced the most. The noise reduction characteristic changes a bit depending on the direction the ambient noise is coming from - when the noise is coming from the front more high frequency noise can be heard. When the noise canceling feature is turned on an extremely faint rushing noise can be heard when there is no audio program material to mask it.
Comfort: As typical of in-ear models they produce a sense of pressure in the ear canal opening might be uncomfortable for some. Users with small ear bowls might find that the earphone body does not fit securely into their earbowl and that the earphones are mostly held in place by the section of the earphone that is inserted in the ear canal; they stay in place with no problems for casual use, but they don't feel secure during vigorous head movements. Users with medium sized ear bowls will probably find that this model stays in place with no problems for casual use and that they are stable even during vigorous head movement. Users with large sized ear bowls may find that this model does not feel particularly stable even for casual use. Incidental contact with the touch controls can cause unintentional track pause, playback, skipping, or engagement/disengagement of other features.
