Leak confirms Sony flagship headphone design, casts doubt on improved battery life

Images of the clear retail packaging for Sony’s impending flagship headphones, the WH-1000XM5, have leaked on Reddit, suggesting the successor to the great WH-1000XM4 could be just all-around the corner. The photos show up to ensure the formerly rumored layout for the new headphones, which features a thinner headband and redesigned connector with the still left and ideal earcups.

Regrettably, the new leak phone calls into dilemma a prior report from TechnikNews, which claimed that the headphones would see improved battery life when utilised with lively sound cancellation (ANC). The retail packaging suggests the headphones will have a battery lifestyle of 30 hrs, 10 hrs fewer than the 40 hrs that was beforehand claimed, and the exact as what the current model, the XM4, presents.

The Walkman Blog speculates that the 40-hour determine could even now be accurate, but represents battery life when the headphones are made use of with a extra energy-effective audio codec (such as with AAC alternatively than LDAC). For reference, the XM4’s battery existence could be extended up to 38 several hours when listening working with the SBC codec, and with most of its other capabilities like ANC turned off.

Other mentioned capabilities on the packaging include guidance for Sony’s 360 Reality Audio format (which was also supported by the XM4 headphones), and designed-in help for voice assistants.

It is currently unclear when the headphones may well be officially declared, or what their rate could be. For reference, Sony’s WH-1000XM4 expense $349.99 when they had been launched in August 2020. MacRumors notes that the confidentiality day on FCC filings relating to the headphones will be up on August 8th, but provided retail packaging is currently showing up, we’d count on the headphones to be released a whole lot sooner than that.