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Updated January 10, 2024·
If you prioritize comfort and are considering longer listening sessions, the Sennheiser Momentum 4 headphones offer superior comfort and battery life. They also have better noise isolation, which is ideal for air travel or noisy environments. However, for portability, the Sony WF1000XM4 earbuds are more compact and offer a sweatproof design, making them better for exercise. Sony's earbuds have a higher overall sound quality but have a lower battery life compared to the Sennheisers. Additionally, the Sony WF1000XM4 features virtual surround sound, which the Sennheiser Momentum 4 lacks. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Sennheiser Momentum 4
Excellent for gaming
Very good for TV and video
Advantages of the Sony WF1000XM4
Excellent for music
Best in class for podcasts and audiobooks
Key differences
Music
7.5/10
9.0/10
The Sony WF1000XM4 is excellent for music, while the Sennheiser Momentum 4 is good.
Gaming
9.0/10
5.6/10
The Sennheiser Momentum 4 is excellent for gaming, while the Sony WF1000XM4 is poor.
Podcasts and Audiobooks
8.2/10
10.0/10
The Sony WF1000XM4 is best in class for podcasts and audiobooks, while the Sennheiser Momentum 4 is very good.
TV and Video
8.9/10
6.0/10
The Sennheiser Momentum 4 is very good for TV and video, while the Sony WF1000XM4 is only fair.
Noise Reduction
9.1/10
8.3/10
The Sennheiser Momentum 4 is excellent for noise reduction, while the Sony WF1000XM4 is very good.
Battery
59.0 Hours
9.0 Hours
The Sennheiser Momentum 4 has 59 hours of battery life. The Sony WF1000XM4 has 9 hours of battery life.
The Sennheiser Momentum 4 and Sony WF1000XM4 are both only fair for phone calls.
Cost
$230
$220
$100
$150
$200
$250
$300
$350
The Sennheiser Momentum 4 has a price of $230 and the Sony WF1000XM4 costs $220.
Build Quality
9.0/10
8.9/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Sennheiser Momentum 4 to have excellent build quality, while the Sony WF1000XM4 has very good build quality.
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How the Sennheiser Momentum 4 and the Sony WF1000XM4 compare to other earbuds and headphones
"If you're looking for a slightly more affordable set of ANC headphones in comparison to the Bose or Sony offerings: the Sennheiser MOMENTUM 4 Wireless is not a bad way to go. While its ANC is technically behind the other top-tier headphones, its sound quality is ahead of the pack—as is its battery life. Not bad for $350 USD."
"The headphones deliver a satisfying user experience, class-leading battery life, some of the best noise-cancelling we’ve heard in this category, and absolutely stunning sound quality."
Get a great deal on the Sennheiser Momentum 4 or the Sony WF1000XM4
About Sennheiser
A family-owned company, Sennheiser is a German, high fidelity, audio equipment manufacturer founded in 1945. Their consumer audio division is now owned by the Swiss hearing aid and cochlear implant manufacturer Sonova. Sennheiser offers a wide variety of, very high quality, audio equipment solutions, from headphones to earbuds, full sets of monitoring speakers, amplifiers and microphones. They also make what is widely regarded as the best, and most expensive, headphones in existence, the HE-1 Orpheus, costing a whopping $59,000 dollars.
About Sony
Sony is a multinational corporation, based out of Japan, with over 75 years of experience in the consumer electronics industry. In the audio market, Sony has been a trendsetter several times throughout its history. In 1979 they released the first-ever portable music player, the Sony Walkman, followed by the Discman 20 years later. Today, Sony is one of the leaders in the wireless headphone and earbud market, especially in terms of Active Noise Cancellation technology.
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This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec earbuds & headphones team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest earbuds or headphones information and makes it digestible for you.
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About the Earbuds or Headphones team
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Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
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Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
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