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If you’ve been following the channel for a awhile you know I absolutely love the Sony 1000XM2 headphones… And in general I like Sony’s headphone line up so much that I dedicated a whole video on it which you can watch right here. And I’m also a fan of Sony’s new XB41 and XB31 speakers. But I feel Sony could have and should have done better with their new SP600N and SP700N sports wireless ear buds. They aren’t all bad, but both of these headphones have a few quirks that just make you think Sony rushed them out the door.
The reason I’m reviewing both of the headphones together is because they’re basically the same product except ones completely wireless while the other still has a wire connecting both of the ear buds but gives you the added benefit of the inline controller. The Sony WI-SP600N retails for $150, while the completely wireless WF-SP700N retails for $180. If you want to pick these headphones up I’ll have links in the description below, and if you use the links it really helps out the channel. I suggest you check them out sony headphones routinely go on sale… but im also going to link some better alternatives as well. Namely the Jaybird X3 and Powerbeats 3… I feel that you cant go wrong with either of those. Also, check out the Merch Self Down Below!
Regarding whats in the box… both of these earphones come with pretty much the same things. They both come included with a Micro USB cable for charging, they both come with an extra pair of larger ear fins and they both come with 3 additional pairs of ear tips of various sizes. But what struck me as weird is that the Wired SP600N didn’t come included with a carrying pouch and there are no cable management clips either. The reason I’m mentioning the lack of cable management clips on the SP600N is because the wire itself is pretty long and heavy. With most other wired ear buds like this you can either taught the cable or clip it on to your shirt for better cable management so its not constantly bouncing around. But the cable on these wired ear buds is pretty durable and it has a built in inline controller. The buttons themselves have good tactile feedback and they’re easy to tell apart. And the controller also houses a micro USB port for charging. And yes… this micro usb port should have been a USB C port instead.
Ok, now lets talk about what you’re actually here to see… the completely wireless SP700N. And first lets address the carrying case… its nice, light weight, and feels nice in the hand… But its pretty cheap. The lid feels a little flimsy and I wouldn’t be surprised if people accidentally snapped it off. And on the back of the case theres a micro USB port for charging and again sony this needs to be a USB C port. Come on. But heres a problem with the case. The LED indicator light only shines red when you plug it in, and after awhile the red LED turns off. But it doesn’t shine white to let you know the case is fully charge and there also isn’t a gauge telling you approximately how much of a charge the case it self has. And Sony’s app which ill get into in a minute only tells you how much battery the ear buds have, not the case. And when you put the ear buds in they’ll verbally let you know the current state of their battery level. But theres no way of telling if the case is charged or dead.
Now when it comes to actually placing the Ear Buds into the case, the ear buds aren’t magnetically aligned… you have to wedge them in. Which does feel a little unnatural. Regarding the ear buds themselves they each have a single button. And its not these big circle things, its these little clear wedges the stick out. The left one controls your ANC settings and the right one controls your music playback. So you can play or pause you music or skip a track. But you cant adjust the volume, so thats ones of the benefits of having and inline controller like on the SP600N or Powerbeats 3… you have full control of your music playback while you work out while with fully wireless ear buds you only have partial control with out having to nag your voice assistant.
Regarding fit, these ear phones go in REALLY deep into your ear cannel and they also form a very good seal which provide a lot of passive noise isolation. Both of these ear phones also feature Active Noise Cancelation and ambient sound settings. But even though I feel Sony currently has the best active noise cancelation on the market, I don’t feel its really worth using on either of these ear buds. The ANC does block out some sound, but a lot of sound still manages to get in. But the ambient sound feature is much more useful if you’re someone who likes running or biking on the streets. Like I just said these ear phones provide a lot of passive noise isolation… but with Ambient Mode turned on, the ear buds will pump in all of the surrounding sounds and its like they’re not even there so you can still be aware of your surroundings.
Regarding tech specs, both of these earphones are rocking an IPX4 certification and they’re both using bluetooth 4.1. The Wired SP600N have very little latency so if you’re going to watch a video with them, they’re ok. The SP700N on the other hand have a lot of latency. The connection doesn’t really stutter for me, but these are strictly for listening to music. But keep in mind, the left ear bud is the master and right ear bud is the slave. And when you take phone calls with these ear buds only sound comes out of the left ear bud.
When it comes to battery life, they’re not fantastic. The Wired SP600N can hold a 6 hour charge which should be good for about 2 or 3 workouts and the truly wireless SP700N can hold up to a 9 hour charge. But the Ear buds themselves hold a 3 hour charge and the case it self can charge the ear buds back up two times. But neither of the headphones have quick charging which I feel is a must these days.
And now lets talk about sound quality… if you think the Powerbeats 3 have a lot of bass… then these have way more. And depending on who you ask thats a good or a bad thing. The Bass is very deep, and its very punchy. But unfortunately I feel Sony only focused on the bass on these ear buds. I feel the mids are very shallow and the highs are very tinny. The highs on both of these earphones are so sharp they constantly pierce your ears so there not pleasant to listen to. So basically the music on these earphones is constantly drowned out by the bass.
But if you jump into Sony’s headphones app you can select from a few pre made equalizer settings. But no matter which one I used I found that they all have way to much bass and the highs still remain tinny. Personally I found Mellow sounds the best, but unfortunately you cant go in and adjust the EQ settings to your liking. You’re stuck with the Pre made settings. Also Sony advertises google assistant integration with these earbuds, but that feature isn’t available yet. So in the mean times you can summon your voice assistant by pressing and holding the button on the right ear bud on the 700N or pressing and holding the Play button on the SP600N
So on paper I feel the truly wireless SP700N sound pretty cool but execution wise I think they fell short. First off I feel these are bad sounding earphones with way too much bass. Their carrying case looks nice but needs some major improvements like a more durable lid, fast charging, and a battery gauge or a multicolored LED to let you know its current battery status. The SP700N are very light, stay in place very well, and the ambient sound feature is very useful but I wouldn’t pay $180 for them. The Wired SP600N are a little better, but its kind of hard to recommend them over the Jaybird X3 or the Powerbeats 3 given than you can get either one of them for less than the Sony’s if you know where to look.