Stewart Wolpin

Headphone Reviews
Sony WF-1000XM4 Noise-Canceling True Wireless Earbuds Review
Stewart Wolpin  |  Oct 26, 2021

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value
PRICE $280

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Best-in-class sound reproduction
Sony 360 Reality Audio
Excellent noise canceling
Small buds and case
Long battery life
Minus
Requires deep ear tip insertion
Complicated app, noise canceling options
Doesn't block wind noise

THE VERDICT
The WF-1000XM4 is Sony's best-performing noise-canceling bud yet, with plenty of customizable and automatic features.

Sony's new flagship true wireless earbuds, the WF-1000XM4 ($280), provide best-in-class sound quality and noise-canceling, above-average single-charge battery life, a compact and pocket-friendly charging case, and a control app that offers abundant operational features and customization options. On top of all that, it has Sony's 360 Reality Audio capability for getting enveloping sound from select subscription music streaming services.

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Headphone Reviews
Face-Off: Noise-Canceling True Wireless Earbuds
Stewart Wolpin  |  Jun 09, 2021
What the world needs now is active noise-canceling (ANC) true wireless earbuds. ANC buds meet the needs of the moment by providing a way to boost audio quality during Zoom calls while simultaneously isolating us against intrusive environmental factors (remote-schooled kids, other work-from-home adults, etc.). And fortunately for us all, they are getting better-sounding, more feature-packed, and less expensive.
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Headphone Reviews
Face-Off: Noise-Canceling True Wireless Earbuds
Stewart Wolpin  |  Jun 10, 2020
While isolation is a novel and challenging concept for many folks during these strange times, isolation from external sound is considered nirvana by music aficionados. Also, donning a pair of cans or buds and turning the music up to 11 can provide a temporary turn-on, tune-in, drop-out emotional escape for those stuck in a sheltered-in-place household where everyone is getting on each other's nerves.
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Headphone Reviews
Face-Off: 8 Noise-Canceling Bluetooth Headphones
Stewart Wolpin  |  Sep 03, 2019
We put eight noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones to the test to find out which are the best.
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Vintage GearAudio Video News
Flashback 1979: Sony’s Iconic Walkman Is Born
Stewart Wolpin  |  Jul 01, 2019
Forty years ago today Sony introduced a portable cassette player that would forever change the way the world experienced music on-the-go.
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Vintage GearAudio Video News
25 Years Ago Today: DirecTV Is Born
Stewart Wolpin  |  Jun 17, 2019
Lemoyne Martin was unhappy. He’d just bought a Sony big screen TV, but now found the quality of his local cable TV service severely lacking.
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Headphone Reviews
True Wireless Earbuds: AirPods and Alternatives
Stewart Wolpin  |  Apr 10, 2019
You may be excused if you thought that Apple's AirPods are the first and only so-called "true wireless" earphones—completely cordless in-ear "buds" that connect both with each other and to your smartphone via Bluetooth—since their distinctive white sticks seem to be protruding from hipster ears everywhere.

Fortunately, if you're not an iPhone owner, or a fan of the AirPods' distinctive look or not-necessarily one-size-fits-all fit, there is a growing number of other "true wireless" earbud choices. And in contrast with Apple's one-for-all approach, most AirPod alternatives address specific use cases, style preferences, and budgets.

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Vintage GearAudio Video News
65 Years Ago Today: The First Color TVs Arrive
Stewart Wolpin  |  Dec 30, 2018
The RCA CT-100 and Admiral C1617A were the first color TVs offer for sale on December 30, 1953. Both had a 15-inch screen.

Even though 4K TVs have been on the market for less than five years, numerous companies will announce they’ll start selling 8K TVs at CES next week. This despite the fact that less than half of U.S. homes own a 4K TV, and there’s no 4K programming available yet on U.S. broadcast TV networ

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Throwback Thursday
Flashback 1998: A Compressed History of the Digital Music Player
Stewart Wolpin  |  Oct 25, 2018
Photo courtesy of Todd Moore.

A momentous occasion in the evolution of recorded music occurred 20 years ago when a California district court ruled to allow the sale of a curious new portable music player in the face of opposition from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Here’s a compressed history of the events surrounding the birth of the MP3 player.

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Throwback Thursday
Flashback 1948: Ampex Unveils First Magnetic Tape Recorder
Stewart Wolpin  |  Apr 05, 2018
Our modern AV world arguably all stems from a single product: the Ampex 200A, the first successful commercial magnetic audiotape recorder, which debuted 70 years ago this month.
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