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Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex Review: Unfolding Future of Hybrid Work with Personalized ANC, Comfort & Lightweight Foldable Design

COVID-19 has accelerated the shift to hybrid work models while transforming the technological needs of the new-age professional. For example, the need for good wireless headsets for working in home, office or cafe environments has become imperative. However, designing a versatile headset for these hybrid work scenarios becomes challenging if we add the growing business travel to the equation.

For the last over 10 years, I have been working in front of the PC either at home, office or while traveling, but my search for an optimum lightweight wireless headset with top-notch active noise cancellation (ANC) continues. I have used multiple wired ANC headsets from Plantronics to Sennheiser for my desktop PC or laptop at home for years. While they have performed well, most of them are USB-Type A and their wires often become entangled, besides limiting their movement and lifespan.

Since carrying these headsets during a business trip is not only impractical but now also leads to incompatibility issues with the new wave of USB Type-C-only laptops, I have been mostly relying on the TWS headsets from Apple, Samsung, Sony, OnePlus and Nothing. Though they do a decent job, most of them have average battery life and hit-or-miss ANC capabilities, and sometimes they pop out without permission.

However, a month ago, our test lab received the Evolve2 65 Flex, Jabra’s latest addition to its portfolio of professional wireless headsets, and it has left us thoroughly impressed! It addresses most of the needs of the hybrid workstyle.

Foldable, lightweight and comfortable design

The Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex sports a unique fold-and-go Danish design, which makes it very easy to carry the headset across multiple hybrid work modes. Further, to complement the foldable design, the headset weighs a mere 136 gm. It is made from high-quality PC/PC-ABS material, making it lighter, durable, flexible and rugged at the same time. As a result, the overall form factor is very compact.

The unique adjustable and collapsible headband design has layers of perforated foam, making it softer on the head. This along with rotating earcups with ultra-soft leatherette cushions helps the headset provide hours of comfortable usage. Jabra calls this new pattern, choice of materials and perforated design “Air Comfort” technology. The proof point for me was using it for 20 hours straight on a flight to the US, with ultimate comfort. There was no ear or head pain, or sweating, or the headset slipping off my head even when I briefly dozed off.

Another striking design element is that the external microphone stick folds back into the headset, transforming it into a cool personal headset for consuming music or entertainment on the go.

The headset sports seven buttons on the earcups. Initially, I was confused about the alignment and functions of each button. However, after a week’s usage, these etched into my muscle memory and proved to be quite useful. The buttons cover functions including power on/off, Bluetooth pairing, switching between ANC and HearThrough, volume/pause/play, opening UC apps such as Microsoft Teams, call connect/disconnect, and mute/unmute/command voice assistant.

Premium audio, ANC and voice calls

The Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex sports two analog MEMS and four digital MEMS microphones. It also features unique algorithms to slice out the background noises with the help of an advanced chipset to deliver premium, stable and enterprise-grade voice calling with a hybrid ANC experience. The call quality is fantastic in any environment, whether a closed cabin, noisy subway or Uber taxi, and device type, whether a laptop, smartphone or tablet.

The different customizations and personalizations using Jabra’s Sound+ app make the sound and voice quality optimal for ANC, HearThrough, or ANC-off modes. The integrated 360° Busylight, which is visible from all angles, is a great feature to notify when one is on a call or busy working by acting as a “do-not-disturb” sign.

The headset is certified for leading UC platforms from Microsoft Teams, CISCO Webex, Zoom, Google Meet, Amazon Chime, and others. The headset that I have been using is a Microsoft Teams variant with a dedicated button and the experience optimized for Teams calls.

The Sound+ app also helps set up the personal assistant on the device for enabling commands at the press of a button, and it works flawlessly on both iOS and Android. Also, it is recommended to set up your sound profile under “MySound” to optimize the headset to match your hearing profile.

The Sound+ app is also useful in optimizing the sound or audio depending on the type of content, like music or movies. The music presets are great along with the ability to save custom equalizer settings. The headset sports custom 28mm speakers with a full audio frequency range from 20Hz to 20KHz. After a week of “burn-in”, the headset is great for listening to music, especially classical, gothic rock, vocals and ballads, offering a much clearer and fuller sound, almost as good as a $200 in-ear headset.

Longer battery life and stable connectivity

What stands out for me is that the Jabra Evovle2 65 Flex is a light, foldable and compact form factor, along with a tremendous battery life. I recently used the headset for 20 hours straight during a flight to the US, with a mix of movies and music. At the end of the flight, the battery dropped to only 63% despite a mix of ANC on/off modes. I charged the headset just once during my 10-day business trip and usage of close to 60 hours, which is about 30 hours of usage per charge, very close to Jabra’s claim of 32 hours per full charge. Further, the headset can be wirelessly charged with a beautiful bundled wireless charging dock stand. The overall charging time via USB Type-C is less than 90 minutes and slightly longer with the wireless charging dock.

The headset can connect with two Bluetooth-enabled devices at the same time, like a laptop and primary phone, or primary and secondary phones. In terms of overall pairing, the headset can pair and remember up to eight devices. The headset also features Google Fast Pair for quick pairing with Android phones.

Wrapping up

The Jabra Evolve2 65 Flex ticks all the right boxes, from compact, collapsible and comfortable design to premium audio and voice call experience with unparalleled battery life, making it one of the best UC and on-ear headset in the market. It is great for someone who travels a lot or uses headsets for long calls and doesn’t want to worry about charging or comfort. The headset comes at a premium price point of $500 or ₹45,000. I would highly recommend the headset as it offers tremendous value for money and sets new standards in the premium professional wireless headset space.

JBL Tour One M2: Top 5 Features – From Studio Editing to Music and Gaming

The JBL Tour One M2 features Adaptive Noise Cancelling to block the ambient noise around you.
It also includes a Smart Ambient mode which helps you stay alert of your surrounding noise.
Personi-Fi 2.0 lets you customize the audio to match your personal listening profile.

Audio is paramount for content creation – for reels, short films, and, of course, podcasts – and a good pair of headphones makes a lot of difference. Without a good headset, playing competitive games or even casually listening to music or watching a movie is an incomplete experience. As an avid PlayStation 5 gamer and a multimedia editor myself, good audio is crucial as it can really enhance the gameplay and help refine the content that is being produced.

I tried out the new JBL Tour One M2 headphones to test if they can be more than just good premium Bluetooth headphones. It was used under different scenarios like editing multimedia content in our studio, while gaming, and also when commuting and traveling on a flight. The headphone cost about $300 and provide a bang for the buck as it is loaded with a host of features from which I have listed the top five attributes that I found to be helpful for my day-to-day use.

WATCH: JBL Tour One M2 Unboxing

Adaptive Noise Cancellation (ANC): Filter out ambient noise based on your surroundings

The JBL Tour One M2 comes with Adaptive Noise Cancellation (ANC), which is basically active noise cancellation, but has ambient features for different scenarios. We will talk about that in a bit.

As working professionals, we have returned to an office environment, working with teams spread across different cities and nations. So, collaboration becomes important at such times. My colleagues sitting next to me in the office are in virtual meetings or on team calls will other colleagues almost all the time. There are several distractions and disturbances around you in an office space, which is why I found the ANC to be quite helpful. The feature cancels most of the surrounding noises and helps me focus on my video and podcast edits.

Also, while we have a studio room for recording audio and video, there are times when the audio sounds too hollow or there is an echo or reverb, not something that one can easily notice on a smartphone or a regular laptop speaker. This is where the JBL Tour One M2’s noise cancellation comes in handy to hear these things clearly, acting as a good monitoring headphone.

Smart Ambient mode: Helps you stay aware of your surroundings even with headphones on

The Smart Ambient mode lets you stay aware of your surroundings without taking off your headphones. I love listening to music during my daily commute to work. The headphone’s Smart Ambient mode allows me to be aware of my surroundings and listen to announcements when traveling in a metro. This is also useful at the gym where I listen to music while working out, to stay cognizant of what’s going on around me. The Smart Ambient Mode basically allows you to continue listening to music without being shut out from the world and is useful for those who want to maintain situational awareness.

Personi-Fi 2.0: Calibrate headphones per your personal hearing profile.

The JBL Tour One M2 comes with a feature called Personi-Fi 2.0, which helps personalize sound levels according to your hearing profile. Not everyone has the same hearing ability, so it becomes important to customize the audio to make it a comfortable experience. There is an audio test that you can take from the JBL headphone app that helps calibrate the headphones when connected. It plays sounds of different frequencies and you need to tap when the frequency is audible. This will create an audio profile with a sound curve that best suits you.

I did not experience much difference with the headphones when watching movies on OTT apps or listening to music. However, it did make some difference when I was editing. Even when playing competitive games, it is important to hear every footstep clearly and other elements like gunshots and water sounds. With Personi-Fi 2.0 enabled, these sounds were clearer to me and helped enhance the gameplay.

Talk-thru: Media automatically mutes when you speak

Talk-thru is a good feature where you do not have to pluck out your headphones while talking to someone. The moment you start talking, the device automatically mutes the music, and starts ambient mode. Once you are done talking, the device unmutes the music playback after a few seconds. Through the smart talk option, you can set the mute timing between five to twenty seconds.

Though this is a great feature and helps a lot in a work environment, there is one small drawback – the ambient mode kicks in even when you start humming a song. Hopefully, this can be fixed with future updates.

Auto Play and Pause: Media automatically plays when you put on the headphones and pauses when you take them off

Sometimes when you take your headphones off, the music or movie continues to play, which drastically drains the battery. With the JBL Tour One M2, the Auto Play and Pause feature kicks in when you take off your headset and automatically pauses the movie or song, and resumes playback when you wear them back. This neat feature conserves battery life and ensures you resume your music/movie exactly where you left it.

While those were my top five features in the JBL Tour One M2, I would also like to give a special mention to the comfort that the cushioning of the earcups and the headband. Comfort is important to me as I tend to use my headphones for long durations when working. So, I would definitely recommend this pair to those who like to have their headphones on for hours.

There are more features that the JBL Tour One M2 offers which we will highlight in our detailed review soon.

Sony WH-CH720N Review: Good Sound, Effective ANC, Long Battery Life

Sony’s WH-CH720N comes with an integrated V1 processor for effective noise cancellation.
Sony claims that the headphones offer up to 50-hour use on a single charge.
The headphones support multi-point connectivity.

Sony is widely known as an industry leader when it comes to offering active noise cancellation (ANC) on headphones. And while most OEMs are focusing on the TWS segment, Sony continues to focus on both TWS earbuds and over-the-ear headphones. Last year, we tested the Sony WH-1000XM5 (review), which are premium headphones priced at around $425. We were impressed with their ANC, ambient noise and sound quality.

This year, Sony released the more affordable WH-CH720N, which is available for around $125. In terms of positioning, it is beneath the flagship 1000X line and alongside the XB extra-bass series.

A key highlight of the WH-CH720N is that it is powered by the same integrated V1 processor for noise cancellation as on the XM5. The headphones also come with multipoint connectivity to seamlessly switch between two devices. We have been using the headphones for a little over two months now and below is our analysis.

WATCH: Sony WH-CH720N Unboxing and First Look

Lightweight design, good comfort

At just 192 gm, the WH-CH720N is Sony’s lightest wireless noise-canceling headphone set. The weight is well-balanced and you hardly feel it, even when using them for a long time. The headband is faux-leather and offers the right amount of padding needed to hold them comfortably.

The outer side of the earcups is made from plastic and has a matte finish. The inner side has faux leather padding which is soft and comfortable, and stays that way for hours of wearing them, even in hot and humid conditions.

The 720N does not fold inwards. Instead, the earcups swivel at a 110-120-degree angle to allow them to lie flat on the table. However, as they do not fold inwards, the headphones will take up more space inside your bag. Also, Sony doesn’t include a carrying case as a standard offering.

The WH-CH720N is lightweight and has a comfortable design for long listening hours.

Talking about buttons and ports, the left earcup has a physical 3.5 mm audio jack, a USB Type-C port for charging, and a power button. The right earcup has the play/pause and volume buttons and the noise cancellation/ambient noise button.

Just like other Sony devices, the 720N also focuses on sustainability and is made from recycled plastic. The packaging is plastic free and made from recycled paper.

ALSO READ: Sony WH-1000XM5 Review: Raising the bar for ANC, ambient noise & sound quality

Features, audio quality and performance

The headphones pair with your smartphones and laptops over Bluetooth 5.2, and support SBC and AAC codecs. The 30 mm dynamic drivers support a frequency range of 7Hz–20,000Hz. Unlike the flagship headphones, the 720N lacks Google’s Fast Pair support. Though it is not a big deal, having Fast Pair would have been a nice addition.

The WH-CH720N supports the Sony Headphones Connect app which is available for both Android and iOS platforms. Sony’s app lets you control different aspects such as the 5-band equalizer and presets, multipoint connectivity, and configure button settings.

There is an ambient sound mode (transparency) that lets you adjust the strength up to 20 levels. It works well, helping you stay aware of the surroundings depending on your preferences. The feature can come in handy when you are traveling in a metro or on a flight where you want to listen to music but at the same time do not want to miss out on key announcements. We tried it both on a flight and in a metro and were impressed with how well the ambient mode feature worked.

The ambient sound mode lets in enough sound to stay aware of the surroundings while also listening to music.

Talking about noise cancellation, the integrated V1 processor works well in cutting out background noises such as fans and traffic noise to a good level. On a flight, even when sitting closer to the engine, the 720N was quite effective in cutting out the jet noise, while the music volume was at 60%. However, it does not completely cut off all the noise, and the moment you stop music playback, there is some sound intrusion.

The ANC works well in cutting off unwanted noise and offering a good music-listening experience.

Just like the 1000XM5, the CH720N also comes with adaptive sound control, a smart function that can automatically switch between ANC and transparency modes depending on your location. It uses the phone’s motion to detect when you are sitting, walking, running, or commuting. According to the situation, it activates the ANC or increases the transparency level so you can clearly hear your surroundings. Again, it worked well in our tests.

We tested the WH-CH720N’s sound quality using different audio sources, including primarily an Apple iPhone 14 Pro, a MacBook Pro 16 and a Galaxy Z Fold4. The sound quality was consistent across devices. With a balanced tuning, the headphones sound pleasant, though the bass is slightly punchy. The big drivers do help in offering a spacious sound to enjoy listening to different music genres. The wide sound staging also makes the headphones great for watching OTT content like TV shows and movies.

Lastly, there are two more things to talk about – mic and battery life. The beamforming mics are good enough for making and receiving phone calls, and even video calls on conferencing platforms like Zoom and Teams. We made a few calls in noisy environments like airports and metro stations, and the recipients were able to hear us clearly.

In terms of battery life, Sony claims to offer up to 50 hours of non-stop listening with ANC off, and about 35 hours with ANC on. During our test, we kept ANC on all the time, with a volume between 50% and 70%, and would listen in parts for about four hours a day. With such usage, even after eight days, the headphones still had about 10% of battery left, totaling around 32 hours of usage. That is about one charge in a week, and if you turn off ANC, it may reach close to two weeks.

Key Takeaways and Wishlist for WH-CH720N Successor

The WH-CH720N is a value-for-money over-the-ear Bluetooth headphone set.
It has a well-built design and offers a comfortable fit.
Multipoint connectivity works flawlessly to switch between devices.
The WH-CH720N delivers a great battery life so you can go without charge for a week depending on your usage.
ANC and ambient sound modes work as expected.
The headphones offer good sound quality in their segment.
A wear detection feature could have been a great addition to pause/resume music playback.
On the design front, an inward folding one could have been even better, considering most of us also carry them while traveling.
Premium features like Hi-Res audio could be a good addition to the CH720N’s successor.

Apple Mac Studio First Impressions: Mighty Little Computer for Creative Professionals

The refreshed Apple Mac Studio was launched during WWDC 2023.
It is powered by the M2 Max SoC or M2 Ultra SoC and comes with up to 192GB of unified memory and 8TB of SSD.
The Mac Studio has a price tag starting at $1,999.

Apple announced the new Mac Studio earlier this month at the WWDC 2023. Although it looks the same as last year’s Mac Studio, the internals have seen an upgrade. With prices starting at $1,999, the new Mac Studio is powered by either the M2 Max SoC or M2 Ultra SoC, while the memory and storage can be configured depending on the user’s needs.

We have acquired the M2 Max variant at the Counterpoint studio and have customized the machine with 64GB of unified storage and 1TB SSD, which cost around $2,599.

WATCH: Apple Mac Studio: Unboxing and First Impressions

Here are our initial impressions:

Solid build, compact and neat design

Unlike Windows-powered desktop computers, the Mac Mini and Mac Studio line have a very impressive compact design. Although it weighs between 2.7kg and 3.6kg, depending on the configuration, it takes up little space, reduces clutter and looks neat. The Mac Studio is a square-shaped aluminum box with rounded corners, a flat top with the Apple logo, and flat edges.

The bottom half is tapered and has grille holes for the exhaust fan. The back houses all the major connectivity ports and a grille for ventilation. Talking about buttons and ports, you get two USB-C (Thunderbolt 4) ports in the front along with one SDXC card slot.

At the back, there are four Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A ports, a 10Gb ethernet port, one HDMI port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a power button. The main power port is in the center. Overall, we love the neat and clean design.

One notable aspect is the use of sustainable materials for packaging. The packaging box is made from recycled cardboard and there is no plastic used.

ALSO READ: Vision Pro, iOS 17, New Macs: Here’s Everything Announced at Apple WWDC 2023

Mac Studio specifications and configurations

The Mac Studio is available with either M2 Max or M2 Ultra SoC options. The base model with M2 Max SoC comes with a 12-core CPU, 30-core GPU, and a 16-core neural engine for $1,999. For an additional $200, users can opt for a 38-core GPU.

Made on TSMC’s 5nm process node, the M2 Max has 67 billion transistors, and its AI performance can reach 15.8 TOPS (trillion operations per second). The chipset supports up to 10 streams of 8K ProRes video playback and support for up to five displays. It also brings upgrades to the wireless connections in the form of Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3, making it future-proof for the next few years (although Wi-Fi 7 will become widely available from early 2024 after the standard is finalized).

For a more powerful machine, users can get one with the M2 Ultra SoC featuring a 24-core CPU, 60-core GPU, and 32-core neural engine starting at $3,999. For an additional $1,000, users can get a 76-core GPU.

With the base model of M2 Max SoC, you get 512GB of SSD and 32GB of unified memory, but configurations allow up to 96GB of unified memory and 8TB SSD. This maxed-out version will cost $5,399. Similarly, the M2 Ultra Mac Studio base model comes with 64GB unified memory and 1TB SSD, which can be reconfigured to get up to a massive 192GB of unified memory and 8TB of SSD. The maxed-out version costs $7,799.

ALSO READ: MacBook Pro 16 with M1 Pro SoC First Impressions: A Promising Upgrade for Content Creators

Initial impressions

It has only been a day since we got our hands on the Apple Mac Studio and we are still setting up the apps we require, like Adobe Premier Pro and After Effects, along with the required resources. Currently, we are using the M1 Pro-powered MacBook Pro 14 and MacBook Pro 16 as our video editing devices at the Counterpoint studio. We often run out of memory when rendering videos with a big timeline that includes audio, video, and some effects. That is a key reason why dedicated workstations are a must-have. With our new Mac Studio, featuring 64GB of unified storage, we expect the video editing process to be much smoother.

That said, we will be putting our M2 Max-powered Mac Studio through the paces for editing different forms of content and assessing the gaming performance. We will be putting it under stress tests too. More about the performance will be presented in our upcoming review, so stay tuned!

OPPO Find X6 Pro Review: A Photographer’s Delight

OPPO recently launched its latest flagship smartphone, the OPPO Find X6 Pro, exclusively for the China market. It features a refreshing new design, has an updated camera system, and packs in new technology in addition to the latest premium SoC from Qualcomm. We got to try out the OPPO Find X6 Pro soon after its launch here in China and have provided our analysis below. We focused on three key aspects for the review – design and display, performance, and the camera experience.

Great display, eye-catchy design

OPPO Find X6 Pro’s front is equipped with a 6.82-inch curved AMOLED display with a variable refresh rate between 1Hz-120Hz that adjusts automatically based on the on-screen content. OPPO claims that the display’s local peak brightness can reach 2500 nits.

A slight change from the last iteration, the Find X6 Pro’s front camera punch hole has been moved to the top middle of the display and the under-screen fingerprint unlock spot has also been moved up to a more appropriate position, which makes the front look harmonious. The back cover is a spliced with of silver glass and brown leather-like material, and an orange dot at the bottom of the circular lens module is similar to the lens anchor point of an SLR camera. Apart from the bumps in the lens module, the phone has a smooth design and feels good to hold.

Snappy Performance

Under the hood is Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 mobile platform, along with UFS 4.0 ROM, and LPDDR5X RAM with a virtual memory expansion function. Meanwhile, the MariSilicon X, OPPO’s self-developed imaging NPU still provides continuous support for computing photography. This is in the form of faster processing and enhanced low-light videography experiences.

The large 5,000mAh battery offers good battery life, while the 100W flash charging enables the device to power up to 50% in 10 minutes and 100% in 28 minutes. There is also support for 50W wireless flash charging.

Great photography experience

OPPO has equipped its rear camera system with three 50MP large-size image sensors – an IMX989 sensor for the wide camera with 23mm equivalent focal length and f/1.8 aperture. Then there are two IMX890 sensors, one for the ultra-wide camera with 15mm equivalent focal length and f/2.2 aperture, followed by a 3X telescope lens with 72mm equivalent focal length and f/2.6 aperture. In our testing, all three cameras offered excellent imaging performance.

We have samples of the pictures taken from the different cameras:

Ultra-wide (0.6X zoom) –

Wide (1X zoom) –

Telescope (3X zoom) –

Leveraging the periscope telephoto image sensor’s 50MP and large area, the Find X6 Pro enables a 6X hybrid zoom. This 6X zoom also captures high-quality pictures.

With the help of the computing ability support from MariSilicon X, the 10X and 20X digital zoom images are still good for social media usage. However, the 30X zoom photo has obvious signs of overpainting.

10X zoom –

20X zoom –

30X zoom –

When the subject is detected to be up close, the camera will switch to the macro mode by using the ultra-wide lens camera. In the picture, the scales and the beautiful texture on the tail of this Thai fighting fish can be seen clearly.

The 3X telephoto camera enables a minimum focus distance of 25cm, helping capture improved close-up shots.

OPPO has also introduced the new Hasselblad portrait mode in the Find X6 Pro, enabling a more natural background bokeh effect.

The Master Filters feature provides additional film ambiance to photos and good filter options before pressing the shutter button.

A new Pro XDR display feature has been added in the Find X6 Pro to preview photos, taking full advantage of the display with a maximum location brightness of up to 2500 nits, which allows the highlights in HDR photos to be displayed more brightly. However, this feature is currently only available on devices that support Pro XDR. Since the end of 2022, Google, Adobe, and other companies have been trying to establish a unified HDR photo standard and it should not be long before HDR photos are compatible with more devices.

Key takeaways

Overall the OPPO Find X6 Pro is a great flagship smartphone that makes mobile photography easier.
The OPPO Find X6 Pro is equipped with top-level hardware, namely the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, LPDDR5X and UFS 4.0.
The rear camera module and rear design offer it a distinct look to stand out from the crowd.
Though, in some scenarios, the shutter speed is slower, and that can be improved with further software updates.
The excellent display makes it great for content consumption.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra Long-Term Review: The Noteworthy Performer

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra has been one of our favorite smartphones of 2022 that offers powerful performance and a great camera experience in every lighting condition. Samsung also added the S Pen slot and support for the stylus, basically merging the Note-line with S-series Ultra. Besides the hardware and performance, it is impressive how Samsung’s One UI has matured over the last few years.

Samsung will shortly unveil the Galaxy S23 line-up and we take this opportunity to look back at the Galaxy S22 Ultra as we have been using it for a year. Below is our quick long-term review highlighting four key things –

• Performance
• Photography
• Software update and UI
• S Pen.

Powerful performance thanks to Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC

With Qualcomm’s flagship SoC under the hood, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra offers an ultra-fast performance. Whether you are a multi-tasker switching between apps or a gamer, the S22 Ultra can get the job done without a hiccup. Though the thermals could have been slightly better as the back generally gets a little warm when the device is under heavy stress, like recording a 4K 60fps video continuously for over three minutes.

Even when gaming with graphics-intense games on mobile data, the device gets a little warm, but that’s not the same on Wi-Fi. Keeping aside these high-pressure scenarios, the combination of Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC, paired with 12GB of RAM ensures a buttery smooth experience.

The battery life is “good enough” but could have been better. Even with a juicy 5,000mAh battery, you could get a full day’s worth of usage but cannot stretch it beyond that with moderate to heavy usage. I’ve also been using the Galaxy Z Fold4 powered by the refined Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC, where the performance and efficiency gains are clearly visible, but we will talk about that in the Fold’s review in the next few weeks.

Now that the 5G network has gone live in India, I was also able to test it on Airtel, where I get decent download speeds of close to 500Mbps and upload speeds of about 41Mbps. Battery life with 5G did not take a big hit and could still manage to get a full workday’s worth of usage.

Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC ensures stress-free performance, but battery life can be improved further.

Ultimate for photography, work in progress for videography

The Galaxy S22 Ultra packs four rear cameras and one front camera:
• 108MP main sensor, 23mm, f/1.8 with PDAF & OIS.
• 12MP ultrawide sensor, 13mm, 120-degree FoV, f/2.2 with PDAF.
• 10MP telephoto, 69mm, 3X optical zoom, OIS, f/2.4.
• 10MP periscope telephoto, 230mm, 10X optical zoom, f/4.9, OIS.
• 40MP, f.2.2 front camera.

On paper, the camera hardware is the same as we had in the Galaxy S21 Ultra, but the upgraded image signal processor (ISP) on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC brings some key changes. From detailed RAW photos to the new Night Mode which Samsung calls Nightography, to better HDR, there are a lot of under-the-hood tricks unlocked by the Snapdragon SoC, AI, and Samsung’s One UI. All these efforts also ensured that the smartphone scored 135 in DXOMARK’s camera rankings. With the Galaxy S23 series launch around the corner, we expect Qualcomm and Samsung partnership, which was announced at the Snapdragon Tech Summit in November 2022, to bring more camera-centric innovations.

What about the quality?

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra does a great job of taking excellent daylight shots using the most basic settings with the primary 108MP camera. Focus is sharp, exposure is neat and HDR works well, even when capturing photos against the sun. The colors are slightly saturated, but that is fine as Samsung has always pushed for punchy colors. Below are some daylight shots.

The ISP from Snapdragon SoC offers good semantic segmentation. There are many other “Industry First” flagship features that the SoC enables, and we’ve covered them in-depth in our blog. We particularly liked the HDR and skin tone mapping features when clicking against the sun. The one where ISP and AI work together to offer a balanced photo without making the subject look too fair or blowing the highlights in the background. Below are a couple of photos one shot on iPhone 14 Pro and the other on Galaxy S22 Ultra.

The big sensor with more pixels, and 9-to-1 pixel binning helps capture more light, thus resulting in well-lit images in low-light conditions. Default low-light photos in auto mode look decent, but with low-light mode on, that AI does an even better job. Below are some samples.

If you are someone who likes to take control over shooting, there is a Pro mode in the default camera app, where you can manually adjust the ISO, white balance, and shutter speed to your liking depending on the scene. But if that is not enough, there is also Expert RAW mode where you get even more control, to export images in RAW format to edit and make all the adjustments using apps like Adobe Lightroom or other platforms. Below are some sample shots showing default mode photos and edited ones using Adobe Lightroom.

The telephoto cameras make the Galaxy S22 Ultra stand out from the competition. With up to 10X optical zooming capabilities, you can go closer to the subject without losing the quality. What you also get is 30X and 100X digital zoom. Photos shot with 30X zoom are still good for social media usage, whereas 100X photos are decent, but not always usable.

Ultrawide

3X Zoom

10X Zoom

30X Zoom

100X Zoom

3X Zoom

10X Zoom

30X Zoom

Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra offers the best photography experience on Android, but videography can be improved further.

Videography is one area where Samsung can make significant improvements with the next Galaxy. It has all the bells and whistles like 8K 24fps, 4K 60fps video recording, and more, but the smoothness and stabilization are not close to what you get on the iPhones.

AI capabilities in the Galaxy S22 Ultra are underrated

From One UI 4.1 onwards, Samsung also introduced some interesting features in the Gallery app and it is available when you edit photos. These include Object Eraser, where you can erase unwanted objects from your photos. There is also Portrait Effect mode where you can add background blur with depth-of-field effect to your regular photos. Google made these features available for Pixel users, and it is good to see Samsung also offering similar features to its wide user base.

The Object Eraser feature, baked right into the Gallery Photo Editor, impressed me the most. Very easy to remove unwanted people from the scene. Here’s a small video showing how it works. AI at its best. #GalaxyS22Ultra #CPReviews #CPInsights pic.twitter.com/jH10wctPob

— Ritesh Bendre (@GadgetFreak4U) May 16, 2022

The camera app has other modes too, one particularly interesting called Single Take. It records a 5-15 second video clip and the AI then analyses the clip to pick the best moments in the form of photos. It then adds filters, and portrait mode, and creates short video clips such as boomerang, dynamic slow motion, and more from that short clip. And the feature works well as expected too. Samsung also has the color-pop feature in portrait mode, which keeps the subject in color whereas the rest of the background is defocused and in monochrome. This is one of our favourite features in portrait mode camera effects.

Longer Android software support, Microsoft services integration, and more

Samsung announced that the Galaxy S22 series will get four major Android upgrades and five years of security updates, which is better than its competitors. But even more impressive is the speed of updates. We’ve been getting timely security updates every month, and the Android software update rollout was also much faster.

Wow, Christmas came too early this year. #Android13 upgrade with #OneUI5 is here for #GalaxyS22Ultra. Big-big change log with several new features. pic.twitter.com/0r7jKbf3FJ

— Ritesh Bendre (@GadgetFreak4U) October 27, 2022

The smartphone shipped with Android 12 OS and One UI 4.1 skin on top. Soon after Google released the Android 13 source code, Samsung was quick to roll out the beta update and the final Android 13 with One UI 5 within two months. This shows how serious Samsung is in offering the latest software and security updates sooner than the competition.

Besides multi-tasking, one-hand mode, and quick app shortcuts, there is much more that Samsung offers with the One UI 5 skin. Firstly, its partnership with Microsoft allows for tighter integration where you can save photos from the Gallery directly onto OneDrive. Notes saved in the Samsung Notes app can be synced to Microsoft OneNote. There is also Link to Windows feature supported by the YourPhone app where you can receive calls and text on your Windows PC and even reply to them.

Samsung also offers DeX Mode, both wired and wireless, where you have a desktop-like environment on your TV or monitor. Pair a wireless keyboard and mouse to use it as a computer, or you can also use the Galaxy S22 Ultra’s screen as a trackpad. This feature also gives you access to all the apps, videos, and photos on your phone to cast onto a big screen.

Features like DeX Mode and Microsoft Integration are unique propositions to flagship Samsung smartphones.

S Pen offers a smooth, real pen-like note-taking experience

With Samsung merging the S and Note series, the Galaxy S22 Ultra now has a dedicated S Pen slot. The rest of the features remain the same as the Note-series, the one where the S Pen comes with a supercapacitor where the battery charges in about two minutes, offering up to 30 minutes of continuous use.

The S Pen now has a matte finish that makes it easier to hold and use.

With 4096 levels of pressure, the latency has been reduced to 2.3ms offering a smooth experience whether you are scribbling quick notes or drawing. It comes with a built-in gyroscope as well, allowing you access to remote control features where you can press the button on the S Pen to play/pause music.

You can also use it as a camera shutter to click photos or switch between front and rear cameras. Users can also press and hold the S Pen button and rotate it clockwise and anticlockwise to zoom in and out, among many other features.

Key Takeaways:

• The Galaxy S22 Ultra has held up well in long-term usage.
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 handles even the heaviest tasks without stress, but thermals could have been better.
• The camera system offers a great photography experience in day-light, low-light, and zoom scenarios.
• The videography experience is good, but more improvements are needed to get on par with the iPhone experience.
• Timely security updates, fast software updates, and commitment to support for over four years are a big welcome.
• Merging the S & Note line and getting the S Pen slot back is a good move giving an upgrade option for older Note users who are still not convinced about upgrading to a foldable yet.

OnePlus Nord Watch Review: Well-rounded Smartwatch on a Budget

OnePlus has been focusing on value-for-money devices with its sub-brand Nord. Following a series of Nord smartphones and TWS earbuds, OnePlus recently launched its budget smartwatch, the OnePlus Nord Watch, to further expand its Nord portfolio. Available for INR 4,999 (about $60), the smartwatch is targeted at first-time users and is a step towards building a Nord ecosystem. After testing the smartwatch for close to a month, we have put together some initial impressions.

Impressive display quality with a sturdy build

The OnePlus Nord Watch flaunts a 1.78-inch AMOLED screen with a 60Hz refresh rate.
The smartwatch features a zinc alloy chassis with a polycarbonate back.
The button on the side is used for waking the watch, accessing the menu and exiting apps.

The OnePlus Nord Watch embodies a basic design, similar to those of its competitors in the segment. The build quality of the smartwatch is sturdy with the outer casing made of Zinc alloy. The back of the smartwatch is made of polycarbonate. In terms of aesthetics, the watch looks beautiful with a two-tone finish and glossy outer casing available in black and blue. The display glass is tough enough to withstand daily wear and tear. Even after about a month of usage, we saw no scratches on the display.

The watch features a large, square-shaped 1.78-inch AMOLED display, which has a crisp 368×448 resolution and solid 326PPI pixel density. The display is bright enough to make information visible even in peak sunlight as it offers 500 nits of brightness. The function of the side button is to wake the watch up or open the app drawer. The touch response of the display is smooth and offers a near lag-free experience.

Watch OS is constricted, but useful

Fitness modes are flexible and useful.
Menstrual cycle tracking is a good addition to the watch.
Inability to customize watch faces is a miss.
No Bluetooth calling is a miss.

The Nord Watch ships with a custom RTOS, which offers fitness tracking, menstrual cycle tracking, sleep tracking and a plethora of other useful apps. There are more than 100 sports modes to choose from, including walking, running, skipping and hiking. The step counter feature functions quite accurately, while the SpO2 sensor and heart rate tracker take a bit of time to stabilize the readings after the initial setup. The sleep tracking function offers good insights into sleep patterns, including deep sleep and light sleep.

I evaluated the OnePlus Nord Watch using two different Android phones – one from OnePlus and the other from a competing brand with similar performance and compatibility. The watch works equally well with both iOS and Android. The UI is easy to use. An upward swipe opens the latest notification and a downward swipe brings up the quick settings menu. A swipe right to left will show your sleep results, and a swipe left to right will display step counts and other health data. The watch syncs with most of the music apps available on iOS and Android, and the camera shutter app on the watch works well with all devices.

The walking and running modes activate automatically only when you perform those specific activities. Nevertheless, this is a good device for all fitness enthusiasts who include walking and running in their fitness routine. If you are using the watch without your phone, the data will only sync after connecting with the phone.

The watch has display icons for most social media apps, including WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook. However, Teams, Outlook, Reddit and other apps are unavailable, which I believe can be easily fixed via a small update. The watch does not accommodate quick replies while cancelling a call (e.g. ‘Can’t talk right now’), or quick replies for social media, which would otherwise have been a great addition.

N Health app offers a good user experience

Users can access features such as watch faces and log data through the N Health app, which can be downloaded from Android or iOS app stores. The N Health app’s UI is minimalistic and offers easy access to health and sleep cycle analytics. The app offers more than 100 non-customizable watch faces from which up to four can be selected and stored in the smartwatch. The app displays menstrual cycle settings, SpO2 readings and heart rate readings.

During my test, the Nord Watch’s battery lasted for about eight days on a full charge at 40% brightness and minimal fitness tracking. If you crank up the brightness to 100% and use the watch more for fitness tracking, the battery lasts for about five days. The standby battery performance is great. It loses 1% when the device is not connected to your phone and 3%-4% when connected.

Key takeaways:

The OnePlus Nord Watch has a simple design with a decent set of features and accurate fitness tracking.
The SpO2 and sleep tracking features offer reliable analytics through the N Health app.
The device offers many interesting watch face options to choose from. However, the inability to customize watch faces is a big miss.
The watch gives the user more than 100 indoor and outdoor sports modes to choose from.
The app gallery on the watch offers three types of layouts. However, the default one looks quite similar to what competitors are offering.
The absence of a quick reply feature is a miss. The watch also does not have Bluetooth calling, which is a hot favourite feature in this price segment.
The lack of third-party app support, such as Strava and Spotify, is also a miss. However, most competing devices also do not offer the same at this price point. This feature is something to look forward to in future iterations.

Related Research:

Lenovo Tab P11 Pro Gen 2 Review: Good for Entertainment, Basic Productivity

Lenovo, the world’s largest PC maker and third largest tablet maker, launched the Tab P11 Pro Gen 2 tablet in September this year. Compared to the Tab P11 Pro Gen 1, the successor brings some key upgrades to the screen, stylus, speakers and more. The display now supports HDR10+, 120Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 600 nits compared to 400 nits in the first generation. However, the screen is now slightly smaller at 11.2 inches compared to the previous generation’s 11.5 inches. The stylus is now magnetic, while the speakers are now tuned by JBL.

Under the hood is a MediaTek 1300T (6nm) SoC, an upgrade from Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 730G (8nm) in the previous generation. The dual camera is now replaced by a single 13MP camera and an LED flash too.. The second generation has one more SKU, with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage, which is the one we tested. Lenovo also sent us the keyboard and Lenovo Precision Pen 3 stylus.

Compared to the previous generation, Lenovo has upgraded the specifications to align them with how the tablets are now used by consumers, focusing on display, sound and performance. We have been using the Lenovo Tab P11 Pro Gen 2 for almost three weeks now and below is our analysis focusing on its performance and overall experience.

Design: Sleek, minimalistic and premium

The Tab P11 Pro Gen 2 comes with a dual-tone grey aluminum back which looks elegant. The lighter grey area has a matt finish, while the darker grey area has a glossy finish, giving a smooth and premium feel.

There is a single camera and a flash at the top left with a very thin bump so the tablet can rest almost flat on the surface. At the back, you have Lenovo, JBL and Dolby Atmos branding in very light colors. During our usage, we did notice some fingerprints and dust at the back.

Lenovo P11 Pro Gen 2 Dual Tone Back

On the front, the tab has a gorgeous 11.2-inch display which we will talk about in just a bit. The front camera is on the top of the display when placed horizontally, which is how we generally use the tab. There are three buttons. Double-clicking the power/sleep button on the top acts as a quick shortcut to open the camera. There are also two volume buttons. All three buttons have a nice tactile feel.

The overall build quality feels sturdy and the tablet weighs just 480 g, which makes it easy to carry around. Overall, in terms of design and form factor, Lenovo has done a fantastic job with the Tab P11 Pro Gen 2, making it a sleek, elegant and premium-looking tablet.

Display and audio: An entertainment powerhouse

The Tab P11 Pro Gen 2 boasts a crisp 2.5K OLED display of 2560×1536 pixels resolution. The dimensions are also more rectangular with a 15:9 aspect ratio, compared to the iPad Air for example. But this makes the Lenovo tablet easier to hold on to as well as consume content as most videos are shot in the 16:9 aspect ratio.

The screen has a 120Hz refresh rate, which makes the overall experience very smooth with scrolls being extremely fluid. The display also supports Dolby Vision and HDR10+ for all your content consumption needs. The panel offers deep blacks, great contrast, wide viewing angles and punchy color reproduction. With 600 nits of peak brightness, outdoor visibility is decent. The display is also TUV-certified to filter blue light, thus causing less strain to the eyes.

The tablet also features a quad-speaker setup tuned by JBL and supports Dolby Atmos for a good surround sound experience. It comes with three modes – dynamic, movie and music. The dynamic mode identifies the content and performs auto-adjustments to deliver the best sound. The speakers are loud and offer good voice clarity, which is enough for small rooms. There is no need to use headphones when watching content or taking calls. Overall, a good display and crisp and clear audio are some of the highlights of the Tab P11 Pro Gen 2.

Precision pen: Great for taking notes, may be not for artists

The tablet also comes with the Precision Pen 3 stylus which has a cylindrical design and a single button to access the shortcut menu. It can be used to take notes and screenshots, access the laser pointer and camera. The laser pointer is a nice utility that can be used for presentations. The stylus charges magnetically when snapped on both the side and the back.

Lenovo Precision Pen 3 Stylus

I used it mostly for taking notes. The pressure sensitivity was accurate, and the overall writing experience was smooth. I also have an Apple iPad Air with Apple Pencil Gen 2. I felt the strokes on the Apple device were smoother with less latency, compared to those on the Lenovo device. The pen works well enough to drive everyday needs like taking notes. Some heavy users or artists may find the Apple Pencil Gen 2 in iPads more relevant.

Keyboard: Smooth typing experience

The tablet also has a dock for the keyboard, which is sold as a separate accessory (for around US$99). Our review unit came with a version that had the keyboard inside the box. The keyboard attaches to the tablet using pogo pins. The keys have a good travel and are well-spaced, making it comfortable for long hours of typing. However, when switching from a laptop, it needs some time to adjust. Once you get used to it, it feels very natural. I used it for typing Word documents and replying to emails, and it felt easy.

Lenovo P11 Pro Gen 2 Keyboard

There are several very well thought out shortcut buttons on the keyboard as well, including for back, muting microphone for calls, screenshot, lock and split screen.

The keyboard also has a small trackpad and it supports two-finger and three-finger swipes, and pinch-zoom gestures. But I found that pinch zoom was working on some of the websites on my laptop but not on the tab. The scrolling is pretty smooth. However, due to the small size of the trackpad, I was accidentally pulling down the drop-down window from the top while scrolling. At the same time, I was able to attach a mouse using a USB C hub, which also worked flawlessly most of the time. Sometimes the trackpad failed to work with the Office 365 app, and it needs some more optimization here.

Productivity mode: Windows OS feel

There is also a productivity mode in the tablet, which, once switched on, converts the layout to more like a desktop Windows OS with a taskbar at the bottom. The notification tray moves to the bottom right. The app drawer is on the bottom left, just like the Start Menu in Windows. You can also open several apps in small windows simultaneously for multitasking. However, I mostly used the split screen feature, which was more user-friendly when combined with the split screen shortcut on the keyboard.

Extended display: Great for streaming, optimization needed for productivity

I also used an HDMI cable through a USB C hub to connect the tab to an external display. The theme on the monitor is like what the tab has on the productivity mode. However, you will not be able to open apps on the tab and drag those to the extended screen, which would have been a more convenient feature, like on laptops or desktops. If an app is already running on the tab, and you will try to open the same app on the external desktop, it will throw a notification saying the app is open on another device and will have to restart. However, streaming content on the external display showed no signs of lag and the overall experience of content consumption was very smooth.

Lenovo P11 Pro Gen 2 Extended Display Mode

Camera: Easy daily driver for most of video-calling needs

The tablet features an 8MP front camera for video calling and it works across apps like Teams, Zoom and Skype. The location of the front camera is also on the top, which means the camera positioning is at the center when you are taking calls. You end up looking at the camera directly without any effort, just like on laptops. Combined with the loud audio fired by the quad speakers, the tab is an easy daily driver for most of video-calling needs.

Overall performance: Good for entertainment, basic productivity

I mostly used the tablet to stream content, play games, read emails, take video calls and type text over the last couple of weeks. There were no performance issues most of the time. Under the hood is a MediaTek Kompanio 1300T SoC paired with 8GB of RAM, which was able to handle everyday tasks with ease. I also played games like Call of Duty: Mobile and Asphalt 9: Legends. Both ran smoothly without any hiccups.

The 8200mAh battery lasted for more than a day. The tab comes with 20W fast charging, which takes two to three hours to charge the battery completely. One good thing here is the length of the USB cable, which is almost 1.5 times that of what comes with the iPad Air. This is very convenient when the tab is mostly resting on the table with a charging port at some distance.

In terms of software, the tab comes with Android 12L out of the box. The operating system is clean and runs smoothly, except for some glitches in terms of integration with the hardware and optimization of applications. But Lenovo is promising three years of updates and we expect to see some more optimizations on the software side to make the experience even better.

Key takeaways

With the Tab P11 Pro Gen 2, Lenovo has hit the sweet spot of performance, experience and price. It has made some great decisions in terms of what to include in the hardware based on tablet usage.
A good display and audio, great performance, premium design, solid build quality, and software that is only bound to improve, make the tablet an easy choice.
The added stylus and keyboard support provide the tab with even more versatility.
The tablet delivers great experience in content consumption, reading, calls, battery life, gaming, typing and completing tasks on the go, thus catering to almost every need of a regular tablet user.

Sony WH-1000XM5 Review: Raising the bar for ANC, ambient noise & sound quality

The TWS earbuds segment has seen immense growth over the last two years, and they are a popular choice when it comes to personal audio products. But there is still an audience for over-the-ear headphones as they offer more comfort and long-lasting battery life on a single charge. For the past few years, Sony has struck a winning formula with its flagship 1000X-series over-the-ear headphones that deliver great sound quality and superb noise cancellation.

First introduced in 2016 as MDR-1000X, Sony changed the naming scheme with its successor, WH-1000XM2. The fifth-generation headphones in the series, the WH-1000XM5, were recently launched at INR 34,990 (around $425). They feature new materials, refreshed design, eight mics, and an additional processor for ANC. But how does one take the already best and make it even better? This isn’t more like “if it isn’t broken, why fix it?”, but more like “if we can improve it even further, why not?”

We have been testing the Sony WH-1000XM5 for a little over a month and below is our analysis.

♻️Sustainability efforts: Plastic-free packaging & use of recycled materials

Sony, as a brand has been vocal about its sustainability efforts, and the same continues with the WH-1000XM5 too. The packaging does not include any plastic, and the box is made from what Sony calls “Original Blended Material.” It is basically a sustainable paper material made from “bamboo, sugarcane fibres, and post-consumer recycled paper,” Sony explains.

But it is not just the packaging, the body of the headphones is also made from recycled plastic materials using automobile parts. In the box, you get a collapsible carrying case made from premium fabric, a 3.5mm to 3.5mm aux cable (if you want to listen in passive mode), and a USB Type-C cable for charging.

Sony’s sustainability efforts toward the elimination of plastic in packaging are commendable.

Lightweight design with new soft leather for all-day comfort

The Sony WH-1000XM5 sees a major redesign, the first time for the series since its initial launch. The changes are visible right from the flat dome-shaped earcups that feature touch-sensitive gesture controls. While the left earcup has a 3.5mm socket, physical power, and ANC/Ambient Mode toggle buttons, the right earcup has a USB Type-C port for charging.

The earcups are now suspended freely from the hinge, but unlike the previous generation, they can only fold down flat, but cannot rotate inwards. The only drawback of this is that they are not as compact when folded, which means you need to carry a larger case (bundled) when traveling.

Lastly, there is also one more change with the headband. It can now be adjusted freely using the slider and it does not have steps and grooves for adjustment. This also means that you may not be able to set an even length on both sides at all times. But that should not be a major problem.

Talking about comfort, Sony is using new “soft fit leather” padding material for the earcups. It is actually very soft and comfortable to wear for hours. Even for someone like me who wears glasses, I did not feel any pressure or even the slightest discomfort even after wearing the headphones at a stretch for over four hours.

Key specifications: Bluetooth 5.2, LDAC codec, and more

• The 1000XM5 features Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity with an operating range of 10m.
• It supports Google’s Fast Pair feature to quickly pair with a supported smartphone.
• With 30mm dynamic drivers, the headphones have a frequency response range of 20Hz–20,000Hz, and 20Hz–40,000Hz (when switched to LDAC codec, with a sampling of 990kbps).
• It supports SBC, AAC, and LDAC Bluetooth codecs.
• The 1000XM5 leverages the integrated V1 processor, eight microphones (up from four in XM4), and a new QN1 processor for offering impressive noise cancellation.
• Sony has also included multi-point connectivity, allowing you to simultaneously connect the headphones to two devices, such as your smartphone and laptop.
• The multi-point connectivity is a great feature allowing you to seamlessly switch between devices, but it has one downside, it disables LDAC codec, meaning you will not be able to listen to high-res music.
• You can enable/disable features using the “Headphones” app, which is available on both Android and iOS platforms.

Key Features: Speak-to-chat, native assistant, and more

Speak-to-Chat:

• The speak-to-chat feature pauses music playback when it hears you speaking and turns on the ambient sound mode.
• Once you are done talking, the playback is resumed.
• It uses AI algorithms and beamforming mics to detect voice and switch modes.
• While this is a good feature, it does not work 100% accurately and gets triggered when you are humming music, or even when someone in the room sitting close to you starts talking.
• Thankfully, you can disable this in the app.

Adaptive Sound Control:

• This smart function automatically switches between ANC and ambient sound mode depending on your location and surrounding.
• It does this by learning from your daily routine to recognize the location and your preferences.
• For instance, it can detect when you are sitting, walking, running, or commuting, and accordingly switch to ANC or increase the strength of ambient sound when outdoors.
• In our test, this feature worked flawlessly.

Other features:

• The WH-1000XM5 comes with a quick attention mode – resting your palm on the right earcup quickly activates the ambient sound mode and deactivates it as soon as you remove the palm.
• While it works well, it would have been great if it paused the music playback, rather than just muting it.
• There is Spotify Tap feature, double pressing the ANC/AMB button, you can quickly start Spotify music playback, and toggle between playlists. (Spotify app needs to be installed for this to work).
• The proximity sensor can detect when you are wearing the headphones and can instantly pause/start playback when you remove and wear the headphones.
• If you do not wear the headphones for a few minutes, they will automatically be turned off.
• Lastly, there is also Sony’s DSEE Extreme which uses Edge-AI to upscale compressed music in real-time to restore sound lost in compression.
• With DSEE Extreme turned on, the audio sounded slightly detailed, irrespective of the source.

Performance: Sound quality, ANC & mic

We tested the Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones using multiple devices. This includes iPhone 12 (for AAC codec) & MacBook Pro 16 (M1 Pro) as daily drivers. For the LDAC codec, we tested the sound quality using the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4. For music, we used two sources – Spotify, and Apple Music (with music streaming in High-res Lossless format).

Detailed and entertaining sound quality

Sony has once again managed to offer excellent sound quality that can be enjoyed by both casual music listeners and audiophiles. The WH-1000XM5 has a sonic signature tuned with slightly more emphasis on the bass while also ensuring that it’s not too aggressive. Otherwise, the sound quality is detailed and offers a spacious sound staging. The audio separation is good, and you can easily distinguish between each instrument.

The Sony WH-1000XM5 delivers sound quality that is both detailed and enjoyable.

The good part about the XM5’s audio is that you don’t need to turn the volume all the way up to be able to enjoy whatever you are listening to. When at home, I never went beyond the 50% volume mark, whereas outdoors, even 80% volume was more than enough. ANC has a big role to play here, which we will discuss briefly.

Audio with LDAC sounded marginally better and the connection was stable too. But even with AAC, there is not a big drop in quality, and the music experience is also as enjoyable.

Great noise cancellation, vastly improved mic

With a total of eight mics (four on each earcup), HD Noise Cancelling Processor QN1, and features like Auto NC Optimizer the Sony WH-1000XM5 offers very effective noise cancellation. I was impressed with the results, both indoors and outdoors. I tested under multiple scenarios – inside my room, out in the gallery close to a busy road, traveling in a local train, and also in an airplane.

When indoors, the ANC works great in cutting down the fan and AC noise to a great extent. It does not completely silence everything; you can still hear some noise if the music isn’t playing. But the moment you start playing music, even with 30% volume, all the ambient noises are cut off, letting you enjoy your music.

Outdoors, the eight mics and AI algorithms work great in cutting out the wind noise, allowing you to enjoy your music listening. Even when in an airplane, the headphones cut off drone noise effectively.

The Sony WH-1000XM5 offers improved ANC & mic quality over its predecessor.

The beamforming mics and AI-based voice reduction algorithms accurately separate your voice from wind and other ambient disturbances. Whether you are talking from inside or out on a busy road, the recipient can hear your voice clearly, without even knowing that you are talking from outdoors.

The ambient sound mode also sees big improvement with more mics where outdoor noises now sound more natural and clearer. This helps you to remain more aware of the surroundings when outdoors.

Battery life: Fast charging with improved efficiency

The battery life on the Sony WH-1000XM5 is great. On a full charge, it easily lasts around 29 hours with ANC, which is pretty close to Sony’s claim of 30 hours. It’s great for those long-haul 16-hour flights, as the battery will last you through the journey – from your home to the destination, including layovers.

Sony has included a fast charging feature which is a great addition. During the briefing, a Sony executive told me that even three mins of charge can offer over three hours of music listening time with ANC. I went ahead to test the claim and was pleased with the result. In just four mins, using a 66W USB PD fast charger, the battery went from empty to 21%, and it lasted a little over four hours with continuous music playback at 60% volume.

The WH-1000XM5 can be your perfect companion on long-haul flights.

Key Takeaways:

• The WH-1000XM5 is a perfect example of how even small, iterative improvements can improve an already good product.
• Sony’s sustainability efforts of using recycled materials to build the headphones and no plastic packaging are commendable.
• The headphones are comfortable to wear for many hours without causing fatigue.
• Sony delivers crisp and detailed audio, great noise cancellation, and natural-sounding ambient noise.
• Mic quality on calls has also been improved and thanks to wind-noise reduction, the audio during calls doesn’t sound muffled.
• Battery life is one area where Sony can improve with the WH-1000XM5 successor, especially where competitors like Sennheiser Momentum 4 promise twice the battery life up to 60 hours.
• IPXX rating for sweat and drizzling rains could be another good addition in the next iteration.
• A lot of tap-and-gesture features are pre-defined in the Headphones app, and the ability to customize them as per individual liking is another area where Sony can still improve.

Top

Foldable, lightweight and comfortable design

Premium audio, ANC and voice calls

Longer battery life and stable connectivity

Wrapping up

WATCH: JBL Tour One M2 Unboxing

Adaptive Noise Cancellation (ANC): Filter out ambient noise based on your surroundings

Smart Ambient mode: Helps you stay aware of your surroundings even with headphones on

Personi-Fi 2.0: Calibrate headphones per your personal hearing profile.

Talk-thru: Media automatically mutes when you speak

Auto Play and Pause: Media automatically plays when you put on the headphones and pauses when you take them off

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Solid build, compact and neat design

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Powerful performance thanks to Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 SoC

Ultimate for photography, work in progress for videography

What about the quality?

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AI capabilities in the Galaxy S22 Ultra are underrated

Longer Android software support, Microsoft services integration, and more

S Pen offers a smooth, real pen-like note-taking experience

Key Takeaways:

Related Posts

Impressive display quality with a sturdy build

Watch OS is constricted, but useful

N Health app offers a good user experience

<img decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-68145 size-full" src="https://www.counterpointresearch.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Oneplus-Nord-Watchface-Counterpoint-Research.jpg" alt="Oneplus Nord Watchface, Counterpoint Research" width="1200" height="800" data-eio="l" />

Key takeaways:

Related Research:

Design: Sleek, minimalistic and premium

Display and audio: An entertainment powerhouse

Precision pen: Great for taking notes, may be not for artists

Keyboard: Smooth typing experience

Productivity mode: Windows OS feel

Extended display: Great for streaming, optimization needed for productivity

Camera: Easy daily driver for most of video-calling needs

Overall performance: Good for entertainment, basic productivity

Key takeaways

♻️Sustainability efforts: Plastic-free packaging & use of recycled materials

Lightweight design with new soft leather for all-day comfort

Key specifications: Bluetooth 5.2, LDAC codec, and more

Key Features: Speak-to-chat, native assistant, and more

Speak-to-Chat:

Adaptive Sound Control:

Other features:

Performance: Sound quality, ANC & mic

Detailed and entertaining sound quality

Great noise cancellation, vastly improved mic

Battery life: Fast charging with improved efficiency

Key Takeaways:

ALSO READ: Other Strategic Reviews on Smartphones, Smartwatches, TWS & More

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