Mysterious new Sony over-ear wireless headphones revealed in wake of WH-1000XM6 release

Sony has already launched the WH-1000XM6 as what will probably be its only high-end wireless headphones of 2025 (curr. $448 on Amazon). Based on recent leaks, the company is also preparing the WF-1000XM6 for release later this year. Seemingly, Sony has more wireless audio equipment up its sleeve, too.

For the time being, The Walkman Blog has only discovered references to the headphones in shipping manifests. From these, we can infer that Sony is developing them under the model number YY2998. For context, similar leaks highlight that Sony has assigned the model number YY2985 to the WF-1000XM6.

Moreover, the same manifests reveal that YY2998 is a pair of over-ear headphones rather than in-ear earbuds. As the images below show, YY2998 utilises a 2.4 GHz Bluetooth modem too, although we imagine a 3.5 mm jack will present as well. Furthermore, the leak suggests that Sony will only sell the YY2998 in black and silver finishes, much like the WH-1000XM6 before it.

As a result, The Walkman Blog theorises that YY2998 could be an upper mid-range option within Sony's WH series. Potential candidates include replacements for the WH-CH520 and WH-CH720N, which Sony refreshed with new colour options in March. Both headphones are now over two years old though, which would suggest that successors are on the cards. Alternatively, YY2998 could relate to an entirely new model; full details about the headphones will likely surface later this summer or by the autumn given the timing of this early leak.