Sony WF-1000XM5: European pricing leaks with higher starting price than WF-1000XM4

Roland Quandt has revealed European pricing for the WF-1000XM5, one of the final pieces in the puzzle for Sony's next high-end earbuds. Earlier this week, a UK retailer listed the earbuds on its support page, confirming rumoured design changes from the WF-1000XM4. Various WF-1000XM5 specifications have also surfaced online in the last few weeks, courtesy of Quandt and The Walkman Blog.

According to the former, Sony will launch the WF-1000XM5 for €319.99, €30 less than the PerL Pro that Denon announced a few days ago. Currently, a new pair of the WF-1000XM4 costs less than €190, a third saving on its original €279 MSRP. Hence, it appears that the WF-1000XM5 will be nearly 15% more expensive than its predecessor, a €40 uplift in two years.

Reportedly, each WF-1000XM5 earbud will weigh 5.4 g, a 20% and 1.4 g weight drop between generations. While battery life is expected to remain at 24 hours with the charging case factored in, the WF-1000XM5 will recharge more quickly; 3 minutes of charging should yield an hour's playback. The WF-1000XM5 will feature 40% larger drivers than the WF-1000XM4 too, with Sony's new 'Dynamic Driver X' spanning 8.4 mm. A release date has not leaked yet, although the publication of pricing implies that there is little time left before an official announcement.

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