Sony WF-1000XM5 leak reveals new design and what's under the hood

Sony’s wildly popular WF-1000XM4 noise-cancelling earbuds have set high expectations for the Sony WF-1000XM5. A Sony WF-1000XM5 leak from The Walkman Blog gives us a concrete idea of what the anticipated XM5 earbuds will look like.

According to the Sony WF-1000XM5 leak, earbuds take on a rounded shape that appears to be more compact than the XM4 buds. While it can be difficult to see in the photo, a hole in the left earbud is likely for the microphone array. A sticker on the earbuds indicates they’re manufactured in China. The charging case FCC ID and model number match Sony’s February 22, 2023, FCC filing for a “wireless noise cancelling stereo headset.”

The glossy plastic pictured in the leak doesn’t appear nearly as premium as the matte black version of the WF-1000XM4. We hope the seemingly low-quality glossy plastic of the Sony WF-1000XM5 leak is upgraded when production units roll out.

Sony’s pre-production WF-1000XM5 case features a rounded shape than the WF-1000XM4 case. The XM5 case has a two-pin charging mechanism, dropping one from the three-pin charging system on the XM4 case.

We also observe a more powerful 5V = 230mA specification on the Sony WF-1000XM5 case. This specification should yield faster earbud charging than the 5V = 140mA specification for the XM4 case. Sony eschews the thin LED that rests on the seam of the XM4 case for a standard LED dot on the front of the case.

The Sony WF-1000XM5 leak depicts a teardown of the case, which houses a wireless charging coil that works with Qi. The WF-1000XM4 case has this too, so no surprise there. As seen below, the leak shows a teardown of the WF-1000XM5 earbuds too.

The Walkman Blog numbered the identifiable parts and surmises them to be the following:

1. Contacts for a wireless antennae and touch sensor.
2. MEMS microphone.
3. Contacts for the speaker driver.
4. Contacts for another speaker driver.
5. Proximity sensor.
6. MEMS microphone.

Let us know what you think of the Sony WF-1000XM5 design in the comment section below. In the meantime, bookmark our Sony WF-1000XM5 rumor hub for the latest information.