Sony WH-XB90N vs Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC: Which One Has Better Features?

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The comparison here is between the Sony WH-XB900N and the Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC. Both of these headphones are from popular brands. There is a little more difference in their price and much more difference in their features. To know which one has the better features that you are looking for in your headphones, go to the detailed review.

5.3 Sony WH-XB900N 35.7 Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC 1
Sony WH-XB900NSennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC
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PROSPROS
Great sound quality for the price.
Option for dedicated Google Assistant/Alexa button.
USB-C charging.
Good battery life.
More affordable than the 1000XM3.
Clean, simple looks.
Effective noise canceling that sounds great.
CONSCONS
Touch controls are still frustrating.
Noise cancellation isn’t as powerful as the 1000XM3.
Too much bass for some people.
Not quite as comfortable as higher-end models from Bose, Sony and Sennheiser.

SPECIFICATIONS:

MODELSONY WH-XB900NSENNHEISER HD 4.50 BTNC
BrandSonySennheiser
Series
ModelWH-XB900N4.50 BTNC Wireless
HEADPHONESSONY WH-XB900NSENNHEISER HD 4.50 BTNC
Headphones Form Factor
Connectivity TechnologyWirelessWireless
Sound Output ModeStereoStereo
Frequency Response20Hz18 Hz
Sensitivity113 dB
Impedance50 ohm18 ohm
Diaphragm
MICROPHONESONY WH-XB900NSENNHEISER HD 4.50 BTNC
Microphone Technologyelectret condenser
Response Bandwidth50 Hz100 Hz
DIMENSIONS & WEIGHTSONY WH-XB900NSENNHEISER HD 4.50 BTNC
Width7.2
Depth9.2
Height4.1
Weight8.96 oz8.4 oz
POWERSONY WH-XB900NSENNHEISER HD 4.50 BTNC
Battery Life30 Hour(s)19 Hours(s)
FEATURESSONY WH-XB900NSENNHEISER HD 4.50 BTNC
FeaturesSONY AUTHORIZED DEALER: Includes USA Manufacturer Guarantee.

BUNDLE INCLUDES: Sony WH-XB900N EXTRA BASS Wireless Noise Canceling Over-Ear Headphones with the 5000mAh Battery Pack and Headphone Case.

DIGITAL NOISE CANCELLATION: Sony’s noise cancellation technology means you hear every word, note, and tune with incredible clarity, no matter your environment. Additional microphones also assist in isolating sound while talking on the phone, resulting in improved phone call quality.

Bluetooth 4.0 and aptX technologies to deliver exceptional wireless sound quality.

Connectivity Technology: Wireless

Intuitive ear-cup mounted controls for changing tracks and for making calls via the integrated microphone.

Up to 25 hour battery life and is supplied with connecting cable for battery-free listening.

Compatible with most smartphones & tablets.

Detail Review:

INTRODUCTION:

Sony WH-XB900N

The Sony WH-XB900N is retailing for around 180 Dollars. It mainly seems to be focusing on the extra bass. It also has Google Assistant or Alexa, 30 hours of battery, Bluetooth, and noise cancellation, the same as the XM3 except the extra bass.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

The Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC is retailing for around 114 Dollars currently. These are actually pretty good at their price if you are looking for a low budget headphone. They do sound pretty good at their price.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC 03

DESIGN:

Sony WH-XB900N

The material used in these headphones has been changed to like a matte black and it’s bit more tough plastic. The sony XM3 has very stylish and shinier plastics which looks much more premium compared to these ones. You have the mics, USB-C port, you have the power button, custom button, touchpad, and on the top, they do have a ventilations.

The case comes with these are not hard like the XM3, it’s been more of a very soft pouch which is quite useful. You can actually keep the headphone in these without any problems, but you have to be a bit more careful with the headphone because it’s not a hard case, it’s a soft pouch.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

These headphones come with a small carry case. The case is not hard, it’s like a small bag just a bit more secure than putting the headphone outside but it’s not a hard case. Also inside the case, you do get a USB to micro USB cable for charging a bit more disappointed, they should have moved to USB-C. You can also use them wired and wireless because you are also going to get a 3.5 to 2.5 cable.

You can fold the headphones and keep them into a small bag. The cups are smaller as well. You can stretch the headphone as you want and it will go back to the same position. There were no creaks while stretching these headphones. The adjustment strip here is also made of plastic instead of metal. So, durability wise these are not much good but it’s pretty good at this price range.

On the earcups you have your power button, you have volumes ups and downs, you have the noise cancellation on and off button, headphone jack, a micro USB port, then there is also going to be your mic for answering a phone call, and the ambient sound is going to be fed through by the mic on the sides. These headphones have a lock too for the jack cable.

COMFORT:

Sony WH-XB900N

The ear cups here are small and very soft, so it is very comfortable. It seems to be you can fold them, you can rotate them. They do have some ventilations, so if you’re wearing these for long hours, that ventilation actually gives you a bit more comfort.

In the old ones, you don’t get the ventilation, so if you’re wearing these for long hours, you will not get much pressure in your ears because of the headphones. I tried these on, it’s really very comfortable. It does give you small gaps on the side of your ears, so it doesn’t sweat a lot.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

You get adjustment strips with these headphones, so you can adjust it depending on the size of your heads. There is no much padding for your head on the top of the headset. There is only little padding so it feels cheap again on that stage. You can’t rotate the earcups much or you can’t have a full 360 rotation. The ear cups cushions are very soft and small. They are pretty comfortable at this price range.

If you do have smaller ears then this will be a perfect fit for you, but if you have big ears or even a big head this is not going to be good. The reason behind this is the earcups are very small and the holes inside where the ears fit in are really small. So, if you have bigger ears, you need something like a bit wider so that your ears get fit in perfectly and there must be more space on the ear cups, so it will be more comfortable when you wearing them for long hours.

5.7 Sony WH-XB900N2

FEATURES:

Sony WH-XB900N

Inside the box, you have your headphone, 3.5 to 3.5 headphone jack, USB-A to USB-C charger and you have the usual books, the user manuals, the noise cancellation setup guides, and the warranties. There is also one small carrying pouch for your headphone.

It features the quick charging, microphone for Google assistant, and phone calls, and it comes with a USB-C charger, headphone jack for wired connection, and noise cancellation technology. Here you need to download the Sony apps if you want to get more function out of these headphones.

There is no lag latency with these. I tested out whether is there any delay while watching videos but there were no delays at all. There are no delays when you listen to a song from YouTube, Spotify, Netflix, etc. There are no delays during playing games too. There are no connection issues too with the Bluetooth connectivity. The noise cancellation was almost the same as the XM3.

The touchpad has the same functionalities as the XM3 like, swipe forward to go to the next track, swipe backward to go to the previous track, swipe up to increase the volume, swipe down to decrease the volume, and double-tap to play-pause.

In the app, as like the Sony XM3, you have the same noise cancellation technology, you have the same sound control, and you have the same equalizer. The new one few updates they made on the application are going to be the 360 audio setups. With these, you can actually analyze the perfect fit, while you are wearing on your ears so that it provides the best experience.

Inside the app, you do have the setting for your noise cancellation. You can change the soundstage too in the app. You also have the adaptive sounds, which actually pick up quite good audio. If someone comes and talks to you while you are listening to music, you can essentially pick up their voice with the adaptive sound technology. So it’s good as well as bad because the mic seems to be very sensitive to pick the wind too.

The noise cancellation is amazing but I wouldn’t say is the same as the XM3 but it’s very clear. The equalizer is also exactly the same here as the XM3. The new most important update you have is the sound quality mode, where you can prioritize the sound quality or prioritize the stable connections. If you are taking a phone call, it’s better to prioritize the stable connection and if you just want to listen to a song just do prioritize the sound so that you get the best audio experience.

In the app, you can also change the button configurations, so you can change the function of the custom button for ambient sound, or you can do a Google assistant, or you can do Amazon Alexa. You also have the auto power on or auto power off, so you can set that to how long you want the headphone to be on and when the headphone should be turned off. So, if you put your headphone on your neck, after five minutes it will automatically turn off the headphones.

You also have the voice prompts language setting. You do get a few more different languages that you can set up at. In the older ones, they only had a very few languages. In these they do have quite a lot of English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Chinese, etc. So, you have quite a lot of options where you can actually listen to the Google Assistant or Alexa among one of the languages you have. So, it’s quite a good improvement in the software.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

Inside the case you get your warranty safely guide, USB adapter, 3.5 to 2.5 cable, and the headphone come in a plastic cover, but that’s real cheap having a headphone in a plastic bag. The box claims that they have NFC Bluetooth, quad com, built-in microphones, remote for call and music control, 19 hours of battery life for last longing listening enjoyment, active noise reducing technology for reducing unwanted ambient noise. It doesn’t say is canceling, it’s saying reducing.

These headphones do feature as wired headphones too where it has the lock for its jack cable. As you turn the cable to the side, it will get locked in the headphone. When you use a wired headphone, you may have the problem where the wire just keeps coming off when you keep your phone in your pocket or bag. For that, this is the solution, put a lock on the headphone jack and you can use the headphone as wired and it will work and it will stay on there without getting off. So, the lock is very useful. 

The noise cancellation for around 114 Dollars is pretty decent. These will not cancel out the noises around you but it will definitely reduce some of the noises and in my point of view at this price range it’s pretty good. I tested out the lag latency by watching YouTube video, there were no delays so far. I tried out different types of videos from YouTube, Netflix, etc and there was no lag at all.

There are few things I don’t like about this Sennheiser on this particular model, one is gonna be a micro USB, it should be a USB-C, the second thing is they should have one sensor instead of having too many buttons for the volumes ups and downs or the pause and play and third, they need a bit more padding on the side and the holes in the earcups should be little bigger instead of being this much small so that the ears fit in perfectly and would become more comfortable.

BATTERY:

Sony WH-XB900N

You have quick charging ten minutes of charge gives an hour of playtime. It actually features 30 hours of battery. I tested out the battery life, it actually claims what these are. They are really good for long travel. They will definitely go for two to three days with the full charge if you are an average listener.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

For charging you do have micro USB on which I am pretty disappointed. Almost each and every headphone in the market has the USB type-C for charging but these ones lack this feature. These do have 19 hours of battery life as the box claims. This is again a negative point, there many headphones that offer around 25 hours of playback but this does offer only 19 hours of playback.

5.7 Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC 3

MICROPHONE:

Sony WH-XB900N

The microphones are decent and I wouldn’t say bad when you’re comparing with the older ones. They have made massive improvements in these. You can take a phone call with these, it will pick your voice, without focusing on the outside noise and only focusing on your voice more than outside, so people on the other side will hear you more clearly than the older models. These microphones are also useful for the adaptive sound technology to hear your surroundings when you are going on the road and must be aware of your surroundings for safety.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

The microphone sounds pretty good. For your phone calls, they are very clear. You can take a phone call outside, you can take a phone call in a quiet place and you can take a phone call in a loud area in a large area too. But you will see a little difference in phone call quality in a closed area and louder area. In a closed area, it will sound much clearer and in a louder area, you will still hear a little bit of outside noise. But still, for 114 Dollars, the mic quality is pretty good.

SOUND:

Sony WH-XB900N

The bass has been improved massively comparing with the XM3. So far I haven’t experienced any delays. These have a good mix and they have more base because of the headphone is more into the bass. The mids are good enough, the lows and highs are perfect. The treble is also very nice. If you are not satisfied with the sound, then you can also use the equalizer settings in the app to adjust the sound as you want.

Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC

The audio or sound quality in these is very clear again. This is Sennheiser so obviously, their audio is one of the best audio you can get in a headphone or earbuds. They have the best drivers in the headphones, so it provides the best audio quality. If you are in like a noisy place, it wouldn’t cancel the noise out but it would reduce some of the noise around you and provides you a good sound quality. I wouldn’t say it’s the best noise cancellation but for its price, that sounds better and these have more quality to it on the audio. So, you have more quality on audio in the Sennheiser than any of the brands.

I watched youtube videos with these on, it’s very loud on a full volume and if I put the volume down it’s still loud. So, the sound quality is very clear. There was no distortion when the volume is up, so audio wise it’s very loud, it’s very clear, and there’s no distortion.

5.7 SONY WH-XB900N 3

WHICH ONE HAS BETTER FEATURES?

Obviously, the Sony WH-XB900N has better features than the Sennheiser HD 4.50BTNC. Because of their price, their features vary a lot and the Sennheisers lacks the updated features in the market like the touchpad sensors instead of button controls, the battery life is less compared to the Sony headphones, noise cancellation is not good enough and comfort-wise also the Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC is not good enough.

Expert Reviews of Sony WH-XB900N:

By T3
The Sony WH-XB900N delivers the right amount of bass and noise cancellation features to make it a less expensive alternative to the WH-1000XM3. For 899, casual users looking for a decent pair of everyday wireless headphones. can consider the…

By Digit
Essentially existing as a bridge between Sony’s Extra Bass series and the much-acclaimed Sony WH-1000XM3, the Sony WH-XB900N attempt to provide something of value to numerous kinds of users at a lower price point than the exorbitantly-priced WH-1000XM3…

By FirstPost
The Sony WH-XB900N is priced at Rs 16,990 with a one year warranty but can be purchased close to Rs 15,490 online. If you are looking for a set of wireless headphones with good sound clarity, active noise cancellation, loads of bass…

By stuff
People love bassy headphones. Sony’s Extra Bass range takes that to its logical conclusion, with so much of the stuff it dribbles out like sticky aloe vera gel. These headphones have categorically too much bass by any sane metric and they’re active…

By TechHive
Sony’s Extra Bass WH-XB900N noise-canceling Bluetooth headphones sound great, are low-latency, and do a good job at blocking out unwanted sound.

Expert Review of Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC:

By techgearlab.com
The Sennheiser HD 4.50 is a good pair of headphones in many ways, but an uncomfortable fit and the fact that some comparable models that sell for much less make us reluctant to recommend them to…

By APH Networks
The Sennheiser HD 4.50is a good pair of headphones in many ways, but an uncomfortable fit and the fact that some comparable models that sell for much less make us reluctant to After another experience with a new company, I have to say the Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC works really well for its purpose. As a headset meant for traveling purposes, this pair of headphones has a lot of features to like. For one, the active noise… 

By What Hi-Fi?
And anyway, that isn’t really how Sennheiser designed these to be used. Used to exploit their specification as wireless noise-canceling headphones fully, they’re, well – alright. If alright isn’t good enough for you – and why should it be? – there are…

By TechRadar
With noise-canceling tech just as effective as that in headphones from rival Bose, and with a more musical sonic ability, the Sennheiser HD 4.50 BTNC are a definite contender. More affordable and easy to travel with, these lightweight headphones are a…

By VR-Zone
Who says great noise-canceling reserved for the elite? Now Sennheiser has dropped the gauntlet on the competition by launching the HD 4.50 BTNC Noise-cancelling headphones. It’s much less expensive than the venerated Bose noise-cancellers that…