Anker Soundcore Liberty 4 NC vs Sony WF-1000XM5

“I have both: the XM4, XM5 and now the LinkBud S. The XM5s were my daily driver, but the best thing about them, the foam and passive noise cancellation, was also the main weakness. As they cannot be washed, they eventually become unusable and the official Sony replacement costs between $20 and $30. Not great. A few weeks ago, I lost one of the XM5 earphones. The XM4s still have the battery problem, so I researched and came up with the linkBuds S (\~60usd). It is essentially the same as the XM5, but with silicone ear tips instead of foam, and the case has a little less battery life. Everything else (app, DSEE, codecs, etc) is the same. The noise cancellation is better than my old Jabra Elite 7, and I would say the same as the XM5, but without the passive isolation. Now, the LinkBuds S are my daily driver, and they don't have the issue of the eartip, since the silicon is washable. Hope this helps.”

“Wife's been having big problems with the pathetic tip attachment system. tips just pop off for her, they're held on by hopes and dreams. And the L4 pro's with their stupid in-ear detection inside the tip made replacement tips a pain. Anker does have good customer service/warranty support though. But I'm still kind of not okay with them after the doorbell cam debacle that they still, after over a year, refuse to properly take responsibility for.”