The best of Sony from IFA 2016

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Sony’s been rather busy at IFA this year. Apart from revealing its new Xperia XZ and X Compact smartphones, it also treated gadget fans to a whole host of shiny new tech toys to fawn over.

If you’re only fussed about smartphones, then no problem – head on over to our review and hands-on review of the Xperia XZ and X Compact – but otherwise, we’ll see you in a moment.

Pricey Walkmans

Yep, Sony has a couple of Walkmans for audiophiles to sink their teeth (ears?) into. And they ain’t cheap. The £2500 NWM1Z features a gold-plated finish, while the precious metal-less NW-WM1A is substantially ‘cheaper’ at a cool £1000.

Both devices support 384kHZ/32-bit Hi-Res audio, and can be paired with a £1600 Signature Series TA-ZH1ES headphone amp for even more audio oomph.

Throw in Sony’s suggested £1700 Signature Series MDR-Z1R headphones, and you’re looking at around £5800 of audio decadence. RIP your wallet.

Silence is golden

Sony also showed of its new £330 MDR-1000X set of cans, which promise to cut off all intrusions from the outside world, thanks to some pretty impressive sounding active noise cancellation technology.

Its sound dampening earopads, coupled with a pair of noise sensors and an optimiser which tweaks the sound to the shape of your head, all sound like features that will give headphones like Bose’s Quiet Comfort 35s a run for their money.

Apart from noise cancelling, Sony’s quiet cans also have touch sensitive controls built into the right ear cup, while covering said cup results in instant access to external sounds – handy when you have to order a caramelfrapochinnolatté. Or something.

Agent in your ear

Remember the Xperia Ear? It’s a bluetooth earpiece which Sony showed off at MWC earlier this year powered by Sony’s ‘Agent’ in-ear assistant which can carry out voice commands, help you search the web, give you directions, notifications and more.

Ring a bell? Good, because if you fancy all that then Sony has announced you can ram it into your lug holes in November, for a yet-to-be-announced price.

About

Esat has been a gadget fan ever since his tiny four-year-old brain was captivated by a sound-activated dancing sunflower. From there it was a natural progression to a Sega Mega Drive, a brief obsession with hedgehogs, and a love for all things tech. After 7 years as a writer and deputy editor for Stuff, Esat ventured out into the corporate world, spending three years as Editor of Microsoft's European News Centre. Now a freelance writer, his appetite for shiny gadgets has no bounds. Oh, and like all good human beings, he's very fond of cats.