Sony WH-CH720N / Apple AirPods (3rd generation)

Sony WH-CH720N: WH-CH720N closed over-ear wireless headphones; black, white, blue and pink. The WH-CH710N (previous generation), WH-CH520 (no ANC) and the WH-1000X series are separate models.

Apple AirPods (3rd generation): AirPods (3rd generation) launched in 2021 with the MagSafe Charging Case; from 2022 a version with the Lightning Charging Case was also sold. The earbuds are the same with either case. AirPods 4, AirPods 2 and AirPods Pro are separate models.

Specification	Sony WH-CH720N	Apple AirPods (3rd generation)
Release year	2023	2021
Noise cancelling	Active noise cancelling with Integrated Processor V1 and Dual Noise Sensor; Ambient Sound mode Microphones inside and outside each cup sample noise to generate an inverse signal; Ambient Sound mode lets you hear surroundings without removing the headphones. Sony	—
Driver and frequency	30 mm dynamic driver; 7–20,000 Hz (JEITA); 20–20,000 Hz over Bluetooth (44.1 kHz) Sony	—
Bluetooth and codecs	Bluetooth 5.2; A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP; SBC and AAC; about 10 m range AAC works well as the default codec on iPhones; no high-bitrate codec is listed. Sony	—
Multipoint	Connection to two Bluetooth devices at the same time For example, you can switch between a phone and a laptop without re-pairing. Sony	—
Battery	Music up to 35 hours with NC on, 50 hours off; calls up to 35 hours NC on, 40 hours off; about 3.5 hours to charge over USB Sony	Up to 6 hours of listening per charge (5 hours with Personalised Spatial Audio on); up to 30 hours with the case; 5 minutes in the case ≈ 1 hour of listening Apple
Wired use	Detachable cable of about 1.2 m with gold-plated L-shaped 3.5 mm plug; passive operation When the battery runs out you can keep listening passively over the cable. Sony	—
Microphone and processing	Precise Voice Pickup beamforming mic; wind noise reduction structure; DSEE DSEE tries to restore high frequencies lost in compressed music files. Sony	—
Impedance and sensitivity	NC on 325 Ω / off 31 Ω (1 kHz); NC on 108 dB/mW / off 99 dB/mW Sony	—
Weight	About 192 g Sony	—
Design and fit	—	Open-fit in-ear design without silicone tips; short stem Because the earbud does not seal the canal, ambient sound is heard; fit depends on ear shape and there are no interchangeable tips. Apple
Audio technology	—	Custom high-excursion Apple driver; custom high dynamic range amplifier; Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking; Adaptive EQ Adaptive EQ measures what is heard in the ear with the inward-facing microphone and adjusts the tuning to the fit in real time. Head tracking anchors sound to the Apple device’s screen. There is no active noise cancellation or transparency mode. Apple
Chip and connectivity	—	H1 headphone chip; Bluetooth 5.0 Automatic device switching, “Hey Siri” and one-tap pairing work with Apple devices. Apple
Sensors and microphones	—	Dual beamforming microphones, inward-facing microphone, skin-detect sensor, motion and speech-detecting accelerometers, force sensor The skin-detect sensor pauses playback when an earbud is removed. Apple
Controls	—	Press the stem once to play/pause or answer a call; twice to skip forward or end a call; three times to skip back; press and hold for Siri There is no on-bud volume control. Apple
Charging case	—	MagSafe Charging Case (MagSafe, Qi and Lightning) or Lightning Charging Case The included cable is Lightning to USB-C; there is no adapter. Apple
Sweat and water resistance	—	IPX4: earbuds and charging case IPX4 protects against splashes; it is not for submersion. Apple
Size and weight	—	Earbud (each): 30.79 × 18.26 × 19.21 mm, 4.28 g; case: 46.40 × 54.40 × 21.38 mm, 37.91 g Apple