- New Sony over-ear Bluetooth headphones appear in an official database
- Possibly a successor to the Sony WH-CH520 or WH-C720N
- This is a very early leak so a launch may not be imminent
There's no doubt that Sony's WH-1000XM6 over-ears are a truly excellent pair of headphones. But at $449 / £399 / AU$699 they're also a pretty expensive pair of headphones. If you're looking for an audio upgrade but would prefer something a bit more affordable, Sony appears to be preparing exactly that.
A new pair of Sony headphones have leaked, and they appear to be over-ears. And that means they're most likely the successor to the Sony WH-CH520 or WH-C720N – although we can't rule out a brand new model that we haven't seen before.
The first of those had a launch price of $60 / £60 / AU$99, and the latter were $129 / £99 / AU$259. And both are getting on a bit: two years, which is a long time in the headphone market.
Sony's new over-ear headphones: what we know so far
As is often the case with Sony leaks, the news comes via The Walkman Blog and its access to Sony's shipping manifests.
Those manifests include a new model number, YY2998, which they describe as "Bluetooth headphones with over-head cover, 2.4GHz band, Brand: Sony... Black, Silver". 2.4GHz is where Bluetooth lives.
Previous leaks for a different set of headphones had the model number YY2985, which is believed to be the WF-1000XM6 earbuds that are expected to launch later this year.
The headphones detailed in the manifests appear to be test samples, which means that this is a very early leak: the big leaks tend to be when headphones are submitted to the various certification bodies, a process that tends to happen in the very final stages before product launches.
That suggests that whatever these headphones are, we probably won't see them until the end of this year. So if you're hankering after a set of Sonys but don't want to wait that long, check our our guide to the best Sony headphones for all budgets.
