Sony's newest luxury headphones might have just leaked on a celeb's head

British actor Damson Idris has been spotted wearing a pair of as-yet-unannounced Sony headphones. But they’re not the Sony WH-1000XM7, apparently.

The F1 movie star was papped ahead of the Met Gala wearing what are expected to be called the Sony WH-1000XX The ColleXion according to a bunch of leaks.

It’s a 10th anniversary set, marking a decade since the original Sony WH-1000X appeared in 2016.

The concept here is of a slightly more upmarket and more expensive pair than we usually see from the WH-1000XM line. There’s greater use of polished metal, and a little more weight as a result, according to previously leaked specs.

Sony’s WH-1000XX are expected to weigh 312g, up from the 254g of the current WH-1000XM6.

These somewhat more exclusive-sounding headphones are reportedly going to cost £549 ($649, 629 Euro), a hefty increase on the £399 WH-1000XM6.

Just as contentious as the higher price, the Sony WH-1000XX may return to the non-folding design last seen in the WH-1000XM5. That one ruffled some feathers among the audio crowd.

We reportedly still have a couple of weeks to stew on this one before the WH-1000XX get a rumoured official unveil on 19 May, but previous leaks already tell us plenty about what the pair will likely offer.

The Sony WH-1000XX The ColleXion are expected to come in black and white shades, and have a battery life of up to 24 hours, with ANC enabled. And they likely have a 12-microphone array just like the XM6, and share that pair’s QN3 processor.

If you’re wondering why we’re getting these and not a full generational upgrade with a Sony WH-1000XM7 pair, it’s because we’re a bit early for that in 2026. Just look at the release dates of the previous pairs in this family for proof:

• Sony MDR-1000X: October 2016
• Sony MDR-1000XM2: September 2017
• Sony MDR-1000XM3: September 2018
• Sony MDR-1000XM4: August 2020
• Sony MDR-1000XM5: May 2022
• Sony MDR-1000XM6: May 2025

Sure, the early years of this series were annual releases. But as progress in ANC effectiveness and battery tech slowed, and the audience became increasingly tapped out, that annual schedule likely stopped making so much sense.

An early 2027 release for the Sony WH-1000XM7 is more likely, not to mention having a pleasing numerical confluence.

But coming back to the Sony MDR-1000XX The ColleXion, it’s all eyes and ears on the pair’s sound quality and ANC effectiveness, as their upmarket pricing means they might cost even more than the Apple AirPods Max 2.