Jaybird X4 (2018) vs Shure SE425 (2010)

The Jaybird X4 (2018) is a great Canal Earphone for its $85 asking price.

The Shure SE425 (2010), however, is merely passable at its $259 price point. If you're considering buying a Canal Earphone in the $230 range, you might want to check out some of its competitors.

The Jaybird X4 (2018) was loved by reviewers at PCmag, a highly trusted source that performs reliable in-depth testing. It did great in its "The Best Bluetooth Headphones for Running" roundup where it was named its "Best for Audiophiles", which, in itself, makes it a product worth considering.

As for the Shure SE425 (2010) - it impressed reviewers at What Hi-Fi?, a trustworthy source that conducts solid hands-on testing. It did great in its "Best headphones 2020" roundup - in fact, it earned its "An excellent pair of no-compromise in-ear headphones." title, which, on its own, indicates a certain level of quality.

To get a better idea of how they fare when compared directly to each other, we analyzed review scores of sources that tested both. Rtings, for example, preferred the Jaybird X4 (2018), while TrustedReviews rated both of them the same.

We also took a look at which sources had the best things to say about them. We learned that the Jaybird X4 (2018) got reviewed the highest by Android Central - it gave it a rating of 9, while the Shure SE425 (2010) most impressed reviewers at What Hi-Fi?, which gave it a score of 10.

Lastly, we averaged out all of the reviews scores that we could find on these two products and compared them to other Canal Earphones on the market. We learned that both of them performed far better than most of their competitors - the overall review average earned by Canal Earphones being 7.4 out of 10, whereas the Jaybird X4 (2018) and Shure SE425 (2010) managed averages of 8.3 and 8.2 points, respectively.

Due to the difference in their prices, however, it's important to keep in mind that a direct Jaybird X4 (2018) vs. Shure SE425 (2010) comparison might not be entirely fair - some sources don't take value for money into account when assigning their scores and therefore have a tendency to rate more premium products better.