While many companies are now competing in the wireless earbuds market, Sony takes the design aspect of earbuds to a new angle. We take a look at the new Sony LinkBuds WF-L900 wireless earbuds.
Design
Wireless earbuds as we know them usually come with a design that resembles the traditional earphones. And apart from the sound quality, one of the key selling points that consumers seek out is the wearing comfort of the earbuds. Sony’s approach to its new design philosophy of the LinkBuds WF-L900 comes from a study of ear shape data that was collected over the past few decades.
The earbuds are so small and light that each earbud only weighs about 4.1 grams. The LinkBud’s main housing is in the shape of a hemisphere, which should comfortably fit our ears. There is also the speaker diaphragm that extends itself from the main body and is designed in the shape of a ring. The ring-shaped speaker is surrounded by the same material as the housing. This material serves as a protective covering for the speaker portion.
Apart from its unusual design, the new LinkBuds also feature IPX4 certification, which implies that the earbuds are splash and sweat resistant. The LinkBuds also come with arc-shaped fitting supporters that help to hold the device on our ears. Users will be able to switch between different sizes of the fitting supporters easily and find the perfect fit that easily snugs in our ears.
As a part of Sony’s commitment to a greener environment, the new LinkBuds are made of recycled plastic materials for an eco-friendly design. Sony also ensured that the packing of the device is also plastic-free.
Features
Sony mentions that the LinkBuds aren’t just about wearing comfort but are also fine-tuned to produce high-quality audio. While the earbuds are small in size, the device comes with Sony’s Integrated Processor V1 which helps to reproduce the details of your favorite music tracks with minimum distortion. The earbuds pack a specially designed 12mm ring driver with a high compliance diaphragm for a rich and well-balanced sound.
The ring-type driver and its open diaphragm design let users hear the sounds that surround them. This ensures that you can hear when someone calls out your name or chat among friends while you hear your music tracks. The LinkBuds also feature precise voice pickup technology and advanced audio signal processing methods which ensure that the person speaking to you can hear your voice clearly and this works also in noisy environments.
While the LinkBuds’s design is impressive, the small size and its hemisphere-like design may not be suitable for touch-based controls. Sony solved this problem by introducing the Wide Area Tap feature, where users will only need to tap in front of either of their ears to easily control their music playback.
Other features include Sony’s DSEE (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine) which helps to restore high-quality audio and produce an output close to the original recording. There is also the Adaptive Volume Control that optimizes the volume based on your surroundings, along with 360 Reality Audio for an immersive audio experience. The earbuds also come with support for Google and Alexa voice assistants, along with Quick Access compatibility for Spotify playback.
For smooth connectivity, the earbuds offer Bluetooth 5.2 with an effective range of 5.2m. The LinkBuds by itself is capable of offering a battery life of 2.5 hours for continuous communication time, and up to 5.5 hours for continuous music playback. The standby time of the earbuds lasts for about 11 hours. During our time with the LinkBuds, the device was able to last for about half a day based on mixed usage. There is also the charging case that also provides another 12 hours of battery life. And just by 10 minutes of charge, users will be able to achieve 90 minutes of playtime. The charging case weighs about 34g.
Verdict
When it comes to wireless earbuds, the Sony LinkBuds do surely stand out, thanks to the unique design, size, and features. While the design is intriguing, it may not be likable to some users. In fact, there is a good chance that some users may find it hard to wear it. Nevertheless, the design of the LinkBuds is tuned to provide a comfortable wearing experience and stellar sound quality with all the goodies of Sony’s audio engineering efforts. The earbuds feature a 12mm ring driver that is capable of producing clear music, along with the Integrated Processor V1 that helps to boost the quality of the audio.
The DSEE helps to restore hi-fi audio and the Wide Area Tap feature allows users to control the functions without touching the earbuds. The Adaptive Volume Control helps to balance the volume and settings of the audio playback based on your surroundings. The earbuds also feature unique voice pickup processing technologies that ensure the person on the other end of a phone call can hear you even in noisy environments. The device can also last for up to half a day of use, along with the carry case that provides another 12 hours of battery life. The LinkBuds also has support for Google and Alexa voice assistants.
