Review: Sony LinkBuds

[ShearMe]

Purchased these after watching the ShortCircuit on them. https://youtu.be/luojyDJwXfA

 

Sound Quality

These sound bad at higher volumes. Seems like there's some sort of DSP correction going on past a certain point, because tweaking the EQ is inconsistent. I'd guess these were designed for lower volumes in mind, where the out of box sound signature works well and EQ adjustment is possible. I'd stay away from using these above about 60% volume for any modern music genres. There is also a strange clicking/popping noise as you change volume while a track is playing. With Stock settings, treble response is fairly forward. This makes them sound airy, maybe a little sharp. Depending on your usage, that may be what you want; it's good for discerning details at lower volumes when you want to be aware of your surroundings. If you're turning them up for a fun song it'll likely hurt a little.

Call quality is good on both departments. I haven't tested them in a noisy environment, but the microphone picks me up clear and loud at home.

 

 

 

 

Fit

There is a learning process to fitting these in your ears properly, and even minor adjustments alter the sound. What I'm gonna call the silicone wings can cause substantial discomfort due to how they wedge themselves into the "inferior crus of antihelix." A smaller size improved comfort for me, but they're still not great during short sessions. The hard plastic squishes my "crus of helix" when seated properly. Scared to try them out on a full length work day! On the plus side, I have no fear of them becoming dislodged. With significant head banging or side to side shakes they don't move at all. Comfort is going to vary for everyone - hard shell earbuds always get a mixed response.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Accessories

The case is nicely compact but I find it difficult to open. The lid has a latch mechanism and there's not a good place to hold the body as you press the latch button. As such, I've resorted to a two-hand pinch and thumbnail prybar method. The speaker "loop" is grabbed by a magnet in the case, and the upper body of it snaps in with a retainer clip much like the lid. Those three things are going to keep the buds from flying away if you ever drop the case. Sony includes 5 sizes of silicone wings ranging from useless to sasquatch.

The included USC-C cable is nothing special apart from being a short 9 inches tip to tip.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Feature Set

These connect with Sony's standard "Headphones" app used by their other wireless products. There is no ambient awareness or noise cancelling settings, for obvious reasons. A warm, comfortable chime plays when an action is detected such as when Bluetooth connection is made or broken. The buds have a sensor on the case to play/pause your music when you take them out, and a "wide area tap" feature that lets you tap your cheek bone to activate that bud's function (both are toggleable settings). Functions are assignable to left and right buds independently and are operated by double and triple taps. Available functions on my Android: Playback Control, Volume control, Select Song, Voice Assist Function, Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, Quick Access, None. 

 

Conclusion

It is nice to see some innovation towards open backed wireless audio. The price point is a bit questionable but maybe justifiable if it serves a niche use case. Personally I'm not that sold and may end up returning these if comfort continues to be an issue. If you're not worried about looks, have a little extra bag room, and don't need battery life a case provides, check out the Koss KSC35 instead. 

 

 

[BlueChinchillaEatingDorito]

3 minutes ago, ShearMe said:

If you're not worried about looks and don't need extended battery life, check out the Koss KSC35 instead. 

 

 

Wait they made wireless versions of the KSC75s? My god... 

[ShearMe]

4 minutes ago, BlueChinchillaEatingDorito said:

Wait they made wireless versions of the KSC75s? My god... 

Unfortunately the ear clip is less comfortable, but it has the same attachment method as the 75's hooks.

 

Wireless PortaPro's are also a thing. 

[Fragment323]

@ShearMe

I want to buy these (at least to try them) as they are in discount currently.

Since I have never owned TWS headphones, I have one question relevant to my use-case.

 

How do they connect to phone? is it earbuds->case->phone, or it can be directly earbuds->phone?

I want them for running and as I hate to bring my phone or anything with me (event home keys bother me), I want to connect them to my Watch4 and play localy stored music or spotify. Problem is, I don't want to bring the case either, since it defeats the purpose of having nothing with me, but watch and earphones.

[ShearMe]

On 5/27/2022 at 5:58 AM, Fragment323 said:

@ShearMe

I want to buy these (at least to try them) as they are in discount currently.

Since I have never owned TWS headphones, I have one question relevant to my use-case.

 

How do they connect to phone? is it earbuds->case->phone, or it can be directly earbuds->phone?

I want them for running and as I hate to bring my phone or anything with me (event home keys bother me), I want to connect them to my Watch4 and play localy stored music or spotify. Problem is, I don't want to bring the case either, since it defeats the purpose of having nothing with me, but watch and earphones.

Have not tested for this, but the case has a pairing button if that's any indication. 

Ended up returning these because the KSC35 are so dang good

[Fragment323]

On 5/29/2022 at 9:26 PM, ShearMe said:

Have not tested for this, but the case has a pairing button if that's any indication. 

Ended up returning these because the KSC35 are so dang good

Hi, someone else alerady answered me beforo you did (there was small timeframe for that discount, I needed answer fast, so i made topic in general.

 

For anybody that is wondering the same, and for future reference: They do works without the case. Pairing button works only when buds are in case, so all communication is via pins.

 

Thanks anyway.