Sony LinkBuds WF L900 True Wireless Earphones Review: Unique Design, Reliable Performance
Sony LinkBuds Priced at Rs 19,990 in India, they promise a comfortable fit all day long. They also offer surround sound and are claimed to have improved call and audio performance. True wireless earphones that you can wear all day and use in many ways, the Sony LinkBuds are quite different from the premium TWS headsets that are usually available. Do they fulfill all the promises made? Let’s find out in this review.
Design and Features of Sony LinkBuds
The design of Sony LinkBuds is the most attractive. Many people, if they do not already know, will not even realize that these are earphones. They have an outer ear fit and do not go inside the ear canal. There is no stem in them either. A donut-like hole has been given in the driver chamber of the earpiece, so that the surrounding sound can be heard clearly even when the earphones are on.
This means that even with these on (without audio playing), I can still hear my surroundings. If hearing the sounds around you is equally important to you, you won’t find a better design than this. This unique design also offers a comfortable fit, with Sony providing arc support. The sales package comes with five pairs of tips for a customizable fit. I found the smallest size tips to be the most comfortable for my ear shape. But this compromised security. There was a fear of the earpieces coming out even if you moved your head a little, so you’ll have to try them out and choose the most comfortable and safe pair.
The earpieces of Sony LinkBuds weigh 4.1 grams and are rated IPX4 for water resistance. An interesting texture has been given on the outer sides. They have been made touch sensitive for controls. Interestingly, you do not need to tap the earpieces, for this a feature called Wide Area Tap has been provided in them.
When enabled via the app, you can tap your cheek in front of your ear to control the earbuds. This worked well for me. It made on-device control much easier.
Its charging case is quite small compared to most wireless headsets available in this price range. Due to this it takes up even less space in the pocket. It has a lid release button and indicator light on the front. The pairing button and Type C port are provided at the back. The earpieces have to be fitted in place for charging but this happens automatically as soon as the lid is closed, so one gets used to it quickly. At this price point, you do not get wireless charging in it, which is disappointing.
Its other features include support for voice assistant, Google Fast Fare, Spotify Tap and 360 Reality Auto. There is no active noise cancellation in this, but due to the position and design of the headset, its absence is not felt.
Sony LinkBuds app and specifications
Like the rest of the company’s headsets, Sony LinkBuds also work through the Sony Headphones Connect app which is available for both iOS and Android. The app has a long list of features for them including Speak To Chat, equalizer, 360 Reality Audio configuration, tap control customization, adaptive volume control, auto play and pause and firmware updates.
Some of these features are also present in Sony’s older headsets. Sony LinkBuds has adaptive volume control which adjusts the volume according to the noise or sounds coming from the surrounding environment. With the help of wide area tap toggle, you can use on-device controls without touching the earpiece.
For connectivity, Bluetooth 5.2 has been provided in these, along with which there is support for SBC and AAC Bluetooth codecs. There is no support for advanced Bluetooth codecs here, which is disappointing at this price point. The earphones have a frequency response range of 20-20,000Hz. Apart from 5 pairs of arc support fittings, you also get a USB Type C cable in the box.
Sony LinkBuds performance and battery life
Sony’s Linkbuds are designed in such a way that they are unmatched by any other product in this price segment. There is no passive noise cancellation and neither is there active noise cancellation. Still, the company offers a comfortable fit, awareness of the surrounding environment along with a wide range of functions and usability.
It was a little difficult to get used to them initially but overall they give an overall good experience, as I look for in other earphones. The comfort of being able to use them all day, their multipurpose nature and ambient awareness make them my favorite earphones.
Without passive noise cancellation, it was quite challenging to hear the audio playing on the earphones, but the earphones did deliver a good experience in terms of volume and audio. The sonic signature seemed a bit odd, with the sub-bass frequencies being very weak and the mid bass being quite dull.
White Horse by Croatia Squad and Frey sounded fine at home at high volumes. However, this aggressive house track lacked thump and attack, and its deep and rhythmic beats sounded a little hollow.
Still, the sound seemed quite balanced and the mid-range details were good. The reason for this could be its form factor. Also, the ambient sound coming with audio play can also affect it. But it can also be said with certainty that it does not fit in many genres of music.
These earphones struggle a bit when outdoors. I was able to hear the audio in the earphones comfortably when the volume was set to 80 percent. But at this point, the surrounding sound was not visible. There was no problem in quiet areas, but the sound coming from the busy roads of Mumbai was causing a lot of interference.
Due to the tuning of these earbuds, they work well for voice-based content such as audio books, movies and TV shows and YouTube videos. The voice is heard quite clearly. Along with this, the quality of voice calls is also very good. At a slightly higher level of volume, they provide a good calling experience. In fact, the ears being open to outside noise during calls also makes the calls more natural.
Its battery life can be called average. Neither battery consuming active noise cancellation nor advanced Bluetooth codec support is provided in it, yet the average battery life is disappointing. It lasted 4 hours and 35 minutes on moderate volume.
Our decision
Sony makes the best wireless headphones and earphones. It has a wide range of products that can be chosen according to the need. Sony LinkBuds are one of the unique products of the company. They are different from the common design and are designed to give a special kind of user experience.
Sony LinkBuds manage to deliver a comfortable fit, ambient sound experience, sound quality. However, your music experience may be slightly affected in noisy environments. Also, due to weak bass levels, some genres of music may sound odd. I really liked using these earphones for calls, outdoor walks, and everyday work at my work desk.
The Sony LinkBuds are expensive at Rs 19,990 and even at the pre-order price of Rs 14,990, they are expensive considering the unique design alone. These are good for users who want a good experience with voice-based sound and are looking for earphones with good ambient awareness. But, if you are more inclined towards music then I would suggest the Sony WF-1000XM4 available in the same price range.
