Hands-on Experience with Sony’s New LinkBuds Fit and LinkBuds Open Headphones

While it doesn’t look like Sony will release a new set of WH-1000XM6 flagship over-ear headphones this year, it has introduced two new LinkBuds earbuds. LinkBuds Fit And LinkBuds On. Both cost $200 and come in multiple color options optional customizable accessoriesincluding interchangeable fins and case covers available in a variety of colours. Them currently available for pre-order.

I’ve been playing around with the new headphones for the last few days and have been impressed by the improvements Sony has made to the design and performance of both models.

I liked it original LinkBuds and thought the cymbal drivers were innovative but did not fit everyone’s ears equally well. The new LinkBuds Open are slightly smaller, with an “enhanced geometric form” that improves their fit. They also sound better.

Meanwhile, the new LinkBuds Fit are Sony’s answer Beats’ popular Fit Pro headphones. Lightweight and compact, LinkBuds are the Open’s noise-isolating sibling and look more like second cousins. LinkBudswill stay in line. It’s actually a bit difficult to tell the two new models apart when they’re in your ears; both feature Sony’s new Air Link Brackets, which are essentially sporting fins.

Here are my quick first impressions of both models. I’ll have full reviews in the coming days, so stay tuned for those.

Sony LinkBuds Open hands-on early impressions

While the LinkBuds retain their ring-shaped open driver (these buds have no ear tips), they are slightly smaller than the original driver (11mm vs 12mm). Additionally, the Air Fitting Supporters are an improvement over the original Arch Supporters, which were quite thin and did not conform to the shape of your ear as well as these new supporters.

The combination of the slightly smaller driver design and new brackets will allow the buds to fit more comfortably and securely in more ears. But I still think those with smaller ears might have some issues (I plan on having a few people with smaller ears try these out in the office and get their impressions for my full review).

I personally found it a very secure fit and was able to work with the buds without any problems (they are IPX4 splash-proof). The originals created some pressure points for some people. I had to struggle with their position in my ears from time to time, but I had no problems with the LinkBuds Fit. But Apple’s new AirPods 4 were slightly more comfortable in my ears, although they weren’t quite as secure.

Besides fit, the other big change is in sound quality. It’s definitely improved. Despite the smaller drivers, the buds play louder and also deliver a bit more bass. The buds are equipped with Sony’s V2 digital processing chip, and Sony says the driver features a “highly coherent diaphragm and powerful neodymium magnet” that are “specially selected to reproduce clear mid- and high-frequency sound.”

They don’t sound as good as the LinkBuds Fit, but they are among the best-sounding open headphones and offer clear, beautifully detailed sound. They don’t deliver as much bass as the LinkBuds Fit and other high-end noise-isolating buds, but you’ll still feel a relatively small drop in sound quality from the noise-isolating buds in quieter environments. Also, like other open buds, their sound has an open, airy quality.

In my initial testing, voice calling performance was good and the buds have good battery life. They last up to 8 hours on a single charge; The compact case provides an additional 14 hours of use. It’s worth noting that the lightweight case, which features a trendy marble swirl on the glossy top, is a bit flimsy, but hopefully it will hold up well over time. Note that there is no wireless charging in the case; This is a bit disappointing for a $200 headset.

• Slightly smaller design
• Improved sound quality
• New Air Mount Brackets (optional colors available for $10 as after-purchase accessory)
• New 11mm ring driver
• Integrated Processor V2
• ear detection sensors
• Support DSEE (Digital Audio Enhancement Engine)
• IPX4 splash proof
• Up to 8 hours of battery life at moderate volumes (additional 14 hours in the charging case)
• Compatible with Sony’s “revamped” Sound Connect app for iOS and Android
• Multi-point Bluetooth pairing
• Available in black, white and Olivia Rodrigo’s purple
• Price: $200

Sony LinkBuds Fit ear hands-on first impressions

Truth be told, in some ways I like the new LinkBuds better. Sony’s WF-1000XM5 flagship noise canceling headphones. They don’t sound as good as these buds or are quite as good at noise cancellation, but they are lightweight (4.9 ounces) and fit comfortably and securely in my ears. Sound, noise cancellation and call quality performances are also very good.

Like the LinkBuds Open, they’re powered by Sony’s Integrated Processor V2, which Sony says “optimizes noise cancellation based on the user’s environment in real-time for optimal audio performance.” Additionally, dual noise sensor technology “filters out external sounds using multiple microphones for greater immersion.” The WF-1000XM5 features the same V2 chip but pairs it with the HD Noise Canceling Processor QN2e, which is expected to further improve noise cancellation and sound quality.

Of course, if you can’t get a good fit and tight seal with your headphones, the sound quality and noise canceling performance will suffer no matter what chips the headphones have. And I think more people will be able to get a better fit with the LinkBuds Fit than with the WF-1000XM5. Part of this is thanks to the new Air Fitting Supporters, but Sony has also redesigned the ear tips and included a wide range of sizes, including XL tips that fit well in my ears. (I use Sennheiser’s large ear tips to get a tight seal, although I couldn’t get a tight seal using any of the tips Sony includes in the WF-1000XM5 earbuds).

LinkBuds Fit features Sony’s signature sound profile out of the box. A bit warm (bass forward), but the sound is clear and dynamic. Rather, it lacks clarity, but the profile works well with a variety of music genres and most people should be happy with the LinkBuds Fit’s sound quality, and you can tweak the sound a bit with Sony’s new “refreshed” equalizer settings. Sound Connect app, which replaces the Sony Headphones app. Sony has simplified the app a bit to make it seem less confusing to the user (it looks a bit more user-friendly but still has plenty of settings to choose from).

Sony says it’s also improved the LinkBuds S’s ambient (transparency) mode so the sound becomes more natural, and I think that’s the case in my initial testing. As I said, the noise cancellation doesn’t seem to be as good as that of the WF-1000MX5, which has some of the best noise canceling features available. But overall still very good.

I thought the voice search performance was impressive. Callers said they heard almost no background noise when I spoke to them from the noisy streets of New York. And they said my voice came out pretty clear with very little hitch.

I won’t go into all the features of the LinkBuds Fit, but they return the LinkBuds S’s gesture controls (you can), as well as Sony’s Speak-To-Chat feature, which pauses your music when you start a gig with someone. nod or shake your head to accept or reject calls).

Battery life is rated at 5.5 hours at moderate volumes with noise canceling on, and the charging case gives you an additional 3 charges. There is no wireless charging in the charging case.

• Compact, lightweight design (4.9 grams per bud)
• Active noise cancellation and ambient (transparency) mode
• New Air Mount Brackets (optional colors available for $10 as after-purchase accessory)
• Integrated Processor V2
• ear detection sensors
• Support DSEE (Digital Audio Enhancement Engine)
• Sony’s LDAC audio code support
• IPX4 splash proof
• Up to 5.5 hours of battery life at medium volume levels (additional 3 full charges in the charging case)
• Compatible with Sony’s “revamped” Sound Connect app for iOS and Android
• Multi-point Bluetooth pairing
• Available in black, white, green and Olivia Rodrigo’s purple
• Price: $200

First impressions of the LinkBuds Speaker

Sony also introduced a new $180 LinkBuds Speaker in gray or black. At first glance, it seems a bit strange to have it in the LinkBuds series because it is a speaker, not a headset. However, Sony has introduced a new Auto Switch feature that automatically switches playback between your LinkBuds headphones and LinkBuds Speaker depending on the situation. An example of this is if you come home and you’re listening to your headphones as you walk in the door, the music you’re listening to will automatically switch to the speaker and you’ll be able to remove your headphones without stopping playback.

I only listened to the speaker briefly, but it sounds good for its compact size. Sony says it has best-in-class call quality on any of its wireless speakers (I’ll be testing that in the coming days), and I like that it comes with a dedicated charging dock.

• Compact design
• Quick Access allows one-touch listening
• Auto Play plays music based on your routine
• X-Balanced Speaker Unit with tweeter and passive bass radiators
• Best call quality among all Sony wireless speakers
• Removable strap
• Special charging cradle
• IPX4 splash proof
• Up to 25 hours of battery life at moderate volume levels and fast charging
• Compatible with Sony Sound Connect app for iOS and Android
• Available in light gray and black colors
• Price: $180

Latest first impressions of Sony LinkBuds Open and LinkBuds Fit

I think Sony has done a good job pushing the LinkBuds series forward with both design and performance improvements. Customizable accessories are a bit of a gimmick (I’m not sure how great the headphones look when you mix and match colors), but it’s understandable that Sony wants to open up a new revenue stream post-acquisition. It’s also too bad that Sony increased the price of the buds by $20 over their predecessors. But this kind of price increase seems to be the case with many premium headphones these days, including new models from Samsung and Google.

Unless you’re someone who can’t stand having earbud tips in their ears, the LinkBuds Fit will probably be the better option if you’re trying to choose between the two models. They sound better overall and also have active noise cancellation. The LinkBuds Open have certainly improved – and are very good open headphones – but they may not be to everyone’s taste.