The main conclusions of ZDNET
- The Sony LinkBuds Open are cooler than ever, with improved software features and a $200 price tag.
- The LinkBuds Open offer great sound, smart voice control without an assistant and well-thought-out in-app features.
- If you don’t have average sized ears, the LinkBuds Open become very uncomfortable very quickly, and even if you do have average sized ears, the design makes it difficult for them to stay in your ears as you move.
Open earbuds are all the rage, as companies like Bose and Nothing introduced earbuds that prioritize environmental consciousness and balance internal and external sound over noise cancellation. Sony led the pack with the LinkBuds, but it’s been two years since their release.
Also: I replaced my Bose with the Nothing Ear Open and now all I want to do is run with it
The company has now given the LinkBuds a facelift in a successor, the LinkBuds Open, which I tested for a few days. The LinkBuds opened They retail for $200 and have a lot of fancy software features you can discover through the app, but they lack some hardware features. So are they worth your time and money? Keep reading to find out.
Look at Sony
The LinkBuds Open improve on the design of their predecessors with a silicone wingtip that helps stabilize the earbuds in your ears and deliver richer bass. In addition, Sony has equipped the LinkBuds Open with Bluetooth multipoint and a battery life of eight hours, three and a half hours more than their predecessors.
Sony’s typical sound profile is warm and full, and the LinkBuds Open are no different. I enjoyed using the LinkBuds Open to listen to my vintage fall jazz playlist while walking around the neighborhood, riding the subway, working, and hanging out. I can turn up the volume and immerse myself in the harmonies of a Stan Getz song while also keeping an eye on the surrounding conversations.
The LinkBuds Open lack noise cancellation (look to Sony’s LinkBuds Fit for that), but you can adjust the sound on the new Sound Connect app, which replaces the older Sony Headphones Connect app. The app lets you adjust the EQ of the earbuds, and there’s a new feature that lets you adjust your music to mimic how it would sound in different environments, like a cafe, a bedroom, or a living room.
Also: 3 features in Apple’s new AirPods 4 that made me ditch my AirPods Pros
When I turned on the background music effect to simulate a cafe environment, my jazz tracks sounded like they were bouncing off walls, accentuating the highs and muting the bass. I like this feature and hope to see it in more Sony audio products. Listening to music is often a passive activity that you combine with studying or consuming another form of media, so it makes sense that the sounds fade into the background.
One of my favorite LinkBuds features is the voice commands without a voice assistant. You no longer need to activate Siri or your phone’s native assistant to get your earbuds to stop playing music. Once you enable voice assistant mode in the companion app, you can say, “Hey headphones, stop the music” or “Hey headphones, turn up the volume,” and your audio needs will be fulfilled.
Also: These open earbuds cost $50 and these cost $300. Here’s how they both compare
Another cool feature that Sony debuted in the 2022 LinkBuds lineup is Wide Area Tap, which lets you tap close to the ear (and the earphones themselves) to pause and play audio. This feature is useful when you’re on the go, whether you’re running or just in a hurry, or if you find the earbuds’ sensor area too finicky for wireless control. I recommend setting Wide Area Tap’s sensitivity to high to get the most out of it, as the default sensitivity mode isn’t always responsive.
Since open earbuds don’t have noise cancellation and are best when you want to be aware of your surroundings, an important part of an open earbud is all-day comfort. A great open earbud excels at staying snug in your ear and balancing internal and external sound, while providing ample comfort.
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Unfortunately, comfort is where the LinkBuds Open fail. They are very uncomfortable for me to wear for more than an hour. My discomfort stemmed from the one-size-fits-all design of the earbuds’ speaker. Some traditional earbuds allow you to change the eartips depending on your ear size. If Sony had designed this earbud for all ears, it wouldn’t have had to create one awkward fit for the entire audience. Other open earbuds, like Bose’s Ultra Open and Nothing’s Ear (Open), find a way to create a unique, inclusive open earbud design that suits all ear shapes.
As someone with smaller ears, it was painful to wear these while I worked or walked around. The donut that fits in the ear doesn’t have a silicone tip covering it, so I had trouble keeping it in. If you have an average or larger ear, you can avoid the sizing problem I experienced.
Buying advice from ZDNET
Future-oriented software upgrades and intuitive features are the highlights of the new Sony LinkBuds opened earbuds, but the discomfort I experienced replaced the new and improved features that amazed me. I couldn’t wear them long enough to fully enjoy them.
If you have larger ears and are interested in open earbuds, these may work well for you. If it’s not worth it to spend $200 on open earbuds that may not fit, I recommend you consider the Nothing Ear (Open) or the Bose UltraOpen.
Sony also has the LinkBuds fitwhich have a closed design and noise reduction. I found the Fit to be more comfortable, and they are packed with nice features that Sony introduced with the LinkBuds Open. If Sony’s software intrigues you, I recommend this one over the LinkBuds Open.
