The LinkBuds are a unique earphone in that they are designed to let the outside world in while you listen to music or make a video call. And they’re ideal for that, having an open ring driver design that prevents anything from getting into your ear canal. In light of this, the sound quality is shockingly superb, and the comfort is unrivaled.
It’s understandable that some individuals prefer “open” earbuds like Apple’s AirPods or Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Live to the myriad alternatives with silicone tips that tightly press into their ear canal. We’ve heard a variety of explanations, including not liking the plugged-in feeling that a good earbud seal produces. (As a response, we’re seeing more buds featuring micro-vents to help relieve ear pressure).
Consider it a built-in form of transparency mode that does not require any electrical intervention. Isn’t it strange? What does that look like in your ear, and how does it feel?
It’s a lot better than you could imagine. The LinkBuds are Sony’s response to Apple’s regular AirPods, which are currently in their third version. While they don’t have the same sound quality as Sony’s flagship WF-1000XM4 noise-isolating earbuds, they do have a more discreet, unique design and a more secure fit than the AirPods. In short, we’re impressed with what Sony has accomplished with the LinkBuds, despite some drawbacks.
First, we must applaud Sony for choosing a decent product name. Instead of using a boring, meaningless model number to sell its newest earphones, they simply called them “LinkBuds.” They still use Sony’s traditional model number system (and are officially known as WF-L900), but on the box and in Sony’s advertisements, they use a moniker that is more conventional. Progress. Sony believes that LinkBuds ‘’connect” your online and offline environments, which is why they’re named LinkBuds. Sure. Whatever. It’s a name we can say again and again without sighing. We’ll gladly accept it.
Design and ease of use
The earbuds weigh 4.1 grams each, while the case weighs 34 grams.
IPX4 certified 5 fitted supporters in box
Part of the rationale is that they appear to be well-suited to the new way of working that many of us have discovered.
The LinkBuds are exceptionally light and pleasant in the ear, making them suitable for extended use. You can simply leave them in your ears while going about your daily activities, making them excellent for hybrid or home working, running, or any other activity that requires you to hear the world around you.
Because they don’t have an eartip like traditional buds, they’re quite comfortable. An open driver design projects sound into your ear simply by being put in the inner lobe, with minute perforations surrounding a ring. To keep each bud in place, a little silicone “fitting supporter” nestles in the upper part of the ear, but that’s about it.
You can chop and adjust the sizes of the supporters in the box to find the ideal fit for you. We discovered that combining two sizes (one for each ear) worked best for us. It meant the LinkBuds stayed in our ears at all times, even when we were walking, jogging, or shaking our heads quickly.
Setup, controls and features
Spotify Tap-enabled
Adaptive volume control
Google Fast Pair, Microsoft Swift Pair support
Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa via wake words
Works with Sony Headphones app for iOS and Android
The LinkBuds are easy to set up, just like Sony’s other true wireless headphones.
They support Google’s Fast Pair and Microsoft’s Swift Pair technologies, allowing them to connect to Android and Windows PCs with ease. On an iPhone 13 Pro Max, we had no issue recognizing them.
The Sony Headphones app then does the heavy lifting, analyzing your ear shape and optimizing the experience for 360 Reality Audio files from a variety of sources.
The software also upgrades the firmware if necessary and includes a number of useful functions, such as an equalizer (EQ) and the ability to prioritize the Bluetooth connection between stability and sound quality. There’s also a slider for Sony’s proprietary upscaling technique, DSEE, which improves the sound of recordings with lower bitrates. Although some people prefer cleaner, unprocessed audio, we believe that DSEE improves the outcome for us.
Adaptive volume control is one of the app’s other features. Although no adaptive or active noise cancellation is available, if you use automatic volume control, the volume will rise and fall in response to the ambient noise. If you’re in a crowded vehicle, for example, the music will get much louder, then soften as the outside world becomes calmer.
You can also enable “wide area tap,” which allows you to activate different user-set functions by tapping your cheek near each bud (rather than the bud itself). Otherwise, they’re so small that they’re a pain to work with.
Battery life and sound quality
Battery life: 5.5 hours in the earphones, with an additional 12 hours in the charging case
Charge in 10 minutes for 1 hour of playback.
Open ring driver with a diameter of 12mm
V1 DSEE Sony integrated processor (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine)
Because the charging case is smaller than others, it has a smaller battery. The earphones are said to last up to 5.5 hours with a 12-hour charge in the case.
Aside from sound and voice quality, the LinkBuds’ specifications are… average. They only have a 5.5-hour battery life on a single charge, which is disappointing for a non noise-canceling earphone. Recharging the case will give you an extra 12 hours, for a total of 17.5 hours. We’ll give Sony credit for the LinkBuds’ small size and lightweight, but greater battery life for earphones that users are expected to wear all day would be preferable. The LinkBuds are water-resistant to IPX4, indicating that they should be able to survive normal activity. The carrying case is a touch taller than we’d like, but it’s still manageable. It does not, however, support wireless charging.
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