Reviews

Sony LinkBuds S review: These ANC earbuds are incredible

Apple’s AirPods Pro and Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro have met their match.

by Raymond Wong
Raymond Wong / Input

Raymond Wong / Input

Unlike Sony’s WF-1000XM4 earbuds, the LinkBuds S name is simple and easy to remember just like AirPods or Galaxy Buds.

Raymond Wong / Input

The LinkBuds S are $20 more than the donut-shaped and open-design LinkBuds, and have active noise-cancellation.

$199.99

Price of the LinkBuds S.

Raymond Wong / Input

Raymond Wong / Input

The LinkBuds S are pretty traditional. The stem-free buds are light and look good. They sound terrific with strong bass and clear mids and highs, especially with ANC on. Call quality also shines and the transparency mode is solid.

Super comfy

Lightness doesn’t always mean comfort, but they definitely do for the LinkBuds S. They’re one of the comfiest pairs of wireless earbuds that I’ve ever tested. They never got hot in my ears; I wore them for over six hours every day for several weeks and forgot they were in at times.

Raymond Wong / Input

Raymond Wong / Input

The recycled plastic is also really nice. The finish is matte and just a little grippy so that the buds are easy to grab when inserting and removing them. I prefer them over the shiny and slippery Galaxy Buds 2.

Raymond Wong / Input

Touchpad controls are responsive. I had no issues.

Hi Androids!

There is no wireless charging, but you do get Google Fast Pair for quick connections to Android devices.

Raymond Wong / Input

6 Hrs

Battery life with ANC.

Raymond Wong / Input

Raymond Wong / Input

With the pitch being “Never Off” I had hoped battery life would exceed other buds, but it’s just average: up to 6 hours with ANC, up to 9 hours with ANC off, and up to 20 hours total with the case.

For comparison, with ANC on, AirPods Pro ($250) last up to 4.5 hours. Sony’s WF-1000XM4 ($280) last up to 8 hours. Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Pro ($200) last up to 5 hours.

3 colors

The LinkBuds S come in three colors: white, black, or ecru (Best Buy exclusive). These buds are also IPX4 water-resistant so they’re good for workouts.

Sony

Raymond Wong / Input

The LinkBuds S are not Sony’s best ANC wireless earbuds. Those are still the WF-1000XM4 ($280). However, the LinkBuds S are lighter and cheaper. For $80 less, you’re not getting the stronger ANC, longer battery life, and wireless charging, but that’s totally fine for the value.

This article was originally published on Input. Read the original article here.