Sony Expands its LinkBuds Range
After the 2022 launch of the LinkBuds earbuds, Sony has made plenty of improvements to the comfort and sound of the series. Now, the Japanese tech company has announced the new LinkBuds Fit and LinkBuds Open earbuds, along with the LinkBuds Speaker.
Designed for active users, the LinkBuds Fit and LinkBuds Open have new Fitting Supporters to keep the earbuds in the ear securely without adding too much weight. The Fitting Supporters have a hollow and soft tail combined with a hard, hooked point of attachment. This allows for less pressure against the contours of the ear while still offering security and preventing accidental dislodgement.
The LinkBuds Fit is a more traditional earbud that doesn’t have that ring to let in external noise as older LinkBuds did. It comes with the same Integrated Processor V2 as the WF-1000XM5 for exceptional noise cancellation, and the Dynamic Driver X driver is also the same one that’s in Sony’s flagship true wireless earbuds. Sony claims that different materials for the dome and edge help the driver achieve lower distortion and better sound quality.
It has an IPX4 water resistance rating, up to 21 hours of battery life, and features like multipoint connection, head gesture controls, and support for DSEE Extreme.
The LinkBuds Open builds on the open-ear design and uses a newly developed ring driver. This open ring driver unit at the centre of the diaphragm allows the wearer to enjoy music while still being able to hear their surroundings clearly. This 11mm ring driver comes with a high-compliance diaphragm and a neodymium magnet for clear mid and high frequencies.
Coming with the new Fitting Supporters, the LinkBuds Open has also been built with an evolved geometric form for a better fit in the ear. Features like multipoint, Auto Switch, DSEE support are included, with the earbuds boasting an IPX4 water resistance rating and up to 22 hours of battery life.
Both the LinkBuds Fit and LinkBuds Open come in a variety of colours, including GRAMMY®-winning artist Olivia Rodrigo’s signature violet as part of a collaboration. The EQ user interface has been designed by Olivia herself, and there are even two custom EQ settings included.
The new LinkBuds Speaker is designed for portability, with a convenient carrying strap that allows the user to carry it out and about as needed. It works in tandem with the LinkBuds earbuds, allowing for music playback to swap between either device automatically.
Inside, there’s an X-Balanced Speaker Unit, with a tweeter and passive radiators for a clear, well-balanced sound. There’s even a microphone inside and echo cancellation so that it can be used as a speakerphone to take calls with.
There’s an IPX4 water resistance rating, so light splashes of water around the pool and such will be perfectly fine, and it has up to 25 hours of battery life to keep music playing all day long.
The latest Sony LinkBuds Fit (A$289) and LinkBuds Open (A$289) will be available from November. The new LinkBuds Speaker (A$261) is expected to start shipping in December 2024, just in time for Christmas.
Visit Sony for more information
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Cheryl Tan
After diving down the custom IEMs rabbit hole since she was 18, Cheryl has embarked on a long journey trying out as many audio products as possible ever since. She’s still waiting for the day a company can create a pair of true wireless earbuds that sound just as good as wired earphones.
Posted in: Headphones | Lifestyle
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