ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Sony’s LinkBuds Match are $198
- These earbuds boast a stable ANC characteristic and a snug design that’s second to none.
- Their audio output, nevertheless, is not very {powerful}.
extra shopping for selections
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What’s crucial side of a pair of earbuds? My reply modifications relying on the circumstances. I choose energy and quantity once I’m at residence listening to music. If I am on the gymnasium, I want one thing rugged and able to blocking out sound. Sony’s new LinkBuds Fit meets my wants
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I had the chance to check out a pair for the previous week or so, and so they shortly grew to become my go-to exercise buddies. I by no means left residence with out them. Earlier than I delve into the numerous the explanation why I like these buds, I might prefer to shortly give a shoutout to the charging case.
I obtained the pale inexperienced mannequin with a marble lid and a delicate rubber backside. Collectively, they appear pretty. I do not know if these supplies assist reinforce it or something, however I’m an enormous fan of the aesthetics. Sony’s LinkBuds Match have the nicest charging case I’ve ever had the pleasure of holding.
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The LinkBuds Match will be seen as an evolution of Sony’s LinkBuds S. Just like the older fashions, these are wi-fi, noise-canceling earbuds with a number of changes. Most significantly, Sony designed its new earbuds to be extra comfy. The corporate informed us it made the casing shorter and lined it with a “silicone supporter.” Inside this silicone is an air cushion.
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In my expertise, this design change does two issues. It permits the earbud to suit higher inside an ear, and the silicone masking protects your ears from rubbing in opposition to the LinkBuds Match’s laborious plastic casing. In brief, you get all-day consolation.
I even fell asleep with them a number of occasions throughout testing, and once I wakened, my ears did not really feel sore. That is one thing I am unable to say about different earbuds, which turn out to be uncomfortable over time.
Noise-canceling on the LinkBuds Match is stable. It is lively by default, so the second you placed on each, ANC (lively noise canceling) activates. The characteristic robotically disables itself once you take one of many earbuds out.
Double-tapping on the surface of the left earbud deactivates the ANC. The auto-disable operate got here in very useful for me, as I do not actually use gesture controls.
The ANC characteristic blocks various quantities of sound, relying on the atmosphere. I heard extra ambient sound in my quiet room, just like the visitors exterior my window. On the gymnasium, issues have been a lot quieter. I might hardly hear the weights being slammed down or the music from the speaker system. This auto-optimizer characteristic actually impressed me.
That stated, the ANC is just not omnipotent. Loud sufficient noises will leak by.
Sony says the earbuds final 5.5 hours on a single cost by themselves and 25 hours with the case. Throughout my testing, I managed to get the earbuds to run for nearly seven hours earlier than I wanted to seize the charger. I had ANC turned on and was taking part in music at a low quantity, so extending the runtime with a number of tweaks is feasible.
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The earbuds’ audio output was usually good. Instrument separation was pretty. Acoustic songs and singers sounded great. The one space wherein I felt the pair faltered was the bass output. Pop and rap songs lacked that further punch.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
Sony’s LinkBuds Fit are fairly priced and provide a considerable quantity of worth in a midrange earbud. They arrive in 4 completely different colours: black, white, inexperienced, and violet. You should buy further equipment, like a case cover that goes on a key ring or different-colored silicone supporters.
Each single shade choice is on sale at Sony’s web site for $200; nevertheless, when you head over to Greatest Purchase, you may get the LinkBuds Fit in White for $145.
If you happen to like stable ANC and unbelievable consolation, I like to recommend the LinkBuds Match. The $200 price ticket is a troublesome promote, particularly when different nice, cheaper choices exist, just like the Nothing Ear (a). If you’d like sturdy audio output, I like to recommend the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 earbuds.
