Sony – from the very box – shows that ecology is becoming an important issue for the Japanese company. It is a cuboid made of recycled paper, without any coloured markings or drawings, and all the most necessary features are written on the paper band of the box. The case is also made of recycled plastic – it is slightly rough and not very pleasant to the touch. But one can make sacrifices when it comes to saving Earth and reducing the amount of rubbish.
The LinkBuds S headphones themselves do not have a very unusual design. These are the most flea fleas you can imagine – they strongly resemble the bold tokens for one of our childhood games – fleas. They come in three colours – black, white and ecru. The set also includes a charging cable and a few ear tips, in case the standard ones do not fit completely.
An application is required
It is worth downloading a special application on the headphones. It allows, among others, to use the 360-degree sound (only in special applications), sets the ANC level, the mode of automatic recognition of the place where one is and the activity, and sets the ANC or ambient sound strength. One can also change the music equalizer settings. Without this program, Link Buds S lose a lot of their capabilities.
ANC and ambient
The headphones are equipped with a very good ANC system. It is not as sensational as in 1000MX5, but it can mute ambient sounds such as the neighbour’s grinder, the sounds of a shopping mall, or even the sound of a train. As for the light headphones (each weighs 4.1g), they give you a lot of possibilities to cut yourself off from the world. Especially since the ANC is paired with a great ambient system. All one needs to do is say something, and the headphones switch to the mode of transmitting sounds from the environment. One can then talk without removing them from the ears (this mode can also be turned on by touching the left earbud). The system works flawlessly – the voices of our interlocutors, although slightly artificial, are audible without any problems with understanding the words.
Battery
It is enough (with the ANC on for 5 hours – the case still has electricity for two charges. In addition, 10 minutes of charging the case alone is enough to provide the headphones with about 90 minutes of work. So it is enough for a long train journey.
Playback quality
How do they play? Great. LinkBuds S can cope (after playing with the equalizer because the standard mode is to be corrected) with any music. The newest albums of Def Leopard, Kehlani and Michael Buble sound great. The mere inclusion of ANC also does not significantly distort the music. The music scene is wide, instruments and types of sounds distinguishable … for such small and light headphones (the lightest with Hi-Res sound), the LinkBuds S are among the best playing “fleas”.
Minuses?
Unfortunately, these are not perfect headphones. First of all, they do not work with Siri (only with Alexa and Google Assistant), and secondly, they do not have wireless charging and a multipoint – they can only be connected to one device. And yet, in headphones for PLN 899, multipoint and Qi charging should be standard (such things are, after all, in cheaper competition models).
Summary
To sum up – LinkBuds S are headphones that sound great and are very comfortable – the ears do not get tired even after several hours of listening. In addition, they have a great ambient system and good muting of external sounds. Unfortunately, the inability to connect them to two devices simultaneously is a big minus, which is unlikely to be fixed with new software. It is a pity because then they would be headphones with virtually no flaws.