Sony to release inear-LinkBuds S earphones with anc and closed design at the end of May

Sony will release the LinkBuds S earphones later this month: anc earplugs that get an in-ear design. The regular LinkBuds earphones have a ring-shaped design through which sound is let. The LinkBuds S each weigh 4.8 grams, making them Sony’s lightest anc earphones.

The LinkBuds S earphones get new 5mm drivers and Sony’s V1 processor. This processor takes care of the noise cancellation and improves the audio quality according to the manufacturer. The earbuds also support Sony’s LDAC codec.

Although the LinkBuds S have a closed in-ear design unlike the regular LinkBuds, LinkBuds S users can also hear the outside world during use, according to Sony. This feature is called Adaptive Sound Control at Sony and it adjusts the sounds that the earbuds let through ‘based on where the user is’. The earplugs also recognize when the user is on a call and then pause the music, Sony says.

Due to that closed design, the LinkBuds S also have active noise cancellation, where the normal LinkBuds do not have this. Sony claims they are its lightest ANC headphones, weighing about 4.8 grams per ear. Both earbuds have microphones for anc and for voice calls.

The earbuds have a touch-sensitive sensor for control and support Google’s Fast Pair function to quickly connect to Android devices. The batteries of the earphones can last for six hours with noise reduction, with the included charging case the earplugs can last fourteen hours longer. Charging five minutes in that case gives an hour of listening time, Sony reports.

Sony’s LinkBuds S earphones appear in the colors white, black and ecru. The earphones will be available from the end of May and will cost ‘approximately’ 200 euros.