Let’s be real. Not everyone is a fan of plugging their ears nor squishing their ears with headphones just to listen to music. Sony clearly understands this. The latest LinkBuds Clip is the most natural-sounding progression of open-ear listening yet. It’s light, clever, and surprisingly neat.
Instead of resting inside your ear, these clip onto your ear, allowing your ear canal to remain open so you can listen to the world around you, all while your playlist continues to play.
The clip-on design is secure and easy, and Sony provides small air cushions if you want a more secure fit or have smaller ears. Even without them, the earbuds remain in place during activity (I tried skipping with it on and it didn’t fall off) or extended wear. The case is small – classic LinkBuds design – and the earbuds fit inside perfectly.
What I like about the LinkBuds Clip is that it offers clean, balanced, and surprisingly rich sound. You can turn the volume up high without distortion, and vocals are rich without overpowering the bass.
From podcasts to playlists, the sound of the audio is clean and consistent. And while I’m normally a bit partial to noise-cancelling headphones, I have to admit that these make a pretty good case for open listening. You’re getting good sound, and still staying connected to the world around you.
Another nice surprise was the (lack of) sound leakage. One of the biggest complaints I have about open-ear headphones is that sound leaks out. Sony’s Sound Leakage Reduction feature does a fantastic job of keeping your music and calls private without taking away from the natural open-ear feel.
Sony has three different listening modes that are actually pretty useful and easy to toggle with just two taps on the Clip:
- Standard: For everyday use
- Voice boost: For clearer calls and vocals
- Sound leakage protection: For those times when you need a little privacy (like my case above)
The battery life is also surprisingly durable with the LinkBuds Clip providing up to nine hours of continuous playback time with a maximum waiting time battery life of about 15 hours. Compact in size, it delivers a full charge in about 90 minutes. A downside is that the case doesn’t support wireless charging, but I don’t find it a deterrent.
With calls, Sony’s AI noise reduction and bone conduction sensors are quite impressive. The voice pickup remains clear even outside, and with IPX4 rating for water resistance, it can easily withstand sweat and rain.
Available in black, purple, greige and green, LinkBuds Clip also supports customisation from accessories from their website. They are priced at S$299 in Singapore but are currently on offer for S$269, a good price for such quality, comfort, and thoughtful design upgrades.
The Sony LinkBuds Clip are what open-ear earbuds were meant to be – comfortable (fatigue-free), intelligent, and well-balanced. If you want quality sound without tuning out the world, then these are absolutely worth a look.
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