TechAudioHeadphonesEarbudsSony LinkBuds S vs Sony WF-1000XM4: true wireless earbuds go head to headSony’s new LinkBuds S are its latest true wireless in-ear headphone - here’s how it compares to the company’s own wildly successful WF-1000XM4 alternative.When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
TechAudioHeadphonesEarbudsSony LinkBuds S vs Sony WF-1000XM4: true wireless earbuds go head to headSony’s new LinkBuds S are its latest true wireless in-ear headphone - here’s how it compares to the company’s own wildly successful WF-1000XM4 alternative.When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
Sony’s new LinkBuds S are its latest true wireless in-ear headphone - here’s how it compares to the company’s own wildly successful WF-1000XM4 alternative.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.
(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
Comfort, specification, control options, noise-cancelling and, most crucially, sound quality all hit the bullseye - and as an all-round proposition, these earbuds proved untouchable. A year after they first hit the market, theSony WF-1000XM4remain among the very best pound-for-pound true wireless in-ears on the market.
Sony is nothing if not intrepid, though, and this month launched the second model in its fledgling ‘LinkBuds’ range: theSony LinkBuds S. They’re designed to fill the gap between the WF-1000XM4 (which launched at £279) and the WF-C500 (which cost £89 when they launched during October 2021). They certainly do so in terms of price - currently the LinkBuds S will set you back £179 a pair. But how do they measure up against their Award-winning (and lately not all that much more expensive) siblings, the WF-1000XM4?
(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
Sony LinkBuds S vs Sony WF-1000XM4: price
The Sony LinkBuds S are on sale now and they’re priced at $199 in America, £179 in the UK and AU$349 in Australia. The Sony WF-1000XM4 are more expensive starting at $278 in the US, £190 in the UK and AU$306.
Sony LinkBuds S vs Sony WF-1000XM4: performance
Both pairs of earbuds use the same admirable ‘Sony Headphones’ control app, and so it’s possible to fiddle with EQ settings and what-have-you quite fundamentally. But leave the EQs alone and there are some quite significant differences in the way the LinkBuds S and WF-1000XM4 present your favourite music.
Mind you, there are quite a few similarities too. Both pairs of earbuds are impressively detailed, teasing even the finest details out from recordings and handing them over. They both create a quite large and easily understood soundstage, allowing singers to occupy the front-and-centre area while integrating them smoothly into the overall performance. And they share a similar tonality, from deep and well-controlled low frequencies to crisp, substantial treble sounds - and the journey from the bottom of the frequency range to the top is convincingly unified in both instances.
When it comes to dynamism, drive and straightforward energy, though, the LinkBuds S give a fair bit away to the WF-1000XM4. The older, more expensive earbuds absolutely relish a big dynamic shift and are more than happy to roll their sleeves up and pile into an aggressive, high-energy recording. The newer model, well, not so much. The LinkBuds S are a rather polite and undemonstrative listen - which is fine when the material you’re listening to suits that attitude, but is no help at all when it doesn’t.
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(Image credit: Sony)
(Image credit: Sony)
Sony LinkBuds S vs Sony WF-1000XM4: design and features
Features-wise, both these pairs of true wireless in-ears have pretty much everything you need. As well as active noise-cancellation, they both have an adjustable ‘ambient sound’ mode, compatibility with Sony’s spatial ‘360 Reality Audio’ algorithm, Bluetooth 5.2 with SBC, AAC and LDAC codec compatibility, battery life of around 25 hours (including the power held in the charging case) and plenty more besides.
Both are controllable using voice assistants - and the LinkBuds S haveAmazon Alexabuilt in and are compatible with OKGoogletoo. In either case, interactions are painless and reliable, thanks to effective pick-up mics that work wonders with telephony too.
Sony LinkBuds S vs Sony WF-1000XM4: conclusion
The fundamental purpose of a pair of true wireless in-ear headphones is to entertain you with music, isn’t it? If you agree, then you’ll prefer the WF-1000XM4 - they’re a more animated, more energetic and altogether more enjoyable listen than the relatively pedestrian-sounding LinkBuds S. And at the moment they’re more or less the same money, too, which makes the decision even easier.
About the only fly in the ointment is the length of time the WF-1000XM4 have been on sale. We haven’t heard anything from Sony as yet, but it tends to operate on a 12-month model cycle where products like this are concerned - so you might want to act sooner rather than later if the WF-1000XM4 fir your particular bill.
Today’s best deals on Samsung Q950TS and QN900A at all sizesSony LinkBuds S$158ViewSee all pricesSony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds$278ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best deals on Samsung Q950TS and QN900A at all sizesSony LinkBuds S$158ViewSee all pricesSony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds$278ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best deals on Samsung Q950TS and QN900A at all sizesSony LinkBuds S$158ViewSee all pricesSony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds$278ViewSee all pricesWe check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
Today’s best deals on Samsung Q950TS and QN900A at all sizes
Sony LinkBuds S$158ViewSee all pricesSony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds$278ViewSee all prices
Sony LinkBuds S$158ViewSee all prices
Sony LinkBuds S$158ViewSee all prices
Sony LinkBuds S
Sony LinkBuds S
$158View
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$158
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Sony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds$278ViewSee all prices
Sony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds$278ViewSee all prices
Sony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds
Sony WF-1000XM4 Wireless Earbuds
$278View
$278
$278
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We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
We check over 250 million products every day for the best prices
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