Product Reviews

The battery on one side drains rapidly while one side is in 99% the other side reach 70% and then suddenly to zero !!!

Ive owner this for around two years now. Im honestly not too happy at all. Sound quality is awesome and I like the color. The fit is also fine. I don't notice any discomfort or anything. I bought these to replace my gen 1 airpods which were a gift so these were my first personal wireless earphone purchase. I did lots of research sadly nothing that indicated these issues. Glaring problem for me is that these do not have a tracker like airpods. For the price this is a little irritating. Battery life was decently all-right. I didn’t notice any upgrade over the airpods. Whilst I would never buy airpods again. The linkbuds have some stupid issues. I used my air-pods daily. Due to life changes I have used my Linkbuds less. After only two years the battery is greatly reduced. The big issue is the software. These will regularly just refuse to connect for no reasonZ troubleshooting also. I have been close to throwing them away when they wont connect on my whole 40 minute commute. Definitely not user error. I have had it happen often enough. Battery charged headphones in case glowing sonys troubleshooting process etc. Usually I just forget about it and try again and sometimes it works sometimes it doesn’t. Ive done this on 3 devices and a new phone. It is not a 3rd party issue. Overall with all this combined I wouldn’t recommend these at the price point they come in at.

After 6 months of use started to make uncomfortable noise and the battery is dying fast, both ear plugs and case.

I got this as a graduation gift in the summer of 2024. even since mid 2025 my left earbuds battery lasts for 2-5 minutes and dies. it also get very hot in the case and keeps blinking orange

The earphones worked well for approx 3 years, then the batteries failed. Rapid drain and inaccurate battery level readings, I'll use the LinkBuds S starting out with more than 90% battery remaining in each, and after 5 minutes I will receive a low battery warning for one earphone, it will then immediately die, followed a few minutes later by the same issue for the other earphone. I was hoping it was just a dodgy software update that messed up the battery level reporting but after updating the firmware to latest, the problem still persists. Looking to replace them but having seen others report similar battery issues with Sony earphones, I've lost faith that another pair of the LinkBuds S or the more expensive WF-1000XM5 won't just do the same a few years down the line so considering other brands.

Good sound quality especially in noise cancelling mode - utilising my Sound Connect app on Android mobile to play with settings; even in no mode the sound is good with bass boost audio setting but in ambient noise mode the sound isn't as full but that can be useful when traveling out on the street...Ive had some piercing high tones randomly appear on a few occasions out of nowhere and now my right ear phone is making a whooshing windy noise that I can't seem to fix, just have to put the headphones away for a spell. Battery is probably the biggest downfall (previous to all these strange technical issues), in noise cancelling I only get 4hrs of battery, I'm probably charging the headphones and case every other day because of regular use. I will be looking to return/replace if still under warranty. Oh also the touch sensitive buttons react to my rain coat hood so basically impossible to listen to music with my rain hood up constantly pausing and switching ambient and noise cancelling settings.

Honest to the music and beat at an affordable price. Comfortable wear and good fit.

This is my first ever purchase of earliest and I am astonished. Very comfortable to wear and outstanding sound quality. I should have bought sooner!

Just passed the one year warranty and the left earbud now works only 15 minutes and the right one only an hour. I used them maybe 3 days a week for hour or hour and half to listen music. Called the support only to find out that it is out of warranty and they suggest to send the earbuds to a Sony facility (only 2 in US and none in California) on my expense without knowing how much the repair will cost. These earbuds are prone to battery problem after a year. The price does not justice for only one year use. Very disappointing.

I bought these 15 months ago, so just out of the warranty period, and now the battery dies in less than 20 minutes. I work in an office so there was no abuse or extreme conditions they were in. I also had connectivity issues and issues with the noise cancelling.

Great value and good product. I’ve not used in ear before and they are comfortable.

Been good until recently. Had these for a little over a year when the right buds battery started failing to hold a charge. Really disappointing for a higher end and spendy product. Many others have this issue that Sony will not cover. *See Reddit Good news is a local repair shop could change the battery

Satisfied with everything but the lifespan. After 21 months, a charge doesn't even last an hour.

Although the sound quality and ANC was decent, unfortunately the battery of this product is extremely poor. I can’t even use the ANC function anymore because the battery drains within 20 minutes. Even without ANC I cannot get 30 minutes out of the left earbud. I will not be buying a Sony product again.

En febrero 20 de 2023 compre un LINKBUDS S MODELO YY2950 en un de almacén de confianza como Best Bay, todo era perfecto, buen sonido, cancelación de ruido excelente, y un producto confiable como SONY, con supuestos altos estándares en sonido. Al año comenzó a fallar precisamente cuando vencío la garantía de compra. La batería comenzó a agotarse aunque decía un 100% esta se descargaba en 10 minutos, el auricular derecho se descargaba a los 5 minutos aunque señalaba que estaba en un 90%, fui al almacén y no me solucionaron, escribí a soporte de SONY, y me dieron las indicaciones pertinentes para reiniciarlo, elimine la aplicación de mi celular únicamente para ver si lo actualizaba, pero todo fue en vano. Cundo les escribí un email, dándoles a conocer lo descontenta y lo defraudada por comprar un supuesto producto que promociona ser uno de los mejores en el mercado. Pero no se si fue decepcionante la perdida de mi dinero al comprar un producto de tan mala calidad o la respuesta que me dieron vía email cuando solicite un teléfono, dirección o lugar donde llevarlos para que me lo repararan. Solo lamentaron que yo estuviese tan decepcionada y que no tenían mas opciones de solución. porque yo ya había agotado todos los pasos para la restauración de la batería. Leyendo todas las reseñas noto que no soy la única, algunos mas tienen el mismo problema que tengo con este producto. solo le digo a las personas que quieran comprar uno de estos producto no lo hagan piénselo antes de malgastar su dinero. si alguien desea abrir una sala de disputa para hablar sobre este estafa al vendernos un comercial que es totalmente falso, estaré pendiente.

Just got these. They performed above expectations. Sound cancelling and quality rivial my XM4 over the ear headphones. Just a much smaller package!

I purchased the LINKBUDS S in the month of December 2023 and one of buds (left ear piece) failed after an year of working. The charging no longer lasts above an hour of use and one of them discharges rapidly within 15 minutes of usage.

Bought these just over a year ago and the left bud doesn’t stay charged for more than 20 minutes. Sony doesn’t stand behind their product

Have owned for 2 years. Sound quality is fine but Bluetooth connectivity is absolutely pitiful. Effective range of about 2.5 feet and will disconnect constantly in any sort of crowded environment like the gym or subway.

Bought these a little over a years ago, and they've proven to be the most disappointing product I've EVER purchased from Sony. They aren't even useful as a paperweight at this point. This product is definitely not on par with the headphones and earbuds Sony has released for decades, and the experience with this product has been bad enough that I will reconsider ever buying anymore Sony products in the future... On first impression the earbuds were great. I loved the sound quality, and the way they fit snug and securely in the ears. The noise cancelling was also very impressive. The customizations available through the Sony app were pretty cool as well. 100% what you would expect from a upper-middle tier audio product from Sony. Within ~2 months, the head phones started going downhill. Battery life started diminishing, which is expected from any product with a rechargeable battery, but the decline was very quick. Originally, I could make it through about 5 to 6 hours with fully charged buds, and a 20 minute charge would get me through the rest of my work day. Pretty soon I was charging them 2-3 times a day. At ~6 months, the headphones physically started to fall apart. The black lens that hides the sensor for detecting when the headphones are being worn FELL OFF IN MY EAR CANAL and I had to have a trained medical professional help me remove it!... Around the same time, the noise cancellation started acting up. Whenever the buds were set to Noise Cancelling, a constant buzzing sound could be heard while the headphones were on. Like a strong breeze was blowing past your ear... After ~9 months, the battery is almost completely shot in the right earbud. On a "full charge", the buds say they're only at 70%. If I'm lucky, I can maybe get 30 minutes of use out of the right bud, otherwise it lasts about 15 minutes. Of course, the right bud is the "primary" earbud, so the left can't function independently. Not much you can do once the battery goes unless you're able to pull the buds apart and replace the batteries on your own. Overall, a very disappointing product from a company I once held in high regard. I wouldn't buy these again or recommend them to anyone.

Ive had the product for about 2 years, and while very comfortable in the ear and great sound, the battery in the earbuds has given up and they no longer hold very much charge. They last 20 minutes before they end up dying.

NO, NO, NO! Look at all these reviews with dead battery issues. Mine lasted almost 2 years and now will not charge. Granted, that's 24 months but I used these less than 50 times. Save your $ and find something that is reliable.

Let’s start with what makes this product not worth the purchase: the batteries will die, and no one, including Sony will repair them. i spent hours on the phone with service centers and sony customer service only to discover this product is not serviced. I loved these earbuds, the work great for about a year and a half. then out of the blue, they stop holding a charge and you’re left high and dry. I highly recommend you save your dollars and purchase elsewhere

I've had these for a full 6 months now. They've been rather disappointing... My old cheapie earbuds worked better. Often one earbud will disconnect and will not reconnect unless I put them back in the case. Annoying because I don't take the case with me on walks, which is mainly when I use them. When that's not happening, both earbuds will cut out very briefly, over and over, back and forth between the two. I've reset, unpaired/re-paired, etc. and it all still keeps happening. The thing I do like about them is that they are very comfortable and stay in well. As someone with small ears, the vast majority of earbuds don't work for me.

I bought this in December 2023 (1.5 years ago) and one of the ear buds already lost the ability to hold a charge (dies in less than 5 minutes after being fully charged). Customer support states that since its out of warranty they cannot replace it. Unfortunately, the cost of the single headphone is around $90 (nearly 60% of a new pair). Due to the cost of the headphones, I cannot justify the price nor recommend this particular pair given its short life-span.

Good sound signature with feature rich app support and effective active noise cancellation.

Bought these because I was disappointed my apple AirPods only lasted 2 and a half years. These were far worse only lasting 14 months... Conveniently 2 months after my warranty expired. The charging case doesn't hold a charge for more than a day and the right ear bud no longer charges at all. Wish I had seen all the complaints about battery life before buying.

I've had these for a year and a half, and they're incredible, minus one huge issue. The battery in the right earbud was a dud, and it started to drain like crazy(20 minutes). They were out of warranty, so I bought a replacement battery kit online and replaced the batteries myself off of a youtube video. I would assume they've fixed the battery issue by now, so I would buy them again if it were necessary. Great audio quality, and great ANC.

I bought this device a year ago and it still works like a charm! Good design and sound quality

I love this earbuds specially the fit but the battery sucks! I gave 1 star cuz it useless now

I wanted some earbuds with option of using with a motorcycle helmet. These work fine once touch controls have been disabled with Sony’s excellent ‘connect’ app. Also great for everyday use. For the size of the buds, very impressed with sound performance and fit.

I got these headphones around a year ago and they are by far the best in ear headphones I’ve ever tried. As avid music listener for many years, I’ve previously used air pods, skull candy, and shure air in ear headphones and these have out preformed both in audio quality, noise cancellation, and cost.

This is the best earbud I ever owned. It is so good and comfortable that I can’t leave it at home. I love it. Thanks for the invention.

Solid Solid piece of equipment . Love the noise cancel function

I decided to buy the sony product compared to other brands, even if it was pricier, in order to ensure quality and longevity of my earpods. After a little over a year, one of the two earpods is not charging properly. This causes the earpods to have a battery life of less then 20minutes. I am disappointed in the longevity of this product. If I would have know I would have prefered the cheaper versions which would have last just as long.

Comfortable great sound earbuds. I replaced my airpods with these. Excellent upgrade. The airpods are no good for movement since they fall out easily. These sonys stay put when exercising! Also, the sound is far superior to the airpods. Highly recommended for physical activity.

I bought less than 2 years ago and now right battery is dead after 20 minutes after full charge.

Good sound quality and lasting battery. Price Reasonable Thanks

Even without DSEE, is well tuned TWS. For battery level, is ok to turn off DSEE since is proven experimental featture

Works well and long battery life. Good sound. Nice design that fits well.

Bought these for sleeping in 2022. They are a perfect fit for me to be able to sleep on the side without feeling like something is in my ear. Noice cancelling is great and sound quality is exceptional for the size and price. But after 2 years, the batter life on the left earbud went from 7h to 15min while the right one could still easily live 6h. Then after not using them for 3 months. Left one doesn't charge and turn on at all and right one last 15min. Bought a 2nd set, the 2nd set started having issues 4 months in. Unacceptable quality control.

Good for just 1 year, after warranty major battery drain issues. Better off buying a cheap 5 dollar pair.

I bought this headset and thought I was getting a quality product from the Sony brand. This turned out not to be the case. Left earbud went bad and charging case eventually went bad too in a short period of time. Now the right ear bud can't even keep a charge. All of this is happened while using in a office setting, no harsh elements involved. Completely disappointed with this purchase and with Sony being willing to tarnish their brand with junk like this. I guess purchasing an off brand headset for 15$ will be a better choice if it'll last only a year.

On my second pair after the first had battery issues related to the headphones themselves out of the box. This pair exhibits some of the same battery issues to a lesser extent, but now has additional connectivity issues, in addition to battery issues with the charging case. The sony customer service is a joke, they would not refund my purchase. So that's $200.00 that I will never get back sitting in their pocket. This product is faulty and they are definitely aware but do not care, DO NOT BUY.

I purchased these in 2022 and all was fine - the quality was good, sound was good and they fitted well. About 2.5 years afterwards in the space of a couple of weeks the batteries lost all ability to hold charge. Initially they would last for 5+ hours on a charge, but they then went to losing practially all their charge in about half an hour, making them essentially useless. I googled this problem and it seems to be widely reported and discussed. My earbuds were obviously out of the 1 year warranty but I contacted Sony and they investigated but would not offer anything other than suggsting i pay for a repair. They accepted no liability for what is clearly a well known fault. To be left with something that is now no more than a paperwieght after only 2.5 years unless i pay to fix or replace it is unacceptable. I will not be buying another pair.

Initially I liked the linkbuds and was impressed with the noise cancelling. But i have found that wearing them for extended periods causes discomfort and pain. I also find that they can be awkward sometimes to create the proper seal which you need for ANC. After about 18 months I have also found that the battery drainage is severe. I can maybe listen to music for about 30 minutes maximum before they are out of charge. And this happened almost overnight, as 1 day they were fine and maintained charge for a good couple of hours at least, and the next they just died after half hour.

I think the earbuds is great. I have used Jabra all this while. Since they ceased production, I was looking for an alternative and Sony LinkBuds S is really good. I am satisfied and would recommend highly for ex-Jabra lovers to make the change

Over a week now, no complains. Anc is good Sound is good Connectivity- same Battery- Expected more but good A friend who uses airpod was convinced by the sound Kinda wish I can set ANC level

I'm happy at the moment, had issues with JBL product on 2 seperate occasions.

I bought this 1 month ago and happy with the purchase.

After 13 months (just after 12 mo warranty) the battery life immediately dropped from hours to less than 30 minutes. Customer service provided no support for the product and the process to call, upload proof of purchase (which didn't work), and call again was cumbersome and ineffective. Factory reset, changing settings, cleaning case did not help. Sony has lost a customer and some reputation.

Had these for a month had other ear buds but the Sony ones are fantastic best buy

I loved these earbuds - great sound, lightweight and easy to wear all day. After having them for less than two years, however, the right bud suddenly (over a matter of a couple of weeks) started draining very quickly - at one point it only lasted 15 minutes. I suspect this may be a software problem, particularly as a reset increased the battery life to about an hour. I contacted Sony and was told I could pay £30 to have the fault assessed, plus an unknown amount for the actual repair - when I pointed out I believed this to be a fault given the suddenness of the problem and the number of other people online who reported the same issue, I received a rather curt reply with a link to the warranty policy. Wow Sony, 0/10 for customer service.

I won't be purchasing another Sony product again! The battery Issue is the worse I've ever encountered. My left ear bud stays charged for 3 minutes. The right stays charged for 1 hour. I went as far as ordering a replacement left earbud, only for the left and right to disconnect every couple seconds.

Only had these a few days before sending back to Amazon. Fully charged car and buds but battery life was awful. It actually struggled to update the firmware since the battery wouldnt last the 20mins needed! After 3 attempts managed to get latest version, but still didn't fix. 100% battery... After 5mins had 48%, after 10mins 2%. Sent back and bought another brand since the Sony warranty required posting to other side of the country and waiting. Sound quality was good though while it was on, and multipoint worked fine too. Maybe mine was from a bad batch :(

I originally purchased this product from Best Buy in February of 2023. They worked great for the first year and then the left ear bud starting losing battery life. The buds would be fully charged and within 5 minutes the left bud would shut off and have zero battery life. This is a huge problem with these ear buds and Sony is very aware of the issue. I tried to see if Best Buy would replace them however they said I had to go back to the manufacturer. Yesterday I called Sony’s customer service number, 239-245-6366, and I finally reached a live voice and after a brief discussion and giving him all the model info he said they would replace them at no charge. I was satisfied with this as my belief is that’s how a good company should handle a known manufacturing issue and to satisfy a loyal customer. This morning I received a phone call from another Sony service rep and I was informed that the original representative made a mistake and they were not going to replace my ear buds. This to me is an example of terrible customer service and customer relations. Not only did you sell me a faulty product but you also weren’t truthful with me when I called your company. In this where Sony has made multiple mistakes your number one goal should be to make the situation right and they did not. I will never buy another Sony product and if I wanted a pair of wireless ear buds I would definitely not buy these.

I was given a present of earbuds as I need Bluetooth connection for my phone. I have found them useful but a bit fiddlie to use and I am disappointed in the volume and noise cancelling, I couldn’t use them on a recent flight engine noise was to great.