Why you shouldn't buy Sony LinkBuds S(WF-LS900N)
2024/6/1 UTC+8 1AM
The OG LinkBuds(WF-L900) is surely a masterpiece in both engineering and designing, being the first "True Wireless" earbuds with a open back design
But I'm not here to talk about that amazing product, I'm here to talk about its successor or variants or as how I call it "the cheaper WF-1000XM4"
Or how Sony named it: "LinkBuds S"
Basically they slapped the XM4's SoC and ANC functions onto a smaller motherboard(and a pair of smaller speakers) and shaping it with LinkBuds's design language and call it a day
Ah lets talk about why i bought it in the first place anyway.
My OG AirPods Pro are dying(just the charging case but I don't bother to buy a new case with a hefty US$80 tag)
And at that time i think i should de-Apple and the first step is to buy a new wireless in-ear headphones without white casing(aka design by apple)
But also need to be at least on-par with that AirPods Pro both in sound quality and noise cancellation(this is important for me)
I like how balance that AirPods are(just like my Sony MDR-EX650), and ANC is... fine most of the time
So after i acknowledge that there is a ANC version of LinkBuds by one of my favorite brand Sony i just decided to buy
comparing some charts online shows that the frequency response is also quite balance but its a little warm on the bass side
I thought I could just EQ it out anyway(turns out to be a HUGE BATTERY DRAINER, tho I love bassy sound anyway so its not a deal-breaker)
So I bought it and used it for a month now
And here's the reason I wouldn't recommend this, just go buy WF-1000XM4/5 instead...

Shitty bluetooth connection, classic Sony bluetooth product behaviour

Interactions are sluggish and buggy, sometimes won't even work

Dealbreaker: there's a ambient noise when calling... and u are force to use ambient noise, software issue I guess

Speaking of that last one, I guess its basically switching to ambient mode, but the microphone or the hardware aren't really up to the job, the end result is that u will hear a noise that sounds like you are flying inside the jet, which is really disturbing and annoying, I rather pick up my phone to call instead, don't buy it if this is a huge deal-breaker for you or you like to making calls on this crap alot...
Bluetooth quality: What can I say about Sony's bluetooth connectivity? shit as always(own several of their bt headphones... u got my words...) especially with their homegrown LDAC
commuting with LDAC around 660Kbps or up is literally impossible(inside the train is fine, but in a crowded station is basically cutting off 99% of the time)
Using LDAC with a low bitrate is worthless... just use AAC, especially if you're using streaming services

I'm quite dizzy rn I would just sleep now and maybe update this crap i just wrote tmr
(Ended up fixing some typo and gramma issuses two days later