Sony INZONE Buds Review – Almost Excellent

Unboxing the Sony INZONE Buds

With every purchase of the Sony INZONE Buds true wireless earphones with noise-canceling, this is what you’re expected to get:

• USB-C cable
• USB dongle
• Documentations
• Spare eartips
• INZONE stickers
• Charging case
• The Sony INZONE Buds wireless earphones themselves

Specifications

Drivers	8.4mm Sony Dynamic Driver X
Frequency Response	20 Hz – 40,000 Hz
Headphone Type	Closed, dynamic, in-ear
Connection	2.4GHz Wireless and Bluetooth 5.3, LE TMAP, CSIP, MCP, VCP, CCP, LC3
Wireless Range	10m
Noise-cancelling	Yes with Ambient Sound
Battery	Earphones Up to 12 hours playback (2.4GHz wireless) Up to 24 hours playback (Bluetooth) Charging Case 2 x Full Charge (Up to 24 hours total)
Weight	6.5g x 2
Colour	Black, White

Mic Test

The Sony INZONE Buds does have built-in microphones. However, it’s rather subpar if I’m being completely honest. Users may experience crackly and muffled sound, making the earbuds less appealing for those who prioritize voice chat during gaming. The above recording is one of the cleaner ones but based on my own experience with Discord calls among other things, it can get rather bad. Interestingly, the mic does pickup external sound pretty well, which is why I’m presenting two different recordings above here.

The Good

There are a number of good reasons to consider getting the Sony INZONE Buds. For starters, this pair of earbuds has platform versatility as you can use it on mobile, PC, and even the PS5 console. It’s not a PlayStation-exclusive audio peripheral, and it does come with a USB-C dongle for an ultra-low latency experience, and you’d likely lean more towards this unless you want to maximize the battery life.

It’s also appealing from a design perspective as visually, these earbuds align with Sony’s signature black-and-white color scheme, a nod to the PlayStation’s recognizable design. The earbuds, despite their slightly chunky appearance, boast a comfortable fit, making them suitable for extended gaming sessions. After all, each bud only weighs a mere 6.5g. The charging case, a thoughtful design touch, integrates a dongle for connectivity between the earbuds during charging, reducing the risk of misplacement. While this design choice enlarges the case, it proves a worthwhile trade-off.

When it comes to gaming with the Sony INZONE Buds, their immersive sound quality becomes apparent. Offering a more casual alternative to traditional gaming headsets, offering deeper, more emphasized low ends which will let you hear in-game environmental sounds like footsteps clearer for an engaging gaming experience across various genres. Notably, the earbuds excel in noise cancellation, a feature not commonly found at this price point. While it may not eliminate all background noise, it significantly contributes to an isolated and focused gaming experience.

Lastly, we have a major standout feature which is the impressive 12-hour battery life on a single charge, with the case providing two additional full charges. This puts it in a league of its own considering that most other TWS earbuds tend to sit around half the length per full charge. Sure, it might not be a full 12 hours the whole time but at least 11 hours is still impressive nonetheless.

The Bad

As good as the Sony INZONE Buds are, it does have its share of drawbacks but it’s not much. For starters, while it does work with Bluetooth devices, it doesn’t work if said device doesn’t support Bluetooth LE. This is where the dongle comes in, which comes with the added bonus of lower latency, so any device that at least has a USB-C port will work just fine (assuming you set the right switch on the dongle) but for the sake of convenience, it’s a wee bit troublesome. It ultimately depends on what sort of devices you have as you might not even be affected by it.

Lastly, while it does have onboard controls, it’s rather finicky. It’s not to say that when you try to execute something, a different action occurs but rather, it sometimes just doesn’t work. I’m not sure if it’s an inherent design flaw or something that can be fixed via a firmware update but unless you typically rely on the connected device to control it in anyway, it might be kind of troublesome.

Sony INZONE Buds Verdict

The Sony INZONE Buds offer a mixed experience. While providing strong sound quality and comfort, the microphone’s limitations may deter users who prioritize clear voice communication. For those less concerned with voice chat, these earbuds present a compelling option with impressive battery life and design considerations. It would have even more versatility if didn’t have the Bluetooth compatibility issues, and at RM899, it ultimately boils down to what you need to use a pair of TWS earbuds for as the LinkBuds S (or WF-C700N if you’d rather not splurge too much) would be better suited for casual use.

At the end of our Sony INZONE Buds review, I award this pair of TWS earbuds with our Silver Pokdeward.

Big thanks to Sony Malaysia for sending us this pair of TWS earbuds for the purpose of this review.