Sony LinkBuds Clip Review: Comfortable, But Overpriced for What You Get
Looking for open-ear earbuds that keep you aware of your surroundings while delivering decent audio? Sony’s new LinkBuds Clip aim to do just that—but at $229.99, they face tough competition. These are Sony’s first true clip-style earbuds, designed for runners, commuters, and anyone who wants to stay tuned in to both their music and the world around them. While they’re comfortable and sound good, they lack standout features that justify their premium cost.
Credit: Google
A Fresh Take on Open-Ear Design—With a Familiar Feel
The Sony LinkBuds Clip follow in the footsteps of the original LinkBuds and LinkBuds Open, embracing an open-ear philosophy that prioritizes situational awareness over noise isolation. Unlike traditional in-ear buds that seal your ear canal, the Clip model wraps gently around the outer ear, positioning a small spherical speaker just outside the ear canal. This lets ambient sound flow naturally while still delivering clear audio.
Visually, the LinkBuds Clip strike a minimalist, modern aesthetic. The glossy finish and muted color options—lavender, green, greige, and black—feel more refined than flashy. Sony even includes five interchangeable case covers (black, green, blue, coral, and lavender), letting you personalize your look without buying a second pair. It’s a thoughtful touch, especially for a product targeting style-conscious urban users.
All-Day Comfort Meets Practical Wearability
One of the biggest wins for the LinkBuds Clip is comfort. The flexible band conforms easily to most ear shapes, and the lightweight build (each bud weighs just 6.8 grams) means you can wear them for hours without irritation. During testing, I wore them on long walks, grocery runs, and even during light workouts—and never once felt the need to adjust or remove them.
That said, fit isn’t universal. If you have particularly small or large ears, the one-size-fits-most design might not lock in as securely as you’d like. They’re stable enough for casual movement, but don’t expect them to survive intense sprints or high-impact gym sessions without occasional shifting. Still, for everyday use—from commuting to coffee shop work sessions—they’re impressively unobtrusive.
Sound Quality That’s Good, Not Great
Audio performance is where the LinkBuds Clip land in solid-but-unspectacular territory. The open design inherently limits bass depth and overall volume potential, which is expected. But within those constraints, Sony delivers balanced mids and crisp highs that make podcasts, audiobooks, and vocal-forward music shine.
Listening to tracks like Lianne La Havas’ “Paper Thin” or Anderson .Paak’s “Lockdown,” I appreciated the clarity and spatial separation. However, bass-heavy genres like hip-hop or EDM lose punch and presence. There’s no EQ customization in the Sony Headphones Connect app, which feels like a missed opportunity—especially when rivals offer tailored sound profiles at similar price points.
At moderate volumes, the soundstage feels surprisingly wide for open-ear buds. But crank things up, and you’ll notice distortion creeping in sooner than you’d expect from a $230 product. For casual listening, it’s more than adequate. For audiophiles or detail-oriented listeners, it may leave you wanting more.
Call Clarity Shines—Even in Windy Conditions
Where the LinkBuds Clip truly excel is call quality. Equipped with dual beamforming mics and Sony’s AI-based noise reduction, they deliver some of the clearest voice pickup I’ve heard in open-ear designs. During sidewalk calls in downtown traffic or breezy park walks, my voice came through clean and intelligible on the other end.
This is a major advantage for remote workers, frequent callers, or anyone who takes meetings on the go. Many open-ear competitors struggle with wind noise or background chatter, but Sony’s mic array handles real-world conditions admirably. It’s one of the few areas where the LinkBuds Clip genuinely outperform expectations—and justify part of their premium.
Missing Features Make the Price Hard to Swallow
Here’s the rub: at $229.99, the LinkBuds Clip lack several features now standard in this category. There’s no multipoint Bluetooth connectivity, meaning you can’t seamlessly switch between your phone and laptop. Battery life is average—about 5.5 hours per charge, with an additional 12 from the case—falling short of rivals offering 8+ hours. And while they’re IPX4-rated for sweat and splash resistance, that’s not enough for serious athletes.
Worse, there’s no active noise cancellation (understandable for open-ear buds) and no transparency mode toggle—you’re always in ambient mode, with no way to enhance or reduce environmental sound. Even basic controls feel limited: tap gestures work reliably, but you can’t customize them beyond play/pause and call handling.
Compare that to similarly priced alternatives that offer app-based EQ, longer battery life, or better integration with smart assistants, and the LinkBuds Clip start to feel under-equipped. Sony’s brand reputation and audio heritage carry weight, but they don’t make up for tangible omissions.
Who Should Buy the Sony LinkBuds Clip?
If you prioritize call quality and all-day comfort above all else—and you’re okay with modest audio performance and minimal smart features—the LinkBuds Clip could be a good fit. They’re ideal for urban professionals who walk between meetings, parents who need to hear kids while listening to a podcast, or cyclists who value environmental awareness.
But if you want versatility, longer battery life, or deeper customization, you’ll find better value elsewhere. At $230, these earbuds feel like a premium product missing its premium extras.
Solid Execution, Questionable Value
Sony’s LinkBuds Clip are well-built, comfortable, and deliver excellent call performance—hallmarks of the brand’s engineering strength. Yet in a crowded market of open-ear earbuds, they don’t bring enough innovation or feature depth to stand out. For a company known for pushing boundaries in audio, this feels like a safe, almost cautious release.
They’re not bad earbuds by any stretch. But when you’re spending nearly $230, “not bad” isn’t enough. Unless you’re deeply invested in Sony’s ecosystem or specifically need best-in-class call clarity, it’s worth exploring alternatives that offer more bang for your buck. The LinkBuds Clip are comfortable companions—but they won’t change the game.
