Sony Ear Duo review: After Apple AirPods, another strong player in the wireless headset market

When it comes to wireless headphones, the first product that comes to mind is Apple AirPods. However, many people complained about AirPods before they were released, but changed their minds after using them. With the gradual elimination of the 3.5mm headphone jack on smartphones, wireless Bluetooth headphones have begun to gain popularity. In fact, before the release of AirPods, Sony took the lead in launching the conceptual wireless Bluetooth headset Xperia Ear Duo at the NWC 2017 exhibition. In May of this year, Xperia Ear Duo was finally officially released. So what is the experience of using the mass-produced version of this wireless headset? I was lucky enough to try it out.

Appearance design: humanized and comfortable experience

When I got the Xperia Ear Duo, the first question that came to my mind was how to put it on. The design of the Xperia Ear Duo headphones is completely different from ordinary headphones and even Sony's previous noise-canceling headphones, and the wearing method is also different. Unlike ordinary headphones, all components are stuffed into a hemispherical earplug directly behind the earpiece. The Xperia Ear Duo uses a U-shaped tube to lead from the earpiece worn in the ear to a long strip behind the ear, and all the components of this headset are also located in this long strip. This design also allows the headphones to fit tightly to the ears and not slip off easily, and it also does not affect the user experience of wearing glasses at all. As for the specific wearing method, it is clear at a glance through the renderings of the earphone packaging, provided that the L/R left and right ears are distinguished.

Like most wireless earphones, the Xperia Ear Duo storage box is also a portable wireless charging box. The charging box adopts a round flat design, and the size that can be held in one hand greatly increases portability. At the same time, the charging box is equipped with a battery that can fully charge the earphones three times, and the Xperia Ear Duo can be used for 4 hours when fully charged, which is equivalent to 12 hours of reserve power, and the battery life can reach up to 16 hours. In this way, even if you take the Xperia Ear Duo on a business trip, you don’t have to worry about the problem of power all the time.

In addition, the charging box also provides a fast charging function, which can provide one hour of power support after only 7 minutes of charging. In addition, the Xperia Ear Duo charging box uses a Type-C charging interface. Nowadays, the popularity of Type-C charging interfaces is very high. Basically, you can connect to a Type-C interface when you go out, so there is no need to worry about charging the charging box.

Functional experience: black technology blessing

I believe that earphone enthusiasts all know the term "ambient sound noise control technology". Xperia Ear Duo is also equipped with this technology. So what is the use of this technology? Simply put, the volume of the earphones can be automatically adjusted according to the ambient sound, which is a very user-friendly function in a noisy environment.

Another major feature of Xperia Ear Duo is head movement detection, which can complete almost all headphone functions by nodding and shaking the head. Of course, this function is currently better used to promote black technology, because it is not particularly practical in actual experience, because people often nod and shake their heads inadvertently, which increases the chance of misoperation.

Both the left and right ears of the Xperia Ear Duo headset are equipped with a touch panel. By touching the long panel behind the ear, users can answer calls, change songs, adjust the volume, and activate the phone's voice assistant. Users can also change the operation method through the Xperia Ear Duo headset's exclusive APP, which gives users great convenience.

Xperia Ear Duo earphones use spatial acoustic conductors to move the unit driver to produce sound. Because of the large driver unit, the sound quality of Ear Duo earphones is also among the best in wireless earphones. In the actual call, the sound is clear and smooth, which meets the needs of daily calls. In terms of music, Ear Duo is not inferior to some wired earphones, which is enough to meet the daily needs of most people. Of course, for niche music enthusiasts, the current wireless earphones cannot fully meet their needs, which is also the area that wireless earphones need to overcome in the future development.

In general, Sony Xperia Ear Duo has enough strength to become the main force in the wireless Bluetooth headset market. Its user-friendly design experience and full of black technology can meet the daily needs of most people.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.