ACE IN THE HOLE: Sony LinkBuds WF-L900

The Sony LinkBuds have a hole in the middle, and it turns out that can be a good thing

- Josh Russell

The world is far from short of wireless in-ears but these... are different. These have a hole over your ear canal. On purpose! By deploying a 12mm ‘ring' driver in each earbud, Sony has created an in-ear headphone that doesn't block the wearer's ear. Which means greater awareness of surroundings for the user and reduced inclination to shout at the user for the rest of us.

It's fair to say it takes a few minutes to get used to the sensation of wearing true wireless in-ear headphones and yet not being utterly unaware of sounds that might be happening all around. But once you get accustomed to the amount of ambient sound you receive, there's lots to enjoy about the way the LinkBuds make music.