Sony has always been well-known for its audio products. Right from the introduction from the first Walkman to today's Hi-Fi music players, the company has been played an instrumental role in the audio industry.
But as amazing as Sony's products are, they have (and continue to) face competition from rivals such as JBL, Sennheiser, Bose and others. The company recently launched the MDR XB50BS, a new in-ear headphones aimed specifically at sports enthusiasts. We've been using the headphones for a while now, and here's our review.
DesignWith big in-ear modules, Sony MDR XB50BS are definitely a bit on the heavier side. But once you start using them routinely, you'll realize that the hefty size also causes them to stay in the ears for a longer duration. Being Bluetooth-capable, there's no hassle of audio jacks and tangling cables either.
The MDR-XB50BS comes with a four sets of differently-sized ear tips, and we found the smallest ones to be the most comfortable. They have a rubberized flat-finish cable, which doesn't tangle as easily as normal cables do. Talking about the design, the right earpiece has 3 buttons - volume up, volume down and power/pause button, along with the micro-USB charging port - on the underside. This makes it easier to access them. There's even a built-in microphone for hands free calling.
PerformanceWe found pairing the MDR XB50BS to be a simple affair, as they are easily detected by other devices. On the downside, you have to reset them every time you need to connect them to another device as there's no multi-device connectivity. During our testing, the built-in mic worked really well for handling calls and the audio out
The built-in rechargeable battery takes about an hour to get charged. Once fully charged, it lasted for around eight hours during our usage, which we think is pretty good. With an IPX4 rating, the in-ear headphones are splash-resistant as well.
As far as the audio quality is concerned, we found the Sony MDR XB50BS to be pretty impressive. Having 12mm high-performance drivers and a frequency response of 4Hz-24kHz, the in-ear headphones manage to deliver a pretty balanced sound output. Overall audio quality stays good even when the in-ear headphones are used on almost the edge of the Bluetooth range.
We found the bass to be pretty impactful and mids to be crisp. Noise cancellation and treble were commendable too.
VerdictThe Sony MDR XB50BS is a good option if you are looking to buy a well-rounded pair of wireless in-ear headphones. We have no complaints about the audio output, the Bluetooth connectivity works perfectly and call handling is great as well. However, the price tag of Rs 5,490 may be a little steep for some potential buyers.
For those looking at alternatives, you may go for Skullcandy Method In-Ear Wireless Headphones available at Rs 4,599.
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