Sony INZONE Buds Review: Powerful ANC With Connectivity Flaws

INZONE is Sony’s gaming gear brand offering products like TWS earbuds, headphones, and monitors, specifically targeted at gamers. This is distinct from the PlayStation and its accessories that Sony also manufactures.

Generally, gamers prefer over-ear wired headphones for voice chat during gameplay. However, the Sony INZONE Buds are here to challenge this norm. The Sony INZONE Buds are the brand's true wireless gaming earbuds designed for PC and PS5 gamers, but they can also be used with your smartphone. We have been using them for over a week now, and here’s our review.

Design and Build

The INZONE buds case is lightweight and feels like a feather in your hand. It sits easily on flat surfaces like your office desk or bed. The case resembles a ring box; it is not quite a rectangle but more like a trapezium. It is chunkier than the AirPods Pro or other earbud cases to carry in your pocket, though the weight distribution is well-balanced. 

We received the black colour, which is subtle and has a matte finish. If you own a PlayStation 5 and are a fan of its white and black colour combination, don’t miss out on checking the white variant.

The case has a mini-LED light on the front, a Type-C charging port, and a button on the back. It houses two INZONE earbuds and a USB-C dongle.

The earbuds look chunkier, with the earpiece slightly tilted at an angle that fits perfectly into the ear. Both earbuds have a large touch area and a big microphone grille. The design allowed us to use these earbuds for prolonged periods without any irritation.

These earbuds are IPX4 rated, meaning they can handle your sweaty workout sessions and light rain.

Connectivity and Software

The Sony INZONE TWS earbuds are not your regular buds that connect via Bluetooth as soon as you remove them from the case. Instead, you have to plug the wireless Type-C dongle into your device and choose between PS/mobile phone or PC. They can connect via Bluetooth, but only for devices that support Bluetooth LE audio. Unfortunately, most devices in India, including ours, do not support this codec, making Bluetooth connectivity useless for us.

You can plug the 2.4GHz wireless dongle into any Android phone. However, if you have anything less than an iPhone 15 Series device, be prepared to purchase a USB-C to Lightning cable. The MacBook Air M1 thankfully has a Type-C port, but the ASUS Vivobook 15 OLED doesn’t, so we had to purchase another connector. You might wonder why we didn't just use them on the MacBook, right?

To unlock the full features of the Sony INZONE Buds, you need to download the INZONE Hub software, which is limited to Windows PC. So, if you use them on a Mac, smartphone, PS5, or any other device, their functions will be limited.

The INZONE Hub allows you to alter the sound profile, noise-cancelling settings, dynamic control, microphone level, and volume. You can also set Sony's spatial sound feature, which we skipped because the process was too complicated. It first asked us to create a Sony account, then download an app, and finally take pictures of our ears for audio calibration.

Performance

Sound Quality

The Sony INZONE Buds pack 8.4mm drivers, the same as the WF-1000XM5 earbuds, so you can expect a similar audio experience. Our overall music listening experience on a smartphone and PC was delightful, with no major distortion. On PC, the earbuds offer two modes: game and chat. For a better listening experience, we recommend the former.

The INZONE Buds have a warm sound profile, focusing less on bass and more on vocals. The details are reproduced well and sound crisp. The earbuds manage to distinguish all three spectrums (mids, lows, and highs) very well.

We watched the anime "Your Name (Kimi No Na Wa)" and found the voice quality excellent. These earbuds are also a good companion for watching podcasts or movies.

A weird thing we noticed was that when playing audio in PC game mode, we had to adjust the volume directly from the music app instead of using the volume shortcut keys.

The INZONE Buds feature Sony’s signature Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) technology. If you have used the WF-1000XM5, you know what we mean. To switch between ANC and ambient mode, you need to single-tap the left earbud. When used indoors, the earbuds cancelled out fan noise and kitchen utensils. During our metro ride, they didn’t completely cancel out people’s chatter but reduced it to a good extent.

Gaming Experience

While playing Red Dead Redemption 2 on the PS5, we could distinguish the sound of horse footsteps and gunfire. Similarly, in Uncharted, the footsteps of the two main characters were clearly distinguishable, along with all the surrounding sounds. We turned on the 3D sound, but the changes were less noticeable compared to stereo audio. Sony claims that the INZONE buds provide less than 30ms latency over a USB dongle connection, which we can vouch for.

Mic Quality

The Sony INZONE Buds have a big microphone grille on each earbud. We used them to talk to other players during games and phone calls. The receiver could understand our words but complained that our voice was muffled and not very clear. In short, the microphones of these earbuds are okay but not as good as a gaming headset microphone.

Battery Life and Charging

The Sony INZONE Buds lasted 11 hours and 36 minutes with ANC turned on over a USB dongle connection, more than Sony claims. You can also get up to 24 hours of battery life over a Bluetooth connection if your phone supports the LE codec.

The case requires two hours to fully charge. Thanks to its excellent battery life, we charged it only once a week. However, the provided cable is too short, so we used our phone’s Type-C charging cable.

Verdict

The Sony INZONE Buds are some of the best gaming earbuds we have tried. The Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), sound quality, battery life, and low latency are top-tier. These earbuds are meant for gaming but can easily beat several competitors in overall music experience. However, connectivity remains a concern; the limitation of the Windows app and Bluetooth connectivity means you miss out on major features and will occupy one of your Type-C ports. The spatial audio is also nothing extraordinary.

Six months after its launch, the Sony INZONE Buds are selling for Rs 17,990 on Amazon India. At this price, these are the best gaming earbuds that you can also use for content consumption.