Sony’s Float Run Earbuds Offer a Unique Take on Your Listening Experience
Wireless headphones have become a fairly common product on the market in recent years. We’ve seen them go on-ear, over-ear, and now off-the-ear is the latest venture from brands. Sony is a big name in audio with the WH and WF-1000 series headphones and earbuds, which are market leaders.
Now, the Japanese giant is all set to play with different shapes, which is why we are launching the new Float Run earbuds at Rs 10,990. Premium headphones have to offer quality sound, comfort and durability to last a few days. Does the new Sony Float Run tick those boxes and still provide a refreshing twist for listeners? We used the headphones for more than a few weeks, and here’s what we found.
Unique Twist To Earbuds design
The first thing you notice about the Float Run is the unique design. It has a band that goes over the neck when the ear studs (white) are off the ear. Sony claims that these headphones focus on comfort with a lightweight design, and they generally agree with those reviews.
The rubber finish on the band and grip seems solid, and we don’t think it’s going to fall apart any time soon. On one side of the rim are the controls, which can be difficult to control when wearing the Float Run in your ears.
The name of the product suggests that Sony is targeting the running clan, and we put it to the test during our own runs to see if the headphones can serve as a reliable option in this segment. The form factor has a definite learning curve just because the ear buds hang in front of the ears.
Sound matters, but what else?
The fact that Sony has chosen an off-the-ear design means that the sound has a different perspective on the user. You can hear everything around you and still enjoy the music through Float Run. The headphones don’t support any level of noise cancellation, so it’s safe to say that Sony has given us the best possible version of transparency mode that doesn’t stand in between you and the ambient sound.
The earbuds have a 16mm driver, but you can’t adjust the settings because the Float Run doesn’t support the Connect app, which feels a bit limiting for these headphones.
When we tested the headphones, we found that listening to music and talking to another person can be a fun experience because your voice is much louder than you want it to sound.
A new effort that needs more tweaks to work
It’s interesting to see how brands experiment with new form factors, but Sony’s effort feels like a first-generation product. The Sony Float Run is priced at Rs 10,990 and therefore the music part feels limiting, although you can reliably use them for calls and the battery life increases as some features are not available. We’re happy to see new experiments, and we can’t wait to see what Sony has to offer with the second-generation Float Run and see if it has enough takers, just because they want something nice to run with music in their ears.
