At the MWC in 2017, Sony unveiled a concept product Xperia Ear Open-style CONCEPT in the exhibition area. The unique wearing style and the mirror design that caught the eye have left a deep impression on me. After a year, Sony officially launched its production version, and changed its name to Xperia Ear Duo, the Bank of China is priced at 1599 yuan.
The Xperia Ear series headphones are designed to fit into the user's life and help users better handle their daily affairs. So the Xperia Ear Duo has an open design that allows users to listen to music without missing the ambient sound. If you are just looking for a A true wireless headset for everyday commuting, then Ear Duo is definitely worth your attention.
Different true wireless headphones
When it comes to true wireless headphones, 80% of people will be the first to think of Apple's AirPods, the shape is to remove the wired headset, and then reserve a certain space for the battery. But if we do not follow the evolution of the headset, do not comply Inertial thinking, what should the shape of a true wireless headset look like? Sony gave us an interesting answer.
The sound drive unit of the general earphone is closely connected with the earplug. The sound of the drive unit directly transmits the sound to the wearer's ear. The difference between the Ear Duo is that the sound drive unit and the earphone are separated, and the middle pass Stereo catheters are connected.
Sony's design is not for the sake of technology. The "Stereo Tubing" solves two problems. One is that the separate design allows the earplug part to be considered for comfort and stability. The drive unit does not occupy the pinna. Space, so wearing it for a long time does not make people feel pain in the ears. In addition, the "stereo catheter" is also the main solution to achieve the "double listening" effect. When you first wear the Ear Duo to listen to music, you will Obviously, the sound is not directly transmitted into your ear like a normal earphone, but the intersection of the left and right sounds is on the top of the head, the vocals are clear and translucent, and the bass drum is also very shocking. I can hardly imagine that it can be worn on the head. On the headphones, get such a wonderful sense of hearing.
It is precisely because Ear Duo adopts this characteristic "stereo catheter" design, which makes his wearing style a little special. At first it seems even a little troublesome. Sony officially provides the way to wear it with one hand first. The earlobe, then use the other hand to clip the earphone from bottom to top, and finally adjust the position of the earplug to fit the ear.
Although the officially provided wearing method is the easiest to get started, it is not the fastest. In fact, when you use it a few times, you can find a one-handed wearing method that suits you. I am used to wearing the same way as a general earphone. Put on the earplugs, then plug the ears out of the gap in the middle of the catheter. It sounds a bit painful, but it's okay.
In addition, in order to cater to different users, Sony also offers a total of three sizes of silicone ring brackets. The silicone bracket interface has a spiral and snap design, the connection is strong enough, no need to worry.
As for the storage box, Ear Duo is not equipped with a cylindrical shape storage box like the previous generation, but made a round cake type, like the powder cake that my girlfriend usually uses. This makes it a bit large, if you Usually like to wear more slim jeans, it may take you a separate pocket.
Of course, the larger storage box should also have a larger battery capacity. Ear Duo's battery life can support you to listen to music for 4 hours in a row. The storage box can last for 4 times, so it can be used for 16 hours. If the headset is out of power at the critical time, put it in the storage box for 7 minutes and listen to an hour of music. This is the data provided by Sony's official website. During the actual experience, you will find that this data is more conservative, actual life. And the charging speed will be better.
Daily commuter best companion
During the two weeks I experienced Ear Duo, I almost always put it on as soon as I went out. As long as I forget it at home, I feel that there is something missing in my life. It not only brings me A new way to listen to music, and the features it provides are enough to keep me using it all the time.
At present, Sony has updated the software version of the National Bank version of Ear Duo. The new version provides the Assistant function, users need to download the microphone to work with it. When you follow the prompts to complete the pairing settings, you can activate Caller name reading and voice notification function. In other words, when you wear the headset, you can not only hear the caller's name, but also read the phone notification.
You can set up notifications for which apps you want to listen to in Ear Duo's app, such as weather, WeChat, email, news aggregation apps, etc. So you can hear early news when you go out in the morning, weather conditions Wait, if someone sends you a WeChat, you can also listen to the sender's name and the content of the message through Ear Duo.
Of course, the voice assistant function can't be less. You can call out the voice assistant by long-pressing the touchpad of the right earphone. For Apple users, you can wake up Siri directly, while Android users can directly use the voice assistant that comes with the system. For example, a small love classmate. As for the Sony mobile phone users need to choose a third-party voice assistant to use, the official recommendation of the microphone, can achieve voice calls to someone, send WeChat; navigate to the specified destination; open a certain Application, then perform a function, etc.
Think about it, when you drive fast on the highway, the phone is on the stand to help you navigate, then a colleague's WeChat, you want to take a look at the phone to see if it was yesterday's report. There is a problem, but there is no time to watch the phone on the high speed. At this time, if you wear the Ear Duo all the problems will be solved.
It is worth mentioning that Ear Duo also supports adaptive volume control. When you are on the subway, you definitely want the volume to be louder, because it can cover the noise of the wheel across the track, but when you get off the subway The ambient sound becomes quiet, naturally it does not need the headphones to continue to play at a high volume. Ear Duo can intelligently recognize the ambient sound, dynamically adjust the volume of the headphones, and always provide the most appropriate volume, which is very intimate.
In terms of interaction, the Ear 2 earphones are equipped with a touchpad, and the left earpad can realize all media playback functions. Click once, select play/pause, double click to enter the next track, and tap three times to go back. One song, long press to activate the voice assistant, swipe up/down to adjust the volume. The right ear touchpad is mainly used for user customization, except that the gesture of swiping up/down does not support customization, other tap gestures can be used.
Interestingly, Sony also implements the head motion control headset by calling the sensor. When a call comes in, you can nod your head and answer it. You can also turn your head and turn back to the center to adjust to the next one. Song, to the left, you can return to the previous song.
This kind of interaction is interesting, but it is not very useful in actual use. The first is that it is a bit silly to do these head movements in a crowded place. The second is to turn on this function, and occasionally there will be mistakes, such as others. I touched you on the shoulder and said hello. When you look back, you suddenly cut the song.
Experience summary
As an open-type earphone, Ear Duo does what it should, such as not being isolated from the outside world, and able to communicate with people when wearing it. It provides natural wearing comfort and is suitable for all-weather use. Sony has also done better, such as the special wireless headset style, the distinctive listening, the feature-rich voice assistant and so on.
All in all, Ear Duo is a product that I am satisfied with. It fits into my daily life. I even wear it when I don't listen to music, use it to receive notifications, or answer calls. Just like many cables Like a joke, you buy more than just a headset, and an all-day personal assistant.