Now, when it comes to personal audio, as far back as I can remember, Sony has always been the original gangster of the game.

So when looking for the best value for money earbuds. You could go with a lesser-known name or a cheaper option. But listen here real quick. That might be a mistake. 

Because Sony has just released the WF-C510  for £55 & likely around 65 dollars at launch. 

And with the C510 comes a wealth of design and sound design expertise dating back to the early eighties.

So the question is, do the Sony WF C510 carry over tried and true build quality, sound quality & features that we are used to seeing from Sony, even in the lower price bracket?

Well, yes. You'll get definitely get some standout features from Sony. I'm surprised to see & That a lot of other affordable earbuds probably can't compete with. And I'll show you what those are.

And do me a favour. I'm interested to hear what you think about the WF C510 after you've watched this? So let me know in the comments & now...let's get into it.

Design & Style

Colour options here are black, blue, white and yellow. And the finish is a kind of satin Matt.

They're not too dissimilar in shape to the most comfortable bud-style earbuds I've tested here on the channel, the Sony Link buds S. 

And Sony may have carried over some ergonomics from their flagship XM5s to these.

Unlike the XM5, but similar to the linkbuds, the C510s use clear hybrid silicon ear tips, and you get 3 sizes in the box, the mediums pre-installed.

There are some significant hardware differences between the C510s and the more expensive options from Sony, which I'll highlight as we get through this video.

There's no USB C charging cable with this one, but I'm pretty sure you'll have one of those lying around & of course, in the box, you do get Sony's map of Middle Earth,

Ok, it's a joke. It's the standard literature and quick start guide.

The case design is an oblong pill shape with a textured finish and a flat edge of the base, so I won't roll around on a desk. 

It's all a solid colour this time around. The previous version had a semi-translucent lid. So the LED indicator could shine through.

On the 510s, an LED indicator light on the front will change from green to amber to red as the case battery depletes. 

The battery life here in the case is 11hrs, which is not bad, but what's really impressive is the 11hrs battery in the buds. Most flagship buds range from 6 to 8 hrs...and there is a reason why they're that good. We'll come back to that.

A quick charge if the buds in the case will give you ___ playback. A full recharge of the buds is 1.5 hrs, and a full recharge of the case is around 3hrs.

The USB C charging port is on the back, and there is a discrete pairing button. The lid has a nice bit of resistance to it, so it won't flap open easily if you drop it, and it's got a nice little snap-shut to it as you close it.

And yes, the case does pass the cowboy pocket watch pocket test. I call it that because this pocket was initially invented for that.

The case supports pop-up pairing thanks to the Google Fast pair. This also means the last known location can be pinpointed on Google Maps if lost. Also, you can get the individual buds to chime if you lose just one...or both.

Comfort/size and weight

Now, when it comes to all wearable tech, if it's not comfortable to wear, that would be a disaster.

Well, I'm happy to tell you they are very comfortable. This is likely due to the shape and the fact that they're lightweight at just 4.6 grams per bud.

Also, the hybrid silicon rubber tips create an excellent seal that helps them lock into your ears securely.

This means that for most people they would be ideal for running or cycling and for their usual gym activities.

And Sony has managed to get these up to IPX4 rated. So they are resistant to light sprays and rain. They're not submersible, and X in the IPX rating means they're not resistant to fine dust.

Controls & App

Now, let's talk about the hardware. There are no wear detect sensors like the more expensive Sony earbuds. However, when the Buds are placed back in the case, they do an auto shutdown, so that's good.

The C510s use physical buttons on the backs, which don't require a huge amount of force. This is a good thing because when you use the buttons, the silicon tips won't get wedged deeper and deeper into your ears.

These recognise single, double, triple, and repeated taps for volume controls. You do have the option to re-map the inputs in the Sony headphones app.

You can also set up a virtual assistant or AI assistant. So technically, you can control volume and skip tracks without using the buttons at all.

You can also set up Spotify by tapping here. Which is perfect if you're a Spotify user. I'm a Tidal man myself. I love the higher-res stuff; also, you get a good library of 360 reality audio / spatial audio / Dolby Atmos content there.

This brings me nicely to codecs. You get SBC and AAC via BT5.3. AAC is the optimal codec for the sound quality on these, and a nice feature within the app is that you can set it to prioritise sound quality using AAC predominantly. 

Although it's worth knowing that SBC is better for gaming due to the lower bit rate, which gives you less audio lag. Which can be important for FPS games.

Because these use BT5.3, multi-point pairing is possible. So, a laptop and phone can be connected at the same time.

So, if you're working on your laptop or tablet and a call comes in, you can seamlessly answer it on your phone. And on that note

Mic Quality 

Here is how the voice call quality will sound whilst using the C510s. There appear to be 2 mics on the C510, and there will be some noise-cancelling software algorithms to enhance your voice and eliminate background noises. 

So, let's see how good that is. Here's how the C510 mics sound with regular street noise in the background & here's how they'll sound with street noise and wind.

Let me know what you think of the mic performance here.

Sound Quality 

Ok, now one of the things I'm sure you're most interested in knowing is how they actually sound. 

The first thing to know about the C510 is that the frequency response range on these is 20Hz to 20kHz, which is standard for many earbuds and even much more expensive ones.

The C510 uses 6mm drivers, which is what you'd expect in this price range, and, again, even more expensive buds use 6mm drivers.

So my opinion on the sound quality.

They perform particularly well in the mid to high-frequency range. And because of this, you get crisp, clean vocal performance, great detail, and clarity. These opinions are based on the neutral, out-of-the-box EQ. They're quite bright-sounding earbuds by default.

So, if you're into music with many instrumental details and clear vocals. You love these straight away.

But here's where things get a bit more interesting. Sony's headphones app is one of the best out there. In the software, Sony gives you a ton of room to play with the sound signature.

You can use the Find Your Equaliser tool. That takes you through a sound test, like a process of elimination. And it'll create a custom EQ for you.

You can also access Sony's professionally tuned presets and a manual EQ. So, if you're a bass head. You can amp up those low-end frequencies to get more of that booming bass.

Now, these do an excellent job when it comes to bass. But if you want that next-level bass booming bass levels, It might be worth spending a little bit more on the LinkBuds S or XM5s

But, saying that. At the price point, these have a surprising amount of bass and certainly more than enough for most people. 

And the max volume is also more than loud enough for me. This is saying something because I'm that guy with the gaming headset, which was up to a maximum for several hours a day.

So, listen here, the real strength for the C510s, if I could only mention one, is detail... & soundstage.

Standout features 

Here are those Sony features I alluded to in the intro. I think you're going to appreciate these.

Even though these are very affordable earbuds, they do support 360 reality audio. Using the app, you can scan your ears, and it will calibrate the C510s, specifically spatial audio content, based on your ear shape.

And this opens up the soundstage even more. 

The C510s don't have ANC, but they do a surprisingly good job of passive noise cancelling with just the shape and the hybrid silicon tips, and it may actually be too good.

And that's why this feature is so useful. The C510s, unlike the previous C500s, they now support ambient pass-through. 

So, with a tap on the left bud, you can toggle the pass-through mode on and off. This is perfect for anyone who wants to be aware of their surroundings and doesn't want to get hit by a bus.

So that's the Sony WF C510. The £55 price point at launch is quite incredible, in my opinion. But what do you think? Are they worth the asking price? Would they be a good sound investment for you? Let me know.