They’re official! Sony finally takes the wraps off its WF-C710N budget wireless earbuds

Sony WF-C710N earbuds lined up in different finishes

(Image credit: Sony)

We’ve been hearing rumblings and covering leaks about Sony’s WF-C710N wireless earbuds for some time, and now they are finally official.

Promising improved noise-cancelling, longer battery life and new touch controls, the new model will be looking to pick up where its predecessor, the five-star WF-C700N, left off.

The older model is our current What Hi-Fi? Product of the Year in the wireless earbuds category, so it’s fair to say the WF-C710N buds have some pretty big shoes to fill.

You may like

Priced at £100 / €120 (which was the original price of the older model), Sony claims the WF-C710N includes several improvements and new features compared to its predecessor.

Sony has added two mics to each earbud in a bid to improve noise-cancelling and make it more realistic and accurate.

Total battery life for the new buds (including the charging case) is up to 40 hours with ANC off and 30 hours with it on. Battery life for the new buds with ANC turned on is 8.5 hours compared to 7.5 hours on the older model.

From the images (our review sample is in the post) it appears the design has been tweaked too, with a slightly larger body for each earbud. Also, Sony has removed the control buttons on the surface of the WF-C700N and introduced a touch control surface on the WF-C710N.

This opens up access to a wide range of features such as playback controls, volume controls, and virtual assistant support (in this case, Google Gemini and Apple Siri).

The WF-C710N support Bluetooth 5.3 and SBC and AAC codecs. There's still no aptX or LDAC support, which will be seen as a bit of a surprise by some.

Other features for the buds include precise voice pick-up technology for clearer phone calls, Bluetooth Multipoint so you can have two devices connected simultaneously and an IPX4 rating.

There's also a striking new transparent finish which Sony is calling 'glass blue', which is making its debut on the earbuds, together with black, white and pink options.

According to Sony, the WF-C710N use the same Digital Sound Enhancement Engine (DSEE) for audio processing and the same 5mm driver as the WF-C700N, so we’ll be interested to hear if anything has changed regarding sound quality.

MORE:

Our pick of the best wireless earbuds for every budget

And the best cheap wireless headphones

I can’t wait for new flagship Sony wireless earbuds – but I’m more excited about its leaked cheaper pair

TOPICS

Andy is Deputy Editor of What Hi-Fi? and a consumer electronics journalist with nearly 20 years of experience writing news, reviews and features. Over the years he's also contributed to a number of other outlets, including The Sunday Times, the BBC, Stuff, and BA High Life Magazine. Premium wireless earbuds are his passion but he's also keen on car tech and in-car audio systems and can often be found cruising the countryside testing the latest set-ups. In his spare time Andy is a keen golfer and gamer.