Could this be the first proper glimpse of the sequel to the Award-winning Sony WF-C500 wireless earbuds? According to The Walkman Blog, itself taking intel from a leak from X (Twitter) user Arsène Lupin, the follow-up to our favourite budget wireless earbuds on the market is set to be the logically-named Sony WF-C510. The leaks and rumours include pictures showing a pair of buds that seem to share much of the same design DNA as the current model.
That said, there are some notable external differences. Using overlapped photos comparing the current and incoming generations, The Walkman Blog demonstrates that the C510 will be smaller than the C500, with a flattened exterior button alongside two on-bud holes; one for the voice mic and another possibly for sound pressure equalisation.
The leak reveals some key specifications for the impending budget earbuds, including a battery life of up to 22 hours (11 from the buds and 11 from the case), figures which slightly improve on the 20-hour total offered by our current Award-winners. For the rumoured C510, a quick five-minute charge will offer up to an hour of playback, halving the time it takes for the same return when using the C500.
What we've also seen teased have been improved clarity and sonic performance, though any further details regarding where that performance will come from or how it will manifest remain scarce. Considering it's implemented into practically every pair of the brand's buds, Sony's DSEE upscaling tech will likely make a return with the C510, although we haven't yet heard mention of any specific codec support.
New features for Sony's budget line appear to be incoming. Bluetooth Multipoint is rumoured to be supported for the new C510, as well as an ambient sound mode, though purely active noise cancelling still won't be on the cards at this ultra-budget end – why make a key feature of the superb step-up WF-C700N somewhat redundant by offering it to customers for less money?
The new buds are set to be IPX4 certified, the same rating as the current model. That's a slight shame, as this could have been an area in which Sony could have made improvements to the new buds' resilience, but perhaps resources didn't stretch to any great overhauls to waterproofing and durability. The rumours also suggest that three colours will likely be available as standard: black, white and a pale yellow, with a possible blue shade coming to select markets.
There's no update on pricing yet, but we imagine Sony will attempt to stick to the C500's budget pricing in order to keep its new buds competitive. The C500 were tested at £89 / $79 / AU$149 but have fallen substantially in recent months, and we're hoping that Sony won't put prices up too much, if at all, when the C510 finally arrive.
When will these potential new Sony WF-C510 become available? The C500 arrived in late September of 2021, so the sequel could be officially unveiled in the third quarter of the year – if they plan to release this year, that is. We'll be keeping an eye on further rumours and concrete details on these potential budget earbuds.
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