We have seen a fair share of headphones and earphones geared towards specific target audiences. Sony’s take on making an athletic-friendly headphone goes in a direction that one wouldn’t expect. No, it isn’t those bone-conduction-concept-headphones. While sure, it does look like one, it functions differently. These are the Sony Float Run Headphones.

Sony Float Run Headphones Malaysia

Sony Float Run Headphones

Let’s address the elephant in the room before we dive into the hardware. The Sony Float Run Headphones have this around-the-ear-style similar to the WI-1000’s or more specifically the athletic-focused Walkman NW-WS413 in-ears. But here’s what’s different from that Walkman: the Sony Float Run Headphone is an off-ear headphone, that has drivers positioned near your ear – so think of it as a speaker near your ears, without touching your ear canal.

This is an interesting design choice, given that the entire design of it doesn’t look too obtrusive or get in the way of a person’s workout. It also sits securely with the loop, which goes behind the ear. It holds the battery and the controls. It weighs only about 33 grams.

Now onto the hardware. It houses a 16mm driver tuned specifically with the off-ear style in mind – giving a more natural and wider sound stage, retaining a good sound quality. The open-type design eliminates the sound our body makes, which is something a bone conduction headphone, doesn’t. It offers up to 10 hours of playtime, IPX4 certification and a quick 10 minutes charge capable of giving an hour of playback. Most importantly, it charges via USB-C.

Pricing and Availability

These Sony Float Run Headphones are priced at RM 599 and will be available starting May 2023 in Malaysia. That said, it does seem to be the kind of contender against some athletic-centric audio gears. We will check it out when the time comes.