A new Sony wireless headset, the YY2952 has just been certified (update 3)

 A new headset from Sony has appeared on Korea's FCC, the YY2952. Very little information exists about it, except that it is manufactured in Vietnam. I believe only a few of Sony's headsets have been manufactured there, the rest in Malaysia, some in China. 

The only recent headphones are the WH-CH710N, WH-CH510, and WF-XB700. Out of these 3, the oldest is the WH-CH510, then the WH-CH710N and finally last year's WF-XB700. The codename scheme follows the previous headphones, but swaps out HDX for YY. For example the WH-1000XM4 was codenamed HDX-2943, the WH-CH710N the HDX-2947. It looks like the WF-1000XM4 is the first to move to the new names, codenamed YY2948. This means the new YY2952 device could easily be a headband headset, in-ear or even TWS.

My guess is we are probably looking at replacement for the either the WH-CH510 or the WH-XB900N. The current WH-XB900N was/is manufactured in China but Sony could have moved its production to Vietnam for the new generation.

So whatever this is, it will probably come later this year, and if it appears on the FCC or some other certification body, we should know more about it.

Update 3

The headset has appeared on Bluetooth SIG, confirming the Bluetooth 5.0 spec. The certification also seems to confirm that it is using an Airoha Bluetooth chipset, either AB153x or AB156x. It could either, since it is not specified which one is being used.

Update 2

The headset has finally showed up on the FCC, and it looks like it is another TWS headset. The short term confidentiality ends on November 28th 2021, but as we saw with the WF-1000XM4, this can change, but I would imagine we might see the headset in Q4 of this year, if the date does not change. If Sony changes the date, then possibly late Q3 reveal.

The antenna is FPCB (flexible Printed Circuit Board Antenna),  the Bluetooth version is 5.0. There is mention of no NFC, but not sure if this is in reference to the case or earbuds. Likewise we know that his new model will be made in Vietnam, so probably a lower end model. I do not expect Sony to use the MT2822S SoC here, perhaps we will see an Airoha one or maybe even Sony using the current MT2811.

The FCC documents includes the following information:

Surface on Earbuds is round shape and there are limited space.If approval mark/number is displayed headphones, the letters must be very small, looks distorted and it’s not legible. Therefore, we would like to omit approval mark/number on Earbuds and display as follows;display on charging case and IM and User Manual.

So these new earbuds look to be quite small, the shape/design might follow the WF-1000XM4 judging from the drawing in the documents we can see. Whatever they are, they will carry a WF model number since in the filing the following is noted:

There  are  two  model  names  for  this  product.  These  two  models  have  the  same  hardware  structure  and  functions,  and only the model was divided for the purpose of marketing.

So unlike before when Sony would just use the model name in the filing, this time, Sony has moved to internal codes like other companies to hide the model, clever and sneaky. There are 2 more photos, the case and part of the box. The charging case looks to be rather thing and long, along the lines of the WF-1000XM3 case. The packaging also mentions black as one of the colour option. Will be interesting where this model will sit or what it will replace. Now if we could only get another leak of the retail packaging here as well. So thoughts? Are we looking at a WF-XB700 replacement or something completely new? Any other ideas? If anyone has any information, please leave a comment or contact me.

Update 1

The YY2952 has appeared on Canada's certification site. No FCC appearance yet, but I suspect it could be this week. The only thing that caught my eye is the Lab information.

Certified By: TIMCO Engineering Inc.
Wireless Lab: CTK Co. Ltd
SAR Lab: OneTech Corp.

The exact same certification labs were used fore WF-XB700, WH-CH510, WH-CH710N, WI-XB400, WI-SP510, WH-CH500, WH-CH400, WI-C300. All of these products have one thing in common, where they are manufactured, Vietnam.

The WI-C310 and WI-C200, moved their production to China and subsequently the lab also changed.

Certified By: American Certification Body INC.
Wireless Lab: Audix Technology (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd

So it is a good chance we have the new WH-CH520 here, perhaps a small chance of a new WF-XB700, maybe some upgrade? A new WH-CH720N is also possible, a replacement for the WI-SP510, the WI-SP520 or perhaps a new WI-XB400. Place your bets everyone.