Sony WF-C510 (YY2982) Leaked (Update 4)

Sony's upcoming budget earbuds have leaked a few days ago. The leak reveals the model name, WF-C510, which is not a surprise. The leak is thanks to Twitter user MysteryLupin.

The leak shows 3 colours, black, white and yellow. From my earlier post, we know there will also be a blue model but this colour could be limited to only certain markets.

Not to scale

Looking at the charging case first, we can see Sony has changed up the design quite a bit. The design remains long and flat, but the case cover is no longer transparent, and the sides of the case are less curved. The LED remains in the front but is positioned lower down. The back of the case has the USB type-C port and a pairing button. While difficult to see from the photo below, the block diagram did show only 2 contacts, ground and 5V. so we probably only have 2 contacts per earbud.

The leak also reveals a few specifications:

• Battery life up to 22 hours (11 hours earbuds + 11 hours case)
• 5 minute quick charge provides up to 1 hour of playback
  
• Multipoint support
• Ambient sound mode
• IPX4 certified
• Improved clarity and sound
• Spotify Tap support

There is no mention of LE Audio support, so unknown if it will be supported. The battery life has increased by one extra hour and the quick charge is faster compared to the WF-C500. I do not believe this model will come with fast charging. I would expect we will see EQ and DSEE as well.

Turning to the headset, the design is very different to Sony's other earbuds. The leak only shows the white and yellow in larger size. If anything the design is closer to the WH-CH720N with the flat button. On the sides, we can see 2 holes in the body, one for the voice mic and the other most likely the sound pressure equalization hole. Do recall though that in my previous post, the block diagram for the earbuds did show FF&Talk for the mic, but none of the leaked photos mention any NC. So perhaps this NC is only for calls?  

The WF-C500 had a 5.8mm driver, will be interesting if Sony increased the size or made it smaller. My bet is that the WF-C510 uses the WF-C700N driver, which has a 5mm driver.

And here we have a size comparison with the WF-C500. I used the tips as my size reference.

Sony WF-C500 versus WF-C510 (yellow)

The new model is much smaller, which should translate to less weight and improved comfort when using the earbuds for extended periods of time.

Comparing the WF-C510 to the WF-C700N, the size difference is not as drastic. Owning the WF-C700N, I suspect the WF-C510 will be very comfortable to use and very light. The WF-C500 weigh 5.4g per earbud, and the WF-C700N weigh 4.6g per earbud. We could see a WF-C510 weight of about 4.4 to 4.5g per earbud.

Sony WF-C510 (yellow) versus WF-C700N

One worrisome information from the leak could be that there is no USB type-C cable in the box, if we are to believe this photo.

Nella scatola (using Google translate), means "in the Box", and we do not see any USB cable, only the case, the different tips and the earbuds. While one could argue that a USB cable is not necessary as most users will have one at home, and this cuts down on e-waste. Hopefully lack of a cable will be reflected in a lower price, but I am not holding my breath.

With the leak appearing this early, perhaps we might see an announcement soon, but the FCC short term confidentiality date ends on September 25th. But Sony has revealed models earlier than their end dates. While I do not need another set of earbuds, I might grab these if they are cheap enough to compare them to the WF-C500 and WF-C700N.

Forgot to mention, looking at various retailers, the WF-C500 appear to be discounted most likely to move old stock and make room for the new WF-C510.

Update 4: 23-8-2024

UK pricing, around 49 GBP. The UK will have all 4 colours.

Update 3: 16-8-2024

We finally a date of availability thanks to a new leak, August 25th. The price in Germany will be 59,95 Euros. We also have new photos of the closed case in all 4 colours.

Update 2: 13-8-2024

More photos and more information thanks to another retailer leak. The Bluetooth version is 5.3 with AAC and SBC codec support. There is no LC3 audio support. 

There is equalizer support, along with clear bass and DSEE. Interesting enough we have echo and noise cancellation, most likely for voice calls. Support for 360 Reality Audio is also present. The IPX4 rating we already know, but the new leak reveals the driver size of 6mm. Weight is 4.6g per earbud, with the case around 35g. The leak also confirms the battery capacity from the FCC filing, 70mAh in each earbud and 300mAh in the case.

This new leak also confirms the lack of the USB cable. We have a new price, 59.90 Euros, which is not decent. Finally, the blue colour is finally revealed.

Update: 13-8-2024

We now have a retail price from an Italian retailer. See here, here and here. We are looking at around 50 to 52 Euros in Italy. This price includes VAT, which is 22% I believe. Without VAT, it would be around 42 Euros.

For comparison the WF-C500 on that same retailer is 49 Euros, so we could be looking at a price similar to the WF-C500 or a bit above. In German the WF-C500 costs 59 Euros right now, the WF-C700N is 89 Euros. So we could be looking at a price anywhere from 50 to 65 Euros for the new model. Likewise, it seems that this Italian site lacks the yellow colour option.

Source: Twitter