Personal sound directly from the shoulders – Sony HT-AN7 Bravia Theatre U
This article was originally published in the issue of AVPlus magazine 4/2024 (#228).
Text Heikki Kivelä Photos Teppo Hirvikunnas & The Producer
There are definitely situations where you would like to be both aware of your surroundings while also immersing yourself in it without being disturbed, even while watching a movie. The solution does exist, and it is quite unique in its own way!
Sometimes you’d like to watch a movie or series episode in peace until the end, even though you should already be quiet, but the headphones block too much ambient noise or press on your ears. Sony has realized this market segment and is bringing the personal audio solution named Bravia Theatre U to the market, which has a distinct charm. In fact, it’s a wireless audio device that’s placed on the user’s neck-chest area. As if it were a heart headphones/speakers?
In its own way, the idea is brilliant. The elements that are close enough to the ears radiate sound only upwards, allowing the volume to remain relatively moderate, but on the other hand, all ambient sounds are heard in the same way as without headphones.
The price of the device is preliminarily around 300 euros, which means that it might not even be such a costly investment for the user who specifically needs a device of this type. But will it perform at the price level required?
Basically, like headphones
Actually, the Bravia Theatre U is like any other wireless headphones, with the difference that instead of being placed in the ears, it is placed on the shoulders. The device weighs only 268 grams, so it doesn’t really weigh much while in use during longer viewing sessions. The part that comes in contact with the skin has cushions that feel quite comfortable, but I’d rather have them on under a shirt than on bare skin. The device stays in place well even when moving, but I wouldn’t recommend it for exercise.
The device's 44 x 32 millimeter speaker elements are located at the top of the side cases, and the sound radiates directly into the user's ears from them. In our tests, we found that the device required a slight tilt to reproduce the sound in the most balanced and pleasant way. The phenomenon is again the same as when placing the earphone in place.
A connection between the audio source and the device is possible either via the already somewhat older version 5.2 Bluetooth or via a cable. The retail package includes a cable with a compatible 3.5 mm connector and a USB-C adapter that is about a meter long. The wired connection is useful, for example, when there is no need for any delay in the audio, for example when playing games.
The device’s battery life when using Bluetooth is approximately 12 hours with moderate volume, and the full battery takes about four hours to charge. There is also a quick charge option, and with about 10 minutes of charging, you can get an hour of listening time.
In use
The Sony Bravia Theatre U is, in the manufacturer's typical style, a fairly minimalist package, at least in terms of the sales packaging, but everything still works without any superfluous frills. It comes with a short, about 25-centimeter-long charging cable and the aforementioned audio cable for wired use, as well as the user manual. There is no travel case or the like included in the package.
The device connects to audio sources in the same way as any wireless Bluetooth headphones, so there was nothing extraordinary to be noticed in this test. The set is controlled and its features are adjusted using the Sony Headphones Connect app, which works well in its series.
In our tests, we found that Bravia Theatre U works surprisingly well in hands-free mode, and it could in a way be a good option for office work, where you want to both hear your surroundings and talk on the phone in a relatively private way.
There is also support for surround sound mode, but this is limited to only certain Sony Bravia TVs. Thus, the feature remains largely unavailable unless a compatible hardware set-up is found in the home.
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