Soundcore, Anker’s audio brand, has mostly lived in the budget-to-midrange world, but with its new Liberty 5 Pro earbuds, it’s aiming at the big guys. The two new earbuds — the Liberty 5 Pro and Liberty 5 Pro Max — use Anker’s new Thus chip, which has more processing power than previous Soundcore earbuds to try and compete with the chips found in Apple, Sony, and Bose products. And that extra processing power gives the Liberty 5 Pro the best in-call noise canceling I’ve heard in any earbuds.
Technology
Anker’s new earbuds’ call quality is ridiculously good
Previously, the highest-priced Soundcore earbuds (not counting the sleep buds) were the Liberty 4 Pro at $150, but the Liberty 5 Pro are $170 and the Liberty 5 Pro Max are $230. That’s reaching into AirPods Pro 3 territory. Price differences within a product line usually mean different earbud designs, like the open-ear AirPods 4 with ANC versus the sealed AirPods Pro 3. But the Liberty 5 Pro and 5 Pro Max earbuds are exactly the same. They have the same chip, 9.2mm drivers, microphone array, ANC performance, sound profile, battery life, IP55 rating, and overall features. The only difference is the case.
$170
The Good
- Incredible call quality
- Great ANC
- Useful case screen
The Bad
- Default sound profile needs tweaking
The 5 Pro case has an angled 0.96-inch TFT screen on the front that can be used to change settings like ANC, sound profiles, speak-to-chat, and Dolby head tracking. Everything that can be done on the screen can be done in the Soundcore app too, so it’s just preference if you want to take out the case or your phone.
The 1.78-inch AMOLED screen for the 5 Pro Max case is on its sliding top. In addition to the capabilities of the 5 Pro case, you can adjust the screen brightness or change the wallpaper, as well as access a feature that sets the 5 Pro Max apart from its less-expensive sibling: a microphone and an AI note-taking app. You can record audio directly to the case, which has 357MB of storage, then transfer it to your phone where you can generate a transcription and summary in the Soundcore app. (It does require a Soundcore account.)
The file can be edited in the Soundcore app or exported (audio as an MP3, and the transcript and summary as .txt, Markdown, .docx, or PDF file). The transcription can differentiate between different speakers and in my testing I found it to be very accurate, both with who was speaking and with what they were saying. If you’re someone who needs to record classes or meetings regularly it’s a useful feature, especially since it doesn’t require your headphones to be in. But beyond the larger screen, it’s the only major thing that sets the 5 Pro Max apart from the 5 Pro.
The earbuds look similar to the Bose Ultra Earbuds with a wide, chunky outer body, but they don’t feel that way in the ear. As opposed to the bulbous housing of the Bose, the Liberty 5’s housing slims down, allowing for a better fit while also making them easier to hold onto. They’re comfortable and feel very secure, and I was never concerned they would fall out, even when jumping around.
Out of the box, the Liberty 5 sound profile is on the bassy side, causing vocals — especially male vocals — to sound muddy. Snare hits sound dull and there’s sparkle missing from high-end sounds. By choosing your favorite sound clip tuning from a series of seven examples, you can adjust the earbuds to your preferences (there’s also an 8-band EQ if you’d rather use that). It fixed the issues I had with Soundcore’s default profile. There was still good bass response, but the lower mids were cleaned up and the high mids were boosted a bit, causing the whole sound to open up. Nick Drake’s acoustic guitar in “Pink Moon” shimmers more, as do the piano octaves, and his voice doesn’t get swallowed up by the lower guitar register as his voice descends at the end of the chorus vocal line. Compared to the AirPods Pro 3 my Soundcore profile was still heavier on the bass and didn’t have the same high-end response, but I enjoyed my music listening just as much. The Liberty 5 Pro support LDAC for high-res audio from devices that use the codec.
Adaptive noise-canceling performance is comparable to the AirPods Pro 3, and for $80 less, which is great. The Liberty 5 Pro let in a little bit more midrange than the AirPods, but it’s a very small difference. They ably handle low-end drones and will work well for long flights.
The most remarkable feature of the Liberty 5 Pro series, though, is its voice call capability. I have never heard a pair of earbuds or headphones handle ambient noise on a call this well. One time, my very enthusiastic son sang and yelled while jumping up and down in front of me and the person on the other end of the call heard none of it. During another call, arborists fed tree branches into a wood chipper right outside our open apartment window. The person on the other end had no idea.
I have a friend who’s also an audio reviewer, and I call him regularly to test call clarity on headphones and earbuds. He can’t remember the last time I sounded as natural on a call. And this was while a bunch of traffic, with some emergency vehicles, drove past as I walked the neighborhood. To see how they compare to the AirPods Pro 3, I would switch the earbuds without telling him which I was wearing, and he consistently said the Apple buds sounded muddy and more compressed.
The Liberty 5 Pro buds have a voice-control mode that responds quickly, although it’s not consistent when there’s conversation around you. I tried toggling between noise cancellation modes while my wife was on a Zoom call in the same room, and if she was talking I’d need to speak uncomfortably loudly for modes to change. What’s interesting — and a bit disconcerting — is that there’s no wake word needed. So instead of listening for just an activation phrase, it’s listening for 11 different possible phrases, including “Play Music,” “Volume Up,” “Reject Call,” and “Transparency Mode.”
For the call clarity alone, the Liberty 5 Pro series is an impressive step forward. If you mainly use your earbuds for calls, they are the best earbuds to get. While the AI recording and transcription on the Liberty 5 Pro Max case is interesting, unless you need it regularly, there’s no reason to spend the extra $60 over the Liberty 5 Pro. They have the same ANC performance, same sound profile — which is really good after using the customization questionnaire — and same incredible call quality. $170 might be more than Soundcore earbuds have been in the past, but the improvement is worth it, and if you’re not concerned with staying in Apple’s, Google’s, or Samsung’s ecosystems, the Liberty 5 Pro are an excellent option.
Photography by John Higgins / The Verge
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The Xperia 1 VIII marks an attempt at a step change for Sony’s flagship phone line. Not only has it had an aesthetic overhaul, but Sony has also revamped the camera system, dropping the continuous optical zoom telephoto that’s defined the last four generations of Xperia phone.
It’s not all different. Sony staples like a 3.5mm headphone jack and microSD card slot remain, and a few specific design touches, like a thick front bezel that fits stereo speakers, have stayed intact. Sony’s ambitious pricing hasn’t changed either: The Xperia 1 VIII isn’t launching in the US, but in the UK and Europe, it starts from £1,399 / €1,499 (about $1,850), rising to £1,849 / €1,999 ($2,450) if you want 1TB of storage.
For Sony diehards, this delivers the flagship essentials, including a capable camera, and looks good doing it. For everyone else, you can find better Android phones at this price, like Xiaomi’s 17 Ultra or the Vivo X300 Ultra.
$1850
The Good
- Stark, striking design
- Headphone jack and microSD card slot
- Capable cameras
The Bad
- Middling battery life
- Uneven performance
- Only four years of Android updates
- Dreadful AI Camera Assistant
Sony’s Xperia 1 phones have looked almost identical to one another since 2020. It was a pretty handsome design, to be fair, but probably overdue sprucing up. The 1 VIII does just that, moving to a blocky new camera island and an unusual textured finish that make the phone feel very different to every previous Xperia.
I’m a big fan of the design, which has a stark, brutalist quality. The slightly grippy texture — a bit like an incredibly fine nail file — was designed to vary subtly between the back and frame, which helps prevent the phone from feeling like a monotone slab. The texture helps sell the phone’s high price even better than ultrasmooth glass might (not that this isn’t glass, with Gorilla Glass Victus on the rear and Victus 2 on the front).
I love the details, like how the camera island’s edges drop off steeply on three sides, while on the last it angles down to meet the frame. Sony’s usual knurled two-stage camera shutter button returns, adding another textural element and improved camera controls. Unfortunately, so does the recessed power button and fingerprint sensor, which is less reliable than modern under-display options. It fails about a third of the time I try it. I’m also confused by the odd rectangular patch above the volume button, which has an especially rough texture and looks like it should do something, but doesn’t. Is it some sort of antenna cutout? I’ve asked Sony.
Sony long ago gave up on using its unique 21:9, 4K displays on the Xperia lineup. The 1 VIII uses a less impressive 1080p display in a standard smartphone aspect ratio. The resolution is low for this grade of phone, but otherwise I can’t complain about the panel, which is a 6.5-inch, 120Hz OLED with decent brightness. I do still miss the taller screens Sony phones used to offer, though. Unlike most rivals, the display is also entirely uninterrupted by a camera cutout, notch, or Dynamic Island. The tradeoff is the rather thick bezel above and below the screen, which houses the camera and a pair of stereo speakers (good for phone speakers, but still phone speakers).
The Xperia 1 VIII’s internals are unremarkable, with the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chipset you’ll find on most comparable handsets. It’s paired with either 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage — available in black, red, or silver versions of the phone — or 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. That model is only available in gold, meaning that anyone tempted by the Trump phone’s lustrous finish and built-in headphone jack can enjoy the same luxuries here for quadruple the price.
What is remarkable is that Sony has managed to make the 8 Elite Gen 5 perform quite poorly. While the phone runs smoothly the majority of the time, I’ve run into repeated stuttering and slowdowns, especially in the camera or while switching between apps. It gets hot, too. Using the phone to record the audio of a recent press event, with real-time AI transcription running, it became worryingly warm after just 30 minutes or so, and as the hourlong call ended, it was hot to the touch.
I don’t love the battery either. Sony claims you’ll get two days of life out of the 5,000mAh cell, but I don’t see how. I’m a light-to-moderate user most of the time, and I’ve dipped into single-digit territory by bedtime more than once. This will last the day unless you push it hard, but expect to charge every 24 hours. That might take some time too, given the 30W max speed, substantially slower than most rivals. Only Google’s Pixel 10 Pro charges quite so slowly.
This is definitely Sony’s best phone camera yet
I have better news on the camera front. After years of carving its own path, Sony has taken the “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” approach to its Chinese flagship rivals, abandoning its clever continuous zoom lens and instead packing the 1 VIII with the biggest telephoto sensor it could fit. That Sony dropped continuous zoom in the same year Xiaomi finally copied it and did it better feels like a cruel twist of fate.
Still, what the 2.9x (70mm-equivalent) telephoto lens here loses in versatility by giving up continuous zoom it more than makes up for in quality. That’s driven mostly by the move to a large 48-megapixel, 1/1.56-inch-type sensor — the same size as the ultrawide’s and almost as big as the 1/1.35-inch-type main camera sensor. Those other cameras, along with the 12-megapixel selfie shooter, are unchanged from last year.
1/19
The telephoto and the ultrawide are the two standouts, both using relatively large sensors compared to the competition. I’m a fan of Sony’s daytime processing, which leans toward higher contrast and slightly more muted colors than some other phones, and nighttime shots come out sharp and well-exposed too, though still struggle with bright streetlights. This is definitely Sony’s best phone camera yet and holds its own against the competition.
That is, except for the egregious new AI Camera Assistant. More often than not, when you’re trying to take a shot with the rear camera (not selfies — don’t ask me why), a pop-up appears with four AI-suggested edits to your photos, before you even take them. The overwhelming majority of these are simply overaggressive filters, either ramping up contrast or dialling back saturation, often to comically bad effect. Occasionally one will include algorithmically generated bokeh, and Sony claims it can also suggest lens swaps for better framing, but this has yet to happen to me. Every single suggestion has been markedly worse than the default camera settings, and the pop-up alone is a distracting annoyance that seems to make the camera app sluggish. Fortunately, you can turn it off, and if I wasn’t reviewing the phone, I would have done so immediately.
1/5
The AI camera suggestions feel emblematic of Sony’s Xperia line, which always delivers an impressive amount on paper and then contrives to trip itself up. The headphone jack, expandable storage, and stereo speakers are great. The new design language is striking and unique. The camera is the best it’s ever been. Sony’s relatively simple, streamlined take on Android 16 has its appeal too, but a meager promise of four OS updates and six years of security support gives me pause. It has its irritating quirks too: it keeps insisting on creating home screen folders, adding Facebook to my Instagram icon to make a Meta folder, and throwing a whole host of Google apps on top of Google Maps. Throw in the middling battery, performance problems, and high price, and the 1 VIII is hard to recommend to the average flagship buyer.
All of which leaves Sony back where it started. It redesigned the Xperia, rethought its camera, and simplified its software, but this is still what it always was: a phone for the fanboys. The rest of us can do better.
Photography by Dominic Preston / The Verge
Agree to Continue: Sony Xperia 1 VIII
Every smart device now requires you to agree to a series of terms and conditions before you can use it — contracts that no one actually reads. It’s impossible for us to read and analyze every single one of these agreements. But we started counting exactly how many times you have to hit “agree” to use devices when we review them since these are agreements most people don’t read and definitely can’t negotiate.
To use the Xperia 1 VIII, you must agree to:
- Google Terms of Service
- Google Play Terms of Service
- Google Privacy Policy (included in ToS)
- Install apps and updates: “You agree this device may also automatically download and install updates and apps from Google, your operator, and your device’s manufacturer, possibly using cellular data.”
- Sony warranty and usage guidelines
- Sony end user licence agreement
There’s also a variety of optional agreements, including:
- Provide anonymous location data for Google’s services
- “Allow apps and services to scan for Wi-Fi networks and nearby devices at any time, even when Wi-Fi or Bluetooth is off.”
- Google phone number verification
- Send usage and diagnostic data to Google
- Let contacts nearby find and share with you
- Google Gemini Apps Privacy Notice if you opt in to using Gemini Assistant
- Sony data collection to develop and improve products and services
- Sony data use for tailored marketing
- Sony data use for tailored support
- Sony data use for tailored marketing via the support app
Honor includes several more optional agreements during setup tied to specific features. Other Google features, like Google Wallet, may require additional agreements.
Final tally: six mandatory agreements and more than 12 optional agreements.
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AI may feel like something that lives inside your phone or computer. But behind every chatbot, smart assistant and AI image generator sits a massive physical network. Those systems need buildings. They need power. They need fiber lines, cooling equipment and crews who know how to build safely.
That is where Meta’s new America’s Workforce Academy comes in.
Meta, the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, says it will invest $115 million in the program’s first year to train people for skilled trade jobs tied to AI infrastructure. The pitch is easy to understand. You do not need prior experience. Meta says qualified participants can get tuition, airfare, lodging and a daily stipend covered during training. The program also promises a job offer for graduates.
For someone looking for a new career, that could be a big deal. Still, there is a bigger question behind all of this. As Big Tech races to build more AI data centers, communities across the country are asking what these projects will mean for their electric bills, water supply and quality of life.
THE AI REVOLUTION THREATENS OFFICE JOBS, BUT REVIVES DEMAND FOR SKILLED TRADES
Meta’s America’s Workforce Academy aims to train workers for skilled trade jobs tied to the growing AI data center boom. (Meta)
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What is Meta’s America’s Workforce Academy?
America’s Workforce Academy is a new training program from Meta aimed at preparing people for skilled trade jobs connected to AI data center construction. The 2026 pilot locations are in Louisiana, Ohio, Indiana and Texas. Meta says the program is open to qualified veterans, recent graduates, career changers and other people entering the trades from across the country.
The training focuses on jobs needed to build AI infrastructure. That includes fiber technicians, electricians, welders, plumbers, mechanics and other construction roles. Meta is working with the National Urban League, Associated Builders and Contractors, CBRE and several community partners. The company says the goal is to create a faster path into trade careers without the burden of tuition or college debt.
Why Meta needs skilled trade workers
AI may sound digital, but the buildout is very physical. Data centers require construction crews, electrical systems, cooling equipment, backup power, security and high-speed network connections. None of that appears by magic.
Meta says its earlier Level-Up fiber training program drew 35,000 applications in the first seven days. That response showed the company two things: People want a path into these jobs, and the AI buildout needs more trained workers fast.
This is also a smart move for Meta. The company needs workers who can help build its infrastructure. At the same time, it gives Meta a stronger jobs message as data centers face more scrutiny from local communities.
WHY AMERICA NEEDS TO TAX-INCENTIVIZE TRADESMEN, NOT JUST COLLEGE GRADUATES
The job offer makes this program stand out
Many job training programs ask people to take a leap of faith. You pay for training, spend weeks or months learning and hope someone hires you afterward. Meta’s program takes a different approach. The company says participants are paid while they train, and graduates receive a job offer.
That matters for people who cannot afford to pause their income or take on debt. A short training path with a clear job connection could help veterans, younger workers and career changers get into a stable field.
Even so, anyone interested should read the details carefully when applications open. You will want to know where the job is located, who the employer is, what the pay looks like and whether travel or relocation will be required. A guaranteed job sounds great. The details will tell you whether it fits your life.
AI COMES WITH A HEFTY CHARGE. ARE YOU THE ONE WHO GETS STUCK WITH THE BILL?
Why AI data centers are causing pushback
Data centers are now turning into neighborhood issues. Some residents worry about the amount of electricity these facilities use. Others worry about water, noise, traffic and whether local taxpayers end up supporting projects that mainly benefit large tech companies.
Those concerns are growing as demand for AI climbs. Data centers need huge amounts of power to run servers and cooling systems. In some areas, people fear that could put pressure on the local grid or contribute to higher utility costs.
Water can also become a flashpoint. Some facilities use water for cooling, which can raise concerns in communities already dealing with heat, drought or fast growth.
Supporters argue that data centers bring construction jobs, tax revenue and new investment. Critics want clearer answers before towns approve major projects.
Both sides have a point. Jobs matter. So do electric bills, local resources and transparency.
Why this Meta program comes at a sensitive time
Meta’s announcement arrives as the company and other tech giants pour billions into AI. At the same time, many workers are nervous about what AI means for their careers. The tech industry has already seen layoffs as companies shift resources toward automation and AI development. That makes this program feel both promising and complicated.
AI COULD DRIVE US UNEMPLOYMENT TO 20%, SENATORS WARN AS NEW BILL TARGETS JOB TRACKING
On one side, Meta is offering a real pathway into skilled trade work. On the other hand, the same AI boom creating these construction jobs is also raising fears about job losses elsewhere.
The lesson here is that AI will not affect every worker the same way. Some jobs may shrink. Others may grow because AI needs a physical backbone. For many people, the next tech job may involve a hard hat instead of a laptop.
How to avoid scams tied to AI job programs
A program with Meta’s name, paid training and job offers will attract attention from job seekers and scammers, so it helps to slow down and verify every step before you share personal information.
META FACES INCREASING SCRUTINY OVER WIDESPREAD SCAM ADS
The program offers paid training, travel support, lodging and a job offer for qualified graduates entering AI infrastructure work. (Meta)
Apply through official sources only
Only apply through official Meta or verified partner links. Be careful with random texts, social media messages or emails that push you to act fast. Don’t click links in unsolicited messages. Instead, go directly to Meta’s official website or the verified partner’s site yourself. Strong antivirus software can also help block malicious links, phishing pages and downloads before they put your device or personal information at risk. Get my picks for the best 2026 antivirus protection winners for your Windows, Mac, Android and iOS devices at Cyberguy.com
Watch for upfront payment requests
Watch for anyone asking you to pay an application fee, buy equipment upfront or share banking details before you verify the program. Meta says this training is funded by the company, so upfront payment requests should raise a red flag.
Limit what scammers can find about you
This is also a good time to limit how much of your personal information is floating around online. A data removal service can help reduce your exposure on people search sites and data broker lists, which scammers often use to target job seekers with more convincing messages. Check out my top picks for data removal services and get a free scan to find out if your personal information is already out on the web by visiting Cyberguy.com
SCAMS THAT AREN’T ILLEGAL (BUT SHOULD BE)
Save every job offer detail in writing
Also, save copies of anything you receive. Keep the offer terms, training location, pay information and job requirements in writing.
What this means to you
For someone looking for a new path, this could be a real opportunity. Paid training and a possible job at the end can change the equation for people who want skilled work but cannot afford to take a big financial risk just to get started.
For communities, the promise of jobs should come with real answers. A data center can bring investment, but it can also put pressure on local resources. People who live nearby deserve to know what they are giving up and what they are actually getting back.
This also changes the way we talk about AI and jobs. We hear so much about AI replacing people. But behind every AI tool is a massive physical system that still needs human hands and local communities to keep it running. That, to me, is the bigger story here.
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Kurt’s key takeaways
Meta’s America’s Workforce Academy could become a meaningful opportunity for people who want a path into skilled trades without taking on college debt. The AI boom needs workers who can build the real-world systems behind the technology. That part often gets overlooked when everyone focuses on chatbots and chips. But communities still deserve answers. Data centers can affect power demand, water use and local infrastructure. A jobs program helps, but it cannot replace transparency. Meta now has a chance to prove that the AI boom can create opportunities beyond Silicon Valley. The real test will be whether workers and local communities both benefit.
Would you want an AI data center in your community if it brought paid training and jobs, or would concerns over power and water make you push back? Let us know in the comments below. Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com
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As data centers expand across the country, communities are weighing new job opportunities against concerns over power, water and local impact. (Meta)
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Atlantic reporter Alex Reisner recently uncovered four datasets of music being used to train AI models and made them fully searchable for the public. Two of the sets are absolutely enormous at 12 million and 9 million tracks. The other two are much smaller, but still represent a significant amount of training data at over 100,000 songs each.
According to Reisner, the sets have been downloaded thousands of times and, while it’s impossible to know exactly who has used them, Google and Stability have both confirmed they have in research papers. Some of the sources, like the Free Music Archive dataset, are free to stream for personal use but require licensing for commercial applications.
While the datasets are freely available on the internet in theory, using them as training data is not as simple as downloading a ZIP file and feeding it to an AI model. As Reisner explains:
Three of the datasets I found are distributed as a list of links to songs on YouTube or Spotify. AI developers download the actual audio using tools that automate the job, some of which allow developers to bypass logins, advertisements, and mechanisms that might earn money or subscribers for creators. Such tools violate the terms of service of these platforms.
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