Sony returns to the professional IEM market with the IER-M500


Sony is officially back in the professional in-ear monitor (IEM) space. The company has announced the IER-M500, a new pair of stage-focused earphones designed for everyone from aspiring musicians to seasoned performers. Rather than chasing features like active noise cancellation or spatial audio for casual listening, the IER-M500 is built with one goal in mind: helping artists hear themselves clearly during live performances.

Built for the stage, not the daily commute

At the heart of the IER-M500 is a newly developed dynamic driver paired with a large acoustic chamber and an optimized internal acoustic structure. Sony says this combination delivers deep, controlled bass alongside crisp high-frequency detail, helping performers accurately monitor vocals and instruments even in loud environments. The earphones are also Hi-Res Audio compatible, covering a wide frequency range for more detailed sound reproduction.

Rather than relying on active noise cancellation, Sony has focused on high passive noise isolation. A fully sealed design, thin polyurethane noise-isolating eartips, and the large acoustic chamber work together to block external stage noise, allowing musicians to hear more clearly without increasing monitoring volume.

Comfort has also been a key priority. Developed in collaboration with monitoring engineers, the IER-M500 features Sony’s proprietary ear-fitting supporters, flexible ear hooks, four sizes of eartips, and a 1.6-meter detachable cable built for repeated stage use. The moisture-resistant earphones will be available in Clear, Black, and Red & Blue transparent finishes, with clearly marked left and right earpieces for quicker setup before performances.

Expanding Sony’s professional audio lineup

With the IER-M500, Sony is filling a gap in its professional audio portfolio. The company says the new IEMs complement products like its MDR-M1 studio headphones, microphones, and 360 Reality Audio ecosystem, extending its creator-focused lineup from recording and mixing into live stage monitoring.

The Sony IER-M500 is available for pre-order now in the U.S. for $119.99, making it one of the more affordable professional in-ear monitors in Sony’s lineup. While they aren’t aimed at everyday listeners, musicians and performers looking for dependable, stage-ready monitoring now have another option from a brand that’s returning to a category it helped shape.



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After months of rumors and two keynote events in May 2026, Google has finally released Android 17, the stable version. It’s rolling out to eligible Pixel devices today, including models in the Pixel 6 lineup, all the way to the latest Pixel 10 series.

The stable build contains plenty of features showcased at The Android Show and Google I/O, but if you were hoping to get your hands on Gemini Intelligence, that will ship later this summer to “select advanced devices.” With that out of the way, here’s what Android 17 offers at launch.

So what’s actually new in Android 17?

The most immediately useful addition is Bubbles, a feature that lets you access a select number of apps in the form of a floating window over another app or a circular app icon on the screen when minimized. 

You can access the feature by long-pressing an app icon and selecting the Bubble option. It’s best suited for your two or three-app workflows, letting you access them one after the other with a single tap on the screen. On foldables and tablets, bubbles dock into a dedicated bar at the bottom of the display. 

Android 17 also gets Screen Reactions, a feature that lets you record your phone’s screen along with your face (via the front-facing camera) simultaneously. It’s primarily for content creators, who can now make reaction videos without opening an editing app. 

What about gaming, security, and everything else?

On the gaming side, foldables get a new 50/50 layout with the game view up top and a dynamic gamepad below. Google has also made memory cleanup more efficient, so that gamers don’t experience frame drops and stutters while playing demanding video games. 

Security gets a meaningful upgrade with features like temporary location permissions and contact-level sharing controls (vs. sharing the entire address book). The Mark as Lost feature in the Find Hub now locks your phone via biometrics so nobody can unlock and reset it with the passcode.

Google also caps PIN guessing, with longer wait times between failed attempts. Rounding out the Android 17 update are hidden app names on the home screen, a dedicated volume slider for your AI assistant (Gemini on Pixel phones), Parental Controls expanding to all Android devices, and app memory limits for preserving system resources.  

Today is the day 👀

— Android Developers (@AndroidDev) June 16, 2026

While Pixel phones are the first to get the update, expect other OEMs to announce their Android 17-based updates in the coming weeks. Samsung, for instance, is expected to roll out One UI 9 at the second Galaxy Unpacked event of the year, rumored to take place on July 22, 2026. Other brands like OnePlus should follow soon.



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