2024: a good year for earbuds

The twelvemonth 2024 has been different precise bully 1 for wireless earbuds. We’ve reached a constituent wherever each tech elephantine is firing connected each cylinders. Apple’s AirPods Pro, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, and Google’s Pixel Buds Pro 2 are each fantastic successful their ain close and reasonably comparable successful the features they offer. Are determination advantages depending connected which you pick? Sure. Samsung’s caller dependable controls are ace convenient. Google wins retired connected comfort. And Apple’s caller hearing wellness features truly level up what we expect from user earbuds. But successful presumption of mundane performance, they’re each wrong spitting region of each other. 

As for over-ear headphones, Sonos introduced its long-rumored Ace headphones this year. Their marquee trick, TV Audio Swap, is the quality to person audio from a Sonos soundbar for backstage listening — a bully illustration of a marque trying to muster a unsocial selling constituent successful a competitory market, portion Apple, Samsung, and Google are laser-focused connected interplay wrong their ain respective ecosystems. (Of course, Sonos’ headphones were each but forgotten successful the avalanche of controversy brought connected by the company’s overhauled mobile app.)

But this twelvemonth has reinforced that you don’t request to walk large to find large value. Apple brought progressive sound cancellation to its less costly AirPods 4. With the Nothing Ear and budget-priced Ear (a), Nothing proved yet again that it tin compete with long-established earbud makers — and outdesign galore of them. Style-wise, it’s hard to take betwixt the flashy yellowish of the Ear (a) oregon Beats’ candy reddish Solo Buds, but Nothing gives you much for your wealth than Apple’s brand. 

2024 besides saw Jabra marque an exit from the user earbuds market. The institution spent years producing worthy alternatives to the AirPods and different products backmost during the aboriginal waves of existent wireless earbuds, but Jabra mislaid its momentum and failed to meaningfully basal retired with its much caller Elite earbuds. The Elite 10 Gen 2 are fantabulous by each accounts but hard to urge erstwhile they correspond the extremity of the line.

As for wherever the class is headed, earbuds are rapidly evolving into devices with a intent that extends good beyond audio consumption. Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 present connection a almighty trifecta of proceeding wellness features: you tin deterioration them arsenic proceeding protection, instrumentality a trial to gauge your ain proceeding loss, oregon usage the earbuds arsenic clinical-grade over-the-counter proceeding aids. I’d expect we’ll spot different manufacture heavyweights similar Sony, Samsung, and Google bring akin capabilities to their ain aboriginal buds — possibly arsenic soon arsenic adjacent year. 

Fitness tracking is different country wherever we’ll proceed to spot earbuds connection caller advantages. Heart complaint tracking is becoming comparatively common, and the next-generation Powerbeats Pro, due aboriginal successful 2025, are rumored to see the utile feature.

As for the caller year, Sony’s long-popular 1000X series is owed for a refresh. The 1000XM6 earbuds (and headphones) look similar a fastener for 2025. I deliberation the aforesaid is existent of the adjacent AirPods Pro; Apple volition reportedly merchandise a redesigned third-gen brace sometime adjacent year. On the different hand, with Samsung and Google having some released caller models successful the past six months, I wouldn’t expect overmuch from them successful the adjacent future. 

For you audiophiles retired there, 2025 is apt to spot the instauration of much earbuds that tin wirelessly watercourse lossless audio arsenic Qualcomm’s astir precocious chips commencement to proliferate crossed caller products from assorted brands — perchance including Sennheiser, Bose, and others. As for different features, I’m funny to what grade earbud makers volition pat into AI chatbots. Google’s Pixel Buds Pro marque it imaginable to transportation connected full conversations with Gemini Live. Will different brands look to supply a akin acquisition with antithetic AI platforms? 

The caller twelvemonth is definite to get disconnected to a engaged commencement close retired of the gate, with headphones and earbuds from dozens of brands expected astatine CES 2025. Hopefully there’ll beryllium immoderate genuine surprises among the bunch.

Photography by Chris Welch / The Verge