Open-ear earbuds have grown quite popular in recent years, and Samsung has finally decided it wants a piece of the market. The Korean outlet ETNews, citing industry sources, claims that the company is gearing up to launch the Galaxy Buds Able.
They are believed to be clip-type, open-ear earbuds that hook onto the ear without blocking the canal, and I genuinely believe they could be one of the most interesting audio launches of the year.
How are the Galaxy Buds Able different?
Samsung’s existing earbuds sit in your ears, sealing the ear canal for effective sound isolation. The Buds Able flips that approach entirely. The clip hooks onto the outer ear, while the canal stays open, and you hear both your podcast and the traffic around you. They should also appeal directly to buyers who aren’t comfortable wearing in-ear earbuds.
These earbuds are specifically designed for situational awareness. You can use them while running, cycling, commuting, or basically anything where you want to be aware of your surroundings. Instead of bone-conduction, Samsung is going after the more advanced air-conduction route for sidestepping the vibration and sound quality issues.
The market for such earbuds is growing rapidly. The global open-type headphone and earphone segment is projected to climb from around $3.8 billion last year to about $4.2 billion this year, a $400 million jump that explains why Samsung is on the move.
Who else is chasing the same design?
Along with Samsung, Xiaomi is also moving in that direction. The company has already released official images of its first clip-type earbuds, which feature a satin gold design with a high-gloss unibody, and a transparent spherical speaker section.
Per the report, Xiaomi could announce its first open-ear product sometime this month. Meanwhile, Huawei FreeClip, Bose Ultra Open Earbuds, Sony LinkBuds Clip, and Anker Soundcore AeroClip are already doing well.
Samsung Galaxy Buds Able don’t have a launch date yet, which is the disappointing part. However, they could arrive sometime this year.