Audio

Word on the grapevine now indicates that the upcoming Apple AirPods Pro 2 is likely to remain equipped with Lightning charging, instead of USB-C. In addition, production of the premium earbuds is set to begin shortly, with Apple to move most of its production to Vietnam.

OPPO has launched a new Air variant of its Android tablet today (May 23, 2022). It has debuted alongside new Enco R TWS earbuds. The former looks a lot like its Pad forebear, although it, like the Rs, is clearly pitched at a much lower tier than their respective predecessors.

Alongside the Xiaomi Band 7 and Redmi Note 11T series, Xiaomi will also launch new TWS earbuds on May 24 in China. The Redmi Buds 4 Pro are on the way, and they're set to land with better noise reduction and Bluetooth 5.3 support.

Infamous Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo claims to have been informed of a HomePod revival. Supposedly due later this year, the new HomePod may not feature many hardware design changes. A next-generation HomePod is expected to be smaller than the original model too, but larger than the HomePod mini.

Samsung has unleashed the Galaxy Buds2 in 2 limited-edition co-branded forms on its home market of South Korea. One is a Pokémon-themed bundle that could go with a matching Galaxy Z Flip3 from an earlier event, whereas the other is one for fans of soft drinks. They both largely entail a new carrying-case for the TWS accessories in question.

Although there are countless TWS earbuds available in the sub-US$50 area of the market, the Tronsmart Onyx Ace Pro is one of the few capable of bringing together Qualcomm aptX support and 13 mm drivers. Now available on Tronsmart's website, GeekBuying, and AliExpress, the Onyx Ace Pro will also hit Amazon next month.

OnePlus has introduced the Nord Buds in Europe, where the earbuds retail for €49. Available in two colours, the Nord Buds features 12.4 mm titanium drivers, up to 37 hours of battery life and support Bluetooth 5.2. The OnePlus Nord Buds are pre-orderable today from OnePlus directly.

Sony has introduced the LinkBuds S, available in three colours for US$199. While the LinkBuds S fall under the same series as the original LinkBuds, Sony's latest earbuds are much closer to the WF-1000XM4. The LinkBuds support ANC, Hi-Res Audio and the LDAC codec, among other features.

The unsuspecting twelve-year-old boy supposedly suffered permanent hearing damage when an extremely loud warning notification was played through his AirPods Pro, which is why Apple is now being sued for damages in California.

Astell&Kern has unveiled the KANN Max portable music player, the most compact model in the KANN series. The player has a Quad-DAC module and a variety of sound optimization features. LDAC and aptX HD are supported for high-quality wireless playback. Plus, you can wirelessly transfer files to the device, which has a 13-hour lifetime.

The KEF LS60 Wireless is an all-in-one speaker system celebrating the brand’s 60th anniversary. The dual speakers have a total output of 1,400 W with various technologies to enhance the sound. Plus, an HDMI eARC port enables a high-quality connection to your TV. You can now join a waitlist for the product, which is expected to launch this autumn.

Rumors about the Sonos Sub Mini have been corroborated by The Verge. Reports of a more affordable subwoofer from the brand began following an app update last year. The gadget will pair wirelessly with Sonos soundbars like the newly released Ray. It is still unclear when the device will launch and at what price.

More details about the Sony LinkBuds S have emerged, including its European pricing. In the meantime, Sony has teased a new hardware event, dubbed #NeverOff. The LinkBuds S will be available in three colours and are rumoured to offer Hi-Res Audio support.

At its annual I/O event, Google revealed the new Pixel Buds Pro. Available for preorder this July, take a look at what Google’s high-end headphones offer for US$199. Are the Pixel Buds Pro an innovative leap forward or simply AirPods Pro with a whimsical paint job? Listen up! It’s the latter.

The Sonos Ray home cinema soundbar is now available to pre-order. The gadget has many features, such as Speech Enhancement for clear dialogue. You can connect the device to your TV via an optical audio cable, and the soundbar is compatible with Stereo PCM, Dolby Digital 5.1 and DTS Digital Surround formats.

Sony has introduced the WH-1000XM5, a long-awaited upgrade over the WH-1000XM4. With a new look and improved hardware, the WH-1000XM5 should be a decent upgrade over the WH-1000XM4, were it not for its US$50 higher price tag and its impractical design.

The Sonos Roam portable speaker has been released in three new colorways: Sunset (orange), Wave (blue) and Olive (green). The speaker has many features, including Trueplay tuning technology, to adapt the sound based on your surroundings and the content. The device is voice-enabled, making it compatible with the new Sonos Voice Control tool, out on June 1st.

Google has announced the Pixel Buds Pro, a premium answer to the Pixel Buds A-Series. Launching this summer for US$199, the Pixel Buds Pro will be available in four colours, all with ANC and Bluetooth multipoint. The Pixel Buds Pro should deliver decent battery life with ANC enabled too.

As promised, the 1MORE EVO TWS earbuds are now available with SGS-certified adaptive ANC, support for the LDAC codec that delivers an excellent level of acoustic detail, SoundID personalized sound, wireless charging for the case, and a battery life of up to 28 hours (20 hours with ANC enabled). The price tag reads US$169.99.

Nubert has released a new soundbar, the nuBoxx AS-225 max. The speaker has many features, like voice focus and Dolby decoder, to optimize the soundtrack for the content playing on your connected TV. You can connect to the soundbar in various ways, including via HMDI eARC and Bluetooth 5.0.

The Anker Soundcore Motion Boom Plus can now be pre-ordered with a US$38 discount. The portable speaker has up to 20 hours of playback time and a PowerIQ feature that enables you to charge other devices from the gadget. Plus, PartyCast 2.0 allows you to connect up to 100 compatible speakers for a louder sound.

This fall will mark three years since the AirPods Pro launched back in late 2019. While early adopters of the premium wireless headphones are surely suffering from the downsides of aging batteries, a second-gen model of AirPods Pro is expected to debut later this year, according to Mark Gurman of Bloomberg. We take a deep dive into what users can expect from AirPods Pro 2.

According to reports, Apple is looking to bring new versions of the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max to market this summer. Reputedly, next-generation AirPods Pro will also come in new colourways, potentially building on the five that Apple offers with the current model.

Availability and pricing for the LinkBuds S have leaked. Reputedly, the earbuds will arrive less than a week after the WH-1000XM5 and will cost slightly more than the original LinkBuds. However, the LinkBuds S will also undercut the WF-1000XM4, while retaining ANC and the latter's design.

Sony has started teasing a new product, dubbed #YourWorldStartsHere. To be revealed on May 12, the products appears to be the WH-1000XM5, Sony's next premium pair of over-ear headphones. In the meantime, pricing has been revealed for the WH-1000XM5, as has availability going forwards for the WH-1000XM4. Purportedly, the WH-1000XM5 will be more expensive than the WH-1000XM4 too.

Marshall has revealed two new portable Bluetooth speakers, Willen and Emberton II. The latest gadgets are compatible with Stack Mode, which allows you to connect multiple speakers for amplified sound, and you can control the devices via an app. Willen is the smaller of the two gadgets, while Emberton II has True Stereophonic sound.

Porsche Design has revealed the Soundbar PDB90, which will be available to pre-order from June 1st. The surround sound speaker has Dolby Atmos and DTS:X technologies for an immersive 3D experience. The device has 16 drivers, including a built-in subwoofer, with preset modes to optimize the gadget’s output based on the content you are listening to or watching.

Hands-on photos with the WH-1000XM5 have leaked online, not long after marketing images appeared. While design changes extend to Sony's packaging, the WH-1000XM5 will in fact retain its predecessor's battery life.

A year after launching the mid-range Pixel Buds A, Google looks set to bring yet another TWS earbud device to the market. Supposedly, it will be branded as the Pixel Buds Pro and is coming soon—likely as a rival to the upcoming Galaxy Buds Pro 2 and AirPods Pro 2.

A team of researchers at MIT has developed a loudspeaker as thin as paper. The ultra-thin film can turn any surface into a loudspeaker, requiring little power to produce a high-quality sound. The researchers suggest many applications for the material, including wallpaper and smart devices with limited battery life.

The VAVA Chroma triple-laser projector became the most-funded product on Indiegogo in 2021. Now, it is available as a retail unit via its brand's own website. Alternatively, it will be available through Best Buy in some markets. The device is rated to throw an image of up to 150 inches for a "cinematic experience".

Realme has rounded its major Indian product event of today (April 28, 2022) with its latest smart TV. This new X Full HD variants boast Dolby Atmos-tuned stereo speakers and support Bluetooth 5 and 5GHz Wi-Fi and come in 2 sizes. They will join the ~US$300 price-bracket on their release to their first market.

Realme India has made the Pad Mini official today (April 29, 2022). The OEM has brought the Unisoc Tiger T616-powered, 8.7-inch HD+ display slate to its new market in both Wi-Fi only and 4G/LTE-enabled forms. It has landed alongside the Buds Air 3, Realme's latest TWS earbuds.

UGREEN has announced a new addition to the HiTune line of truly-wireless (TWS) earbuds. The T3s are placed on the more budget and AirPod-mimicking end of this spectrum - although they also feature active noise cancellation (ANC) for the first time. They also support the Bluetooth 5.2 standard and up to 24 hours of battery life.

The OnePlus Nord Buds have launched in India with a more original take on the typical AirPod-clone form-factor. They contain large "titanium" dynamic drivers, feature IP55 ingress-protection and have an estimated 30 hours of battery life. On the other hand, there is no active noise cancellation (ANC) or wireless charging here.

1More has now set a date for the launch of its next TWS earbuds, which, as the OEM claims, will challenge enthusiast-grade wired headphones for audio quality. The EVO buds are touted to debut with an upgraded internal design for highly detailed music playback, powerful active noise cancellation (ANC) and LDAC support later in 2022.

Google has now officially confirmed that Android 13 has moved along the path to a full release to the point at which its first public beta is now available. Those who own eligible Pixel-series devices can install it to enhance the level of control they have over how apps use media files, if not much else at this point.

The POCO Buds Pro Genshin Impact Edition has launched globally with plenty of features, despite its compact size. Not only do the earbuds support up to 28 hours of battery life, but they also offer multipoint connectivity, 9 mm composite dynamic drivers, 35 dB of active noise cancellation and a dual transparency mode.

Sennheiser has unveiled the Momentum True Wireless 3, a premium alternative to the Sport True Wireless. The Momentum True Wireless 3 retails for US$249.95 and is available in three colours. Sennheiser's latest Momentum True Wireless earbuds feature Hybrid Adaptive ANC, support for aptX Adaptive, and 7 mm dynamic TrueResponse™ drivers.

Renders of the POCO Watch and POCO Buds Pro have leaked, confirming their similarities with existing Xiaomi Redmi devices. The pair will launch on April 26 alongside the POCO F4 GT and should be available in multiple markets.

Razer has released the Leviathan V2, a 50 cm-wide soundbar that comes with a subwoofer. The Leviathan V2 supports THX Spatial Audio, among other features, and retails for US$249.99.

A leaker has shared many images of the Sony LinkBuds S WF-LSN900. While the earbuds will arrive under the LinBuds brand, they share their design with the WF-1000XM4. The same leak also introduces a few technical details about the WF-LSN900, which should launch in at least two colours.

Denon has unveiled the DHT-S217, a 2.1 Ch soundbar that features six drivers and supports Dolby Atmos. Available from next month, the Denon DHT-S217 also has plenty of I/O and comes with a bundled remote.

Xiaomi's sub-brand, Poco, has now officially announced the launch dates of its two latest products, the Poco Watch and Poco Buds Pro. Both devices will launch globally on April 26 alongside the Poco F4 GT.

The Sony WH-1000XM5 has leaked again, confirming that the WH-1000XM4 successor will feature longer battery life and a significant redesign. Purportedly, Sony has also made other changes, such as new drivers and ANC improvements.

Sennheiser has released the Sport True Wireless earbuds, a pair of premium earbuds that retail for US$130. The earbuds come with multiple ear tips and fins for maximised comfort, plus up to 27 hours of battery life.

The latest wireless headphones from Bang & Olufsen, the Beoplay EX earbuds, will go on sale next month. Each headphone features a large 9.2 mm driver and adaptive active noise-cancelling technology. The gadget has six microphones built into the stick of the earbud for improved call quality.

While Harman Kardon has not officially released it, the Citation MultiBeam 1100 Soundbar is now available to pre-order in Europe. The device is designed for streaming and is the first in the Citation range to have Dolby Atmos and DTS:X technologies for immersive 3D surround sound.