The rumours were true, with Amazon announcing the launch of its new Echo Buds.
The new wireless in-ear headphones are taking aim at Apple’s AirPods and offer some interesting advantages over the iPhone manufacturer’s earbuds.
Firstly, there’s the price. Amazon’s headphones can be plugged into your ears for a comparatively low £119.99, while AirPods can cost as much as £199 if you opt for the flagship model with a wireless charging case.
Next, there’s the improved way to access Alexa. Amazon is boasting that its Echo Buds use two outward-facing microphones and one microphone pointed inwards to reduce ambient noise to make your voice command come through loud-and-clear to Alexa – even if you’re in a busy train station, on a packed street, or at a house party.
When it comes to music, Echo Buds have two premium balanced armature drivers in each earbud. The driver design is inspired by in-ear monitors used by professional musicians to deliver crisp, clear vocals and dynamic bass, Amazon says.
Amazon has also included Bose Active Noise Reduction Technology, which lets you choose how much to minimise the noise around you.
Each earbud is also sweat resistant. With a IPX4 rating, the Echo Buds should easily withstand splashes or light rain, too.
With one full charge, Amazon says its Echo Buds will keep going for around five hours. And when they do run out there’s a charging case which holds up to three additional charges.
So, that means you should get a total of 20 hours of listening and chatting to Alexa without needing to go near a plug.
Echo Buds connect to Alexa via the Alexa app on your smartphone and use your existing mobile data plan to answer any general knowledge queries, news and weather updates, music requests, navigation via Google maps, phone calling, and more. When connected to a smartphone with a strong 3G, 4G, or 5G connection, Alexa in the Echo Buds should work in exactly the same way as your Echo smart speaker at home.
You can also tap and hold on your Echo Buds to access your handset’s built-in voice assistant, either Siri, Google Assistant, or Samsung’s Bixby.
The Echo Buds are available to pre-order from today and cost £119.99. Unfortunately, Amazon hasn’t confirmed when the Echo Buds release date will be, but it says that customers can expect to get thier hands on the wireless earbuds before Christmas Day.
Amazon announced the Echo Buds during its annual September hardware event, where it also revealed a new Echo smart speaker with improved sound quality. There’s also an Echo Dot with a built-in clock face, new security cameras, mesh Wi-Fi routers, an Alexa-powered oven, and much, much more.
Express.co.uk will have all the news and opinion from the event. So stay tuned for more.