Xiaomi teases new wireless earbuds for May 8 launch, could be Mi AirDots 2S

As the lockdown gets eased in parts of the country, Xiaomi is preparing to launch a slew of new products. The Mi 10 is its flagship offering for India launching on May 8 and as expected, Xiaomi is bringing additional accessories to the scene. One of them is a new pair of wireless earbuds that look identical to the Mi AirDots 2S from China. Xiaomi hasn’t revealed much about the product but based on the market conditions, it could be a rival to the Realme Buds Air earbuds.

Xiaomi has shared a teaser video on its social media timeline showing a glimpse of the earbuds. Based on what we already know, it seems that Xiaomi is bringing the Mi Air Dots 2S to our shores along with the Mi 10. The Mi Air Dots 2S was launched back in April 2020 in China and comes with some advanced features for a wireless earbud.

The Mi Air Dots 2S cost 399 Yuan (approx. Rs 4,200) in China but given that Realme sells its Buds Air at Rs 3,999, we expect Xiaomi to undercut it with its aggressive pricing. The Air Dots 2S look like Apple AirPods clone but there are some special Xiaomi touches added to it. The design of the earbuds and the box is more angular than what we have seen on the AirPods.

The Air Dots 2S use Bluetooth 5.0 for connectivity. There are touch controls available but unlike Realme’s earbuds, the Mi Air Dots 2S allows for volume adjustment along with music playback controls. The Chinese model uses 14.2mm drivers and even comes with smart features like auto-pause when removed from ear, wear detection noise cancellation, dual microphones, and so on. Even battery life is said to be good, with 5 hours for the earbuds and a total of 24 hours with the case. The case also supports Qi-standard wireless charging.

Xiaomi's earbuds seem quite similar to Realme's Buds Air, an affordable wireless pair of earbuds that sell for Rs 3,999. We reviewed the Buds Air back in December 2019 and were left quite impressed. The Buds Air also offers touch controls, a seamless user experience, a low-latency gaming mode, and wireless charging. The only issue with the Realme earbuds was (and is) battery life, which is a sub-par two hours on a single charge.

Xiaomi is bringing the earbuds to India most possibly as an accessory to its Mi 10 flagship, a phone that skips on the 3.5mm headphone jack. What remains to be seen is how much Xiaomi ends up charging for these earbuds. A sub Rs 4,000 pricing could absolutely make it a favorite with the Indian masses.