The truly wireless earbuds market in India gets a new entrant this week, Xiaomi. This brand was expected to launch its TWS product much earlier but RealMe decided to steal its thunder with the Buds Air earlier this year. But now the Mi True Wireless Earphones 2 (handful name), for starting price of Rs 3,999 (will be increased to Rs 4,499 in the coming months) is going to compete with a host of names in the segment. Here’s a closer look at Xiaomi’s rivals.
Noise Shots X5 Pro
The latest earphones from Noise support Bluetooth 5.0 for connectivity to devices. The company claims to offer 8 hours of playtime on a single charge. It also comes with a charging case of 2200mAh battery that offers an additional 150 hours of playback time (18 more recharges). The case can also reverse-charge any devices plugged into it.The earphones are IPX7 rated for water resistance which means it can resist minor splashes, light rain or sweat from workouts. It has 6mm graphene speaker drivers and a new Qualcomm chipset that brings aptX & AAC support for Hi-Fi audio. This device is priced at Rs 4,999 in the market.
boAt Airdopes 311v2
This offering from the Indian manufacturer boat, is great for athletes. It has a hook design which secures the earbuds into your ears. It has HD audio clarity and great Frequency response. Its IPX5 Water-resistant so is good for working out. It uses Bluetooth 5.0 for connectivity. It gives you 3.5hrs of playback per charge. It has a multi-function button to invoke your smart assistants. They are priced at Rs 2,999.
Oppo Enco Free
Oppo has priced its truly wireless earbuds at Rs 7,990 in India. It comes with 13.4mm dynamic driver with a driver sensitivity of 120db. The device is loaded with 31mAh battery which offers up to five hours of music playback on a single charge and an additional 20 hours with the 410mAh charging case. One can double-tap to pause or play music and answer the call. Furthermore, with a tap and hold, one can activate Google Assistant.
Realme Buds Air
This device comes equipped with the real-time dual-channel transmission, meaning that one can use each of the earbuds independently. It features a 12mm big bass driver and comes with Environment Noise Cancellation technology. You can charge these wirelessly and use the Buds Air for up to 17 hours of music playback. Realme Buds Air is priced at Rs 3,999.
JBL C100TWS
The latest wireless earbuds from JBL come with a price tag of Rs 7,999. It supports hands-free stereo calling that helps users to make or receive calls. It comes 5.88 mm sound driver, and claimed to offer 17 hours of battery life. You can get one-click access Siri and Google Assistant as well.
Detailed Feature Comparison
| Brand | Driver (mm) | Battery life | Voice Assistant | Price (Rs) |
| Xiaomi True Wireless Earphones 2 | 14.2 | 14 hours | Google, Alexa, Siri | 3,999 |
| Realme Buds Air | 12 | 17 hours | 3,999 | |
| JBL C100TWS | 5.88 | 17 hours | Siri, Google | 7,999 |
| Oppo Enco Free | 13.4 | 20 hours | 7,990 | |
| Boat Airdopes 311v2 | 10 | 9 hours | Not given | 2,499 |
| Noise Shots X5 Pro | 6 | 8 hours | Siri, Google | 4,999 |
Conclusion
With its new TWS earbuds in the market, Xiaomi is looking to change the quality dynamics for the buyers. As you can see in the graph above, the brand is offering bigger drivers, wider support for voice assistant without going overboard with the pricing. Having said that, Xiaomi lags in terms of battery life in comparison to Realme, JBL and Oppo among others. The wireless earbuds market has become affordable over the past six months or so, and Xiaomi is keen to get a pie of the market with its first TWS earbuds device in the country.