Summary
While the world ofwireless earbudsandheadphoneshas seen a lot of innovation in the last five years or so, for the most part, headphones and earbuds that are coming out nowadays are pretty similar to each other, barring a few tweaks in the sound quality or a couple of added features. But the next few years promise to bring some fantastic leaps in technology for wireless earbuds and headphones across the board.
So, What’s Happening with Wireless Earbuds and Headphones?
Wireless headphones and earbuds have improved significantly since they first became mainstream in the late 2000s, but that doesn’t mean they don’t still have room for improvement. Arguably, the two most significant shortcomings of wireless audio right now are the battery life and sound quality inconsistencies. Of course, many wireless options provide solid battery life and sound quality, but they typically are at the premium end of the price range. The innovations slated to come in 2025 aim to bring better battery life and sound quality to a broader range of wireless audio devices.
So, how exactly are wireless earbuds and headphones going to accomplish this?
More Efficient Battery Usage and Alternative Charging Methods
Although wireless audio options have become more powerful and significantly improved audio quality, battery life has not caught up yet. However, following a similar trend to smartphones, wireless headphones are finding ways to be more efficient with their battery use, so they can sip on a battery charge throughout the whole day, instead of chugging through the battery life in just a few hours.
This will primarily be accomplished by making batteries more efficient and tuning internal components to deliver peak performance while not drawing too much power.
The more exciting thing to come for better battery life is found with full-sized headphones: new solar charging panels. We have seen a couple of headphones with solar panels in the headband before, like the Urbanista Los Angeles, but it seems like this might become even more of a trend in 2025.
Urbanista Los Angeles
The Urbanista Los Angeles is a pair of headphones that you theoretically never need to charge. Powered by Powerfoyle solar cell material, the Los Angeles never stops charging when exposed to light, providing you with a nonstop audio experience. Not to mention, these headphones still feature all the premium features we have come to expect from wireless headphones, like ANC and excellent sound quality.
New Chipsets Promise Sound Quality That Rivals Wired Connections
Headphone drivers have largely remained the same since the inception of headphones way back when, so while newer drivers deliver better sound and more versatility, the biggest bottleneck wireless headphones and earbuds have, as far as sound quality is concerned, is Bluetooth.
Bluetooth audio has improved significantly recently, but there is still a noticeable difference between wired and Bluetooth headphones. This is about to change, however, as the very promising new Qualcomm S7 and S7 Pro chipsets will support micro-powered Wi-Fi. While micro-powered Wi-Fi sounds like a marketing gimmick, the technology exists and should allow wireless headphones to transmit near-perfect lossless audio.
Because this innovation comes with the inclusion of Qualcomm S7 and S7 Pro chips, this jump in audio quality will be limited to supported Android devices with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Processor or newer. However, with such a big leap in performance being promised, you shouldn’t be surprised when Apple devices and non-Snapdragon Android phones start making the same kind of announcements to keep up.
Other Things To Look Out For
Better battery life and sound quality are the two major upgrades to get excited about, but the fun news doesn’t end there. These updates should also increase the versatility and variety of options for headphones and earbuds.
One of the major ones for earbuds is the addition of providing hearing aid capabilities as well as being a personal audio device. Traditional hearing-aid devices are typically incredibly expensive, making them inaccessible for many people, especially if they do not have insurance. Not to mention, many people do not want to wear traditional hearing aids because they make them feel self-conscious. So, being able to pick up a pair of earbuds that can help with hearing will make that hurdle much easier to handle.
There are already a few over-the-counter personal sound amplification devices, but with a few earbud companies already teaming up with hearing aid companies, it seems like we will see a lot more options in the near future.
Here’s To Headphones and Earbuds In 2025
Although all these updates might take some time to reach the majority of wireless earbuds and headphones, they are a very exciting promise. The fact that we are already seeing some of these upgrades and updates in headphones being released in 2024, shows that they are not just pipe dreams of headphone manufacturers, and will soon be accessible to mainstream consumers.
FAQ
Q: Do personal sound amplifiers work?
Personal sound amplifiers are not to the point of prescribed hearing aids, but if you suffer from light to moderate hearing loss, many of the currently available PSAPs will probably be an excellent option. As always, with products that pertain to health and medical needs, it is best to talk to a doctor to see what would be best for you.
Q: How good are Urbanista headphones?
For being labeled as a gimmick headphone when they first released, the Urbanista Los Angeles headphones deliver solid all-around performance regarding sound quality and ANC, and the solar panel charging does a great job keeping the headphones charged under the right conditions.
