Microsoft gets serious with latest wireless headphones, the Surface Buds

At last year’s Surface event, Microsoft announced the over-ear noise-cancelling Surface Headphones; this year, the company more directly entered the competition against Apple’s segment-leading AirPods with the introduction of the Surface Buds.

On Wednesday at the 2019 Surface Event, Microsoft announced its first truly wireless pair of earbuds, aptly named the Surface Buds.

While other companies in the industry have released models mimicking Apple’s AirPods design — including Anker and JLab, Microsoft opted for a truly bud-like shape similar to those of Samsung and Master & Dynamic.

As with the Surface Headphones launched at last year’s Surface Event, various Surface Buds functionalities can be controlled with touch controls. Like the AirPods and Galaxy Buds, the Microsoft version responds to taps and tap-and-hold gestures to control elements like the music playback and volume level.

Compared with its competition, these earbuds offer a hearty eight hours of continuous music playback while AirPods generally give users five hours, along the same lines as the Galaxy Buds and Bose’s SoundSport Free earbuds.

What’s more unique about this set of earbuds is their compatibility with Spotify — users don’t need to take their phones out to activate the app. Also, the Surface Buds feature a Microsoft Office integration allowing the wearer to flip through Powerpoint slides and display real-time captions of their voice during a presentation.

While Microsoft claims that the design optimises in-ear comfort, it’s eggshell color and circular shape are far from discreet — in fact, this eye-catching form could be off-putting to some users despite its high performance specs.

The Surface Buds will be available for purchase later this year for $249.

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