In just about a week, Samsung, Vivo, and OnePlus all have new over-the-ear headphones. This type of headset does not fit into the ear but is clamped at the edge of the ear, the speaker is facing inwards, so you can still hear traffic and people talking around. Previously, this type was mainly made by Huawei, Bose, Shokz or Sony, but now major phone companies are jumping in.

Samsung makes the first ear clip

Galaxy Buds On are Samsung's first open headphones. The device was released in Korea from early October, and on October 28, Samsung announced it to the US for $229, on sale from November 6, only available in black. Europe has to wait until early 2027.

The part I find noteworthy is the control. Nod your head to answer the phone, shake your head to decline a call, turn off the alarm or have your headphones read notifications using head gestures. Samsung also allows Gemini calls without touching, takes quick notes by voice, and has a sound reduction feature so people sitting next to them can't hear what they're listening to.

The big minus is that there is no true multipoint connection. SoundGuys points out that the headset only switches between Samsung devices, so anyone using a Windows laptop or iPad with a Galaxy phone will find it inconvenient. At this price, Buds On is on par with Sony LinkBuds Clip and only cheaper than Bose.

Vivo brings Buds Clip to Europe

Vivo Buds Clip launched in China on September 21, priced at 699 yuan for the regular version and 799 yuan for the wireless charging version. After the X500 event on October 27, the headphones began selling in Europe for 179 euros, nearly double the price in China if converted.

Unlike Samsung, Vivo can connect three devices at the same time, has LDAC and is IP55 waterproof. Each earphone weighs about 5.2g, both sides are identical so you can wear it on either side. However, some features such as live translation or station announcements when traveling by train only work when used with Vivo or iQOO phones.

OnePlus has both ear clips and ear plugs

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OnePlus Buds Clip is OnePlus' first clip-on headset, announced on October 27, tuned with Danish speaker company Dynaudio, with two speakers on each side. OnePlus has not announced the price and selling market.

At the same time, OnePlus brought Buds Pro 4 to the global site. These are active noise-cancelling earbuds, also made with Dynaudio, and the company says the noise cancellation is twice as strong as Buds Pro 3. Buds Pro 4 is also not priced in most markets, and has only been sold in Russia since November 2. The fact that OnePlus launched two models at the same time shows that the company considers clip-on headphones as a separate line for wearing all day, not a replacement for noise-canceling headphones.

Place price and battery side by side

Looking at prices in the US, ear clips have two clear segments. Big brands like Bose, Sony, Samsung are around 200 to 300 USD, while brands like EarFun sell for less than 100 USD. Vivo is not yet sold in the US so I did not include it in the price chart, but the price of 179 euros in Europe is also close to the above group.

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In terms of battery, the three new devices are almost equal, including the charging box, they all last around 40 hours according to company data. Samsung announced 9.5 hours to charge the headset, Vivo 10 hours. So the battery is no longer a place for brands to outperform each other, the other thing lies in how to control, connect multiple devices and whether features are locked to phones of the same brand or not.

Why does every company make ear clips now

The ear clip style solves the problems that earbuds don't do well: wearing it for a long time doesn't hurt your ears, doesn't clog your ears, can be worn with glasses, and you can still hear your surroundings when jogging or walking. Samsung also said directly that users should have Buds4 Pro to focus on noise cancellation, then switch to Buds On when going out.

On the other hand, clip-on headphones are not noise-canceling, the bass is as difficult as closed-back headphones, and a little sound still leaks out even though every brand has a sound reduction feature. So I think this is the second headset, worn all day, but not yet replaced with noise-canceling headphones. Have you tried the ear clip style, is it more comfortable to wear for a long time?