Earin introduces new M2 wireless earbuds with touch controls & same 3 hour battery life, higher $249 price

Totally wireless earbuds are expected to be one of the biggest trends at CES this week, thanks in large part Apple’s new AirPods and decision to ditch the headphone jack with the iPhone 7. The AirPods weren’t the first pair of completely wireless earbuds to hit the market, though. For instance, we reviewed the Earin M1 earbuds back in September and now, Earin has announced the Earin M2…

The M2 earbuds from Earin are again completely wireless, lacking even a connector cable between the two earbuds. With the M2, Earin has essentially taken into consideration the feedback from M1 users and worked to improve the experience.

One notable difference between the M2 and their predecessor is the addition of touch controls. This means that users will be able to perform basic play/pause functionality by tapping on the earbuds, much like Apple’s AirPods. Earin says the M2 earbuds are the smallest and lightest around, as well.

As for battery life, the M2 earbuds should run for about 3 hours per charge, with the accompanying carrying case adding another 12 hours of life. That’s the same as the M1 earbuds and less than the 5 hours promised for Apple’s AirPods and the 24 hours promised for the accompanying case. Though, the case for the M2 is more powerful than the 9 hours promised from the M1 case.

The Earin M1 earbuds were largely plagued by connectivity issues, both to smartphones and between buds. With the M2, however, the company has switched to using Near Field Magnetic Induction to connect the two earbuds together. While that may fix some issues, the company is still using standard Bluetooth to the connect to your phone, so we’ll have to see if issues there are resolved.

As for pricing and availability, the Earin M2 are coming in “late Q1” and will cost $249, according to the The Verge. That’s certainly pricey, even compared to the AirPods. Our poll noted that price was the biggest factor steering cusomters away from AirPods, so it’ll be interesting to see how the Earin M2 fare. You can currently get the Earin M1 earbuds for $139 on Amazon.