Chinese companies such as Xiaomi and Huawei are rolling out low-priced wireless earbuds in Korea that tout "value for money." The industry is watching to see whether they can shake the dominance of Samsung Electronics and Apple, which focus on premium models priced above 200,000 won.
According to the industry on the 28th, Huawei released its new wireless earbuds "FreeBuds SE 4 ANC" in Korea on the 26th. The domestic sale price is 49,800 won. A price initially set in the 60,000-won range was temporarily lowered for one month during the domestic launch. Xiaomi also introduced the "Redmi Buds 8 Lite" in Korea on the 12th and set the list price at 27,800 won. Compared with Samsung Electronics' "Galaxy Buds Pro3" (259,000 won), that is about one-ninth, and about one-thirteenth of Apple's "AirPods Pro3" (369,000 won).
The presence of Chinese makers is also evident in market share. According to market researcher Canalys, last year's global wireless earbuds market shares were Apple 23.3%, Xiaomi 11.5%, Samsung 7.1%, and Huawei 6%. Xiaomi, which was at 4.4% in 2022, has overtaken Samsung Electronics since 2024, and Huawei, which was categorized as under 3% in the 2022 tally, is also expanding quickly. Apple, which held around 30% through 2022, has fallen to the low 20% range in three years.
Inside and outside the industry, there is a view that China's "dash" will intensify for the time being. The assessment is that they are not just lowering prices but also raising completeness, dispelling concerns about a "China discount." The industry classifies devices with noise canceling of 40 dB or higher as premium. Xiaomi's product in the 20,000-won range offers 42 dB, and Huawei's product in the 40,000-won range offers 50 dB of noise canceling. Xiaomi's product features dual microphones and AI-based environmental noise cancellation (ENC), while Huawei's product offers IP54-rated water and dust resistance for daily use. An electronics industry official said, "In the recent phase of overlapping economic downturn and inflation, demand is growing for Chinese value-for-money wireless earbuds," adding, "Perceptions are spreading that in terms of quality they are not far behind Samsung or Apple."
Samsung Electronics and Apple are defending themselves with "differentiated performance" rather than price competition. Samsung Electronics touts call solutions with enhanced voice quality as a strength, and emphasizes that users can summon Google "Gemini" without taking out the phone—by voice or by long-pressing the earbuds—to use real-time translation. Apple has also added real-time translation to its products, along with features that have Siri read notifications and allow users to accept or decline calls with head gestures such as nodding or shaking. A heart rate measurement function while wearing the earbuds was also added. Kim Yong-seok, distinguished professor at Gachon University's College of Semiconductor, said, "Samsung and Apple are pursuing a strategy of expanding influence around the high-priced premium market, while Chinese companies like Xiaomi and Huawei are focusing on the mid- to low-priced market, so there will not be much overlap."
Conversely, some say the "low-price counterattack" should be taken seriously. Kim Kyung-won, distinguished professor of business administration at Sejong University, said, "If Samsung and Apple focus only on premium, they could drift into 'technology overkill,'" adding, "Consumers may be more drawn to products that keep the price down while staying true to basic performance rather than special features." He added, "Chinese companies will continue to roll out high-performance, low-priced products," and "the case of Roborock, a latecomer from China that raised quality and pushed Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics out of the robot vacuum market, should serve as a cautionary tale."