'OnePlus Bullets Wireless' Earphones Unveiling Likely at OnePlus 6 Launch Event

OnePlus 6 is the next big smartphone coming our way, with the launch confirmed to be in second quarter, though the official unveiling may be as early as April-end. However, it seems the OnePlus 6 won't be the only product the company will showcase at the event, as it is apparently working on a paid of wireless earphones as well, named OnePlus Bullets Wireless. This new development is likely to sit alongside the OnePlus Bullets (V2) that were launched in August 2016. OnePlus 6 has been confirmed to come with a notch design and Snapdragon 845 SoC, and will have a 256GB storage variant.

As per a Bluetooth certification listing, the new OnePlus Bullets Wireless earphones are based on Bluetooth v4.1 and include a Qualcomm chip. The earphones carry model number BT31B and are listed since April 4, suggesting them as a part of the ongoing developments by the Chinese company. Moreover, the fresh listing suggests that the company may announce the new product alongside launching the OnePlus 6. Folks at Nashville Chatter spotted the listing soon after it became live.

The prime use case of wireless earphones is certainly to give a wire-free music playback experience to users. However, companies including Apple and Google recently brought there in-house wireless earphones in the form of AirPods and Pixel Buds, respectively, to give users an advanced alternative to traditional wired headsets. Both companies specifically also preferred to ditch the 3.5mm audio jack from their smartphone models. This again makes some sense for launching native wireless earphones. Having said that, OnePlus has confirmed the OnePlus 6 will retain the 3.5mm headphone jack. Thus, the company may be looking to provide an official wireless headphone alternative to its users.

In the past, OnePlus brought its Bullet series earphones at affordable prices - as low as $20 in the US (approximately Rs. 1,300) for the OnePlus Bullets V2. This suggests that the new wireless earphones will also be a pocket-friendly offering. We can also presume that the new earphones will work with Google Assistant and come with premium drivers.

It is unclear that when OnePlus will launch its Bullets Wireless earphones. However, the OnePlus 6 is likely to be launched sometime around the release of the Avengers: Infinity War movie that is set in India for April 27.

Do Oppo F7 and Vivo V9 show what to expect from OnePlus 6? We discussed that on Orbital, our weekly technology podcast, which you can subscribe to via Apple Podcasts or RSS, download the episode, or just hit the play button below.