The success of Huawei FreeClip 2 earbuds has been keeping other Chinese brands on their toes. Many of them have started making their own “cuff” earbuds, and Xiaomi hasn’t stayed on the sidelines. Xiaomi Clip Earbuds (the company’s first clip-on earbuds) are already available for international order through the Giztop store at $159.99 (approximately 18,000 ₽ in Russia) with worldwide shipping. The earbuds attach not to the ear canal but to the ear cartilage, weigh just 5.5 grams, and can translate speech in real time into 21 languages. If regular earbuds bother you or you want to hear your surroundings while listening — this is the case where it’s worth diving into the details.
Xiaomi released its first clip-on earbuds. Image: Xiaomi
Why Xiaomi Clip Earbuds Are Earbuds That Don’t Fall Out
Clip-on earbuds (open-ear) are a fast-growing format in the audio world. Unlike regular TWS earbuds, they don’t insert into the ear but clip onto its edge. You hear music while maintaining awareness of your surroundings: you can hear cars on the street, colleagues in the office, and announcements at the airport.
Xiaomi Clip Earbuds use a titanium clip with shape-memory effect that secures the earbud on the ear. According to Xiaomi, the clamping distance is 3.4 mm — enough for a secure fit without putting pressure on the cartilage even after several hours of wear. Each earbud weighs just 5.5 grams, making them virtually unnoticeable when worn.
The format is suitable for runners, cyclists, office workers, and anyone who doesn’t like closed earbuds. IP57 dust and water protection means you don’t have to worry about sweat or light rain. Controls are touch-based, right on the earbuds: you can skip tracks, answer calls, and control playback.
Xiaomi Clip Earbuds Sound Quality
Inside each earbud is an 11mm dynamic driver with a microcrystalline metal-coated diaphragm. The frequency response range is 20 Hz to 48 kHz. This is wider than most classic TWS earbuds and formally covers everything the human ear can perceive, plus a margin for Hi-Res audio.
The earbuds are open-ear but sound great. Image: Xiaomi
The earbuds support AAC, SBC, and LHDC 5.0 codecs. The latter is a high-quality Bluetooth codec with bitrates up to 1 Mbps, a competitor to Sony’s LDAC but with better connection stability. For LHDC 5.0 to actually work, you need a compatible smartphone (typically flagships). On phones from other manufacturers, the earbuds will work via AAC or SBC, which is fine too, but without Hi-Res.
Connection is via Bluetooth 5.4. It’s important to understand the nuance of open earbuds, which is sound leakage. Xiaomi claims to use reverse sound wave technology that should reduce how much music others around you can hear. How well this works in practice will be shown by real-world tests.
Earbuds with Artificial Intelligence
One of the main features of Xiaomi Clip Earbuds is AI real-time speech translation, which works through the Xiao AI voice assistant. Support for 21 languages is claimed. The feature is designed for travelers and those who need quick oral translation without a separate device.
AI features are built into the earbuds. Image: Xiaomi
It’s worth noting: Xiao AI is Xiaomi’s assistant, and its capabilities outside the HyperOS ecosystem are still unclear. If you use the earbuds with a phone from another brand, translation may be limited or unavailable. For calls, there’s a system of three microphones and a bone conduction sensor (VPU) that picks up voice vibrations through the skull bones. This allows better voice isolation from background noise — useful in transport, on the street, or in a café.
Xiaomi Clip Earbuds Battery Life
Without the case, the earbuds provide up to 9 hours of music playback. With the charging case, total battery life reaches 38 hours, which is a solid result for open-type earbuds. Charging is via USB-C, and five minutes of charging gives about two hours of listening — a lifesaver when your earbuds die before heading out.
For owners of Xiaomi phones with HyperOS, there’s a pop-up window for quick pairing and battery level display — similar to how AirPods behave on iPhone. The earbuds also support simultaneous connection to two devices and are compatible with Apple Find My, which is useful for finding a lost earbud even without a Xiaomi phone.
Xiaomi Clip Earbuds Price
In China, Xiaomi Clip Earbuds cost 849 yuan (approximately $124), and with the launch discount — 799 yuan ($117). On the international Giztop platform, the price is higher — $159.99 with global shipping, which is approximately 18,000 ₽ in Russia. The difference is understandable: the international version includes shipping and retailer markup.
The earbuds should be especially popular with women
For comparison: Bose Ultra Open Earbuds cost about $300, while budget EarFun Clip 2 are under $100. Xiaomi lands right in the middle, offering Hi-Res audio, an advanced microphone system, and AI translation — features that most competitors in this price segment lack.
Who should pay attention: those who use a Xiaomi smartphone and want earbuds with maximum ecosystem integration; people who find in-ear buds uncomfortable; runners and cyclists who need to hear the road. Who should wait: Samsung and Pixel owners, for whom some features (LHDC 5.0, AI translation, pop-up window) will be unavailable, and the $160 price isn’t the most attractive without these bonuses.
