Xiaomi today unveiled a new version of its AirDots wireless headphones, and it's safe to say that the average consumer on the street would be hard pressed to distinguish the look from Apple's own AirPods.

Xiaomi Mi airpods airdots
The Chinese mobile maker first appeared to take a leaf out of Apple's playbook back in November with the launch of its original AirDots, which were more akin to classic earbuds in design but offered much of the same functionality as AirPods, including gestural controls and a compact charging case.

Xiaomi's newly announced AirDots Pro (aka "Mi Bluetooth Headset Air") buds however look like a straight-up clone of Apple's best-selling wireless headphones, complete with the signature "arm" that houses the Bluetooth receiver and beamforming microphone.

Like AirPods, the earpieces feature touch controls for music playback and invoking personal assistants, and they're able to function independently of each other thanks to adaptive pairing. They also offer water resistance and a four-hour battery life, while the charging case offers an additional 10 hours of charge and can recharge the buds fully in one hour.

xiaomi air dots pro 2
To their credit, the AirDots Pro have silicone tips for improved sound isolation and additional active noise cancelation. A black pair is also reportedly in the works. Still, the biggest difference is probably the price – Xiaomi's buds cost 399 Yuan (around $60), whereas Apple's come in at $159. How that saving impacts on sound quality and general performance remains to be seen.

Xiaomi devices, ranging from smartphones to tablets, have been criticized in the past for heavily borrowing design elements from Apple's iPhones and iPads and adopting marketing materials tactics similar to Apple's.

In 2017, Apple won the right to prevent Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi from registering its "Mi Pad" mobile tablet device as an EU trademark because the name was deemed too similar to Apple's iPad.

(Via gizchina.com.)

Related Forum: AirPods

Top Rated Comments

Enclavean Avatar
81 months ago
You gotta admire how shameless they are
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
T'hain Esh Kelch Avatar
81 months ago
I wish the world didn't have to depend on China

What shameless cockroaches!
They don't have to. You just have to work at wages that are lower than what the chinese get for building these things. And calling them cockroaches is just low. You are buying the products they produce, so you are keeping the world from changing.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
GaryMumford Avatar
81 months ago
To be honest, I don't think i'd be "hard pressed" to tell the difference. Ok they are white and a similar size, but look completely different.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Shiro_Simba Avatar
81 months ago
This was going to happen

$60 - damn

I do like the MR question how the saving impacts sound quality . Well the AirPods sound quality is the same as the $29 EarPods.

Love my AirPods , still one of the best apple products recently.
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sniffies Avatar
81 months ago
What shameless cockroaches!
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Zedcars Avatar
81 months ago
Like parasites, they continue to benefit from the fruits of years of research, design and engineering excellence while their financial costs in any of those fields is minimal. Why design anything original anymore when you can just wheel out a photocopier?
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro 34ths Perspective

iPhone 17 Pro Launching Later This Year With These 10 New Features

Sunday March 23, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
While the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are not expected to launch until September, there are already plenty of rumors about the devices. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models as of March 2025: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an aluminum frame, whereas the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro models have a titanium frame, and the iPhone ...
macbook pro blue green

When Will Apple Release the M5 MacBook Pro?

Wednesday March 26, 2025 4:53 pm PDT by
Apple regularly refreshes the MacBook Pro models, and a new version that uses M5 series chips is in the works. Apple just finished refreshing most of the Mac lineup with M4 chips, and now it's time for the M5. Rumors suggest that we could see the first M5 MacBook Pro models this fall. Design There have been no rumors of a design update for the M5 MacBook Pro models that are coming this...
iOS 18

iOS 18.4 Expected Next Week - Here Are the Release Notes

Friday March 28, 2025 2:01 pm PDT by
With the second release candidate of iOS 18.4 that Apple seeded out today, the company finally provided us with release notes that give a full rundown on what to expect. There's an Apple Vision Pro app, new Apple Intelligence features for notifications and additional language support, plus an Apple News Food feature for Apple News+ subscribers, and several updates that should improve the...
Facebook Feature

Facebook's New iPhone App Feature Turns the Clock Back to 2007

Thursday March 27, 2025 1:59 pm PDT by
In the mid-to-late 2000s, Facebook was all about staying connected with friends and family. However, as the social media platform added new features and grew over time, that core experience began to get drowned out. That changes starting now, according to Meta, which today introduced a new feature that will "bring back the joy" of classic Facebook. Specifically, Meta has redesigned the...
iOS 18 4 Ambient Music Control Center

How to Use iOS 18.4's New Ambient Music Feature in Control Center

Thursday March 27, 2025 7:45 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone adds an Ambient Music feature to Control Center. Below, we take a closer look at how it works. iOS 18.4 is currently in beta, so the Ambient Music feature is not widely available yet. The update will likely be released to the general public next week. To use the feature on iOS 18.4, open Control Center and tap on the plus sign in the top-left...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

'iPhone Fold' to Feature Metallic Glass Hinge That Resists Deformation

Thursday March 27, 2025 4:21 am PDT by
Last week, we covered a report claiming that Apple's book-style foldable iPhone (or "iPhone Fold," as we are provisionally calling it here) will use liquid metal hinges to improve durability and help minimize screen creasing. Today, a Chinese leaker provided more details on the properties of this hinge material that help to clarify why Apple chose it for its first foldable device. According...
Magic Mouse Green

What to Expect From the Magic Mouse 3

Saturday March 29, 2025 10:15 am PDT by
Apple is reportedly working on a new Magic Mouse. Below, we recap what to expect. The two key rumors for the Magic Mouse 3 so far include a relocated charging port, along with a more ergonomic design. It was briefly rumored that the Magic Mouse 3 would also feature voice control, but that was misinterpreted information. Relocated Charging Port While the Magic Mouse switched from...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature Homescreen

Six Things to Know About Apple's Upcoming Foldable iPhone

Friday March 28, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We've been hearing rumors about a foldable iPhone for almost a decade now, but it looks like we might finally see the device come to fruition in 2026. We're going to be waiting many more months for the foldable iPhone, but so far we're hearing good things. Apple wants to make it creaseless. It's taken Apple multiple years to design a foldable iPhone that it's satisfied with because Apple ...
Apple Lumon Terminal Pro

Apple's Mac Site Features Fictional 'Lumon Terminal Pro'

Wednesday March 26, 2025 12:19 pm PDT by
Apple is going all out with promotions for the popular Severance Apple TV+ show today, and as of right now, you'll find a new "Lumon Terminal Pro" listed on Apple's Mac site. The Lumon Terminal Pro is designed to look similar to the machines that Severance employees like Mark S. and Helly R. use for macrodata refinement. The Terminal features a blue keyboard, a small display with wide...