Gear IconX is Samsung’s Answer to Apple’s Wireless Airpods

Samsung has introduced competition for the Apple Airpods, and here’s how we rate it.

Samsung Gear X (left) and Apple Airpods (right) (Photo: The Quint)

The Apple-Samsung rivalry has a new dimension in 2016. While Apple went south by ditching audio jack on the iPhone 7 and instead gave us the Airpods, Samsung’s made its own wireless audio device called Gear Icon X.

While the Apple Airpods will cost you Rs 15,400 in the Indian market, Samsung’s Gear Icon X is available for Rs 13,490. We take a closer look as to what differentiates the IconX from the Airpods made by Apple.

Design

Both are small in size and fit smoothly in your ears, helping you get rid of all the nuisance that wires pose.

Samsung Gear IconX comes with built-in fitness sensors. (Photo: The Quint)

There has been a lot of debate about Apple’s work, or the lack of it, on the design of Airpods.

Samsung, on the other hand, has made sure that the Gear IconX has all the attributes a fitness freak wants. You can switch between music, control volume and even On/Off with the help of a touch-enabled button.

Whereas Airpods will only be available in white, the Samsung Gear Icon X comes in multiple shades of colour.

Usability

Airpods can only be paired with iPods, iPhones or iPads. Apple’s Bluetooth configuration ensures that non-iOS users can’t use it.

The Airpods do not get built-in storage and according to Apple, offer up to 5 hours of listening time on a single charge. You can listen to music for 3 hours if you charge it for 15 minutes, as per Apple.

The case with Samsung Gear IconX. (Photo: The Quint)

The Samsung Gear IconX gets built-in 4GB storage, and works with any Android phone with 4.4 KitKat or more via Bluetooth (LE) v4.1. What works in favour of Gear IconX is its durability thanks to splash resistant nano-coating.

On the flipside, Samsung says that the Gear IconX will only last up to 3.5 hours on a single charge, which is not ideal for a portable fitness-friendly music device.

Worth It?

Anything that Apple has to offer generates curiosity, and with Airpods we’ve heard or seen nothing different.

Moving away from the audio jack is a big and bold move from them, but it is too early to say if a wireless product like Airpod will succeed.

Samsung’s Gear IconX offers built-in storage, which the Airpods don’t. (Photo: The Quint)

Samsung’s got most things spot on with the Gear IconX except for its mediocre battery life. All told, spending upwards of 12K on either of these right now isn’t advisable, especially with wireless tech becoming more affordable.