During the summer of 2018, we informed you that Huawei had filed a patent with the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) for a smartwatch that stores a pair of Bluetooth-enabled wireless earbuds. Now, almost four and a half years later, the troubled Chinese manufacturer is teasing the release of such a device. Huawei posted a video on the Chinese social media platform Weibo with yesterday’s date at the end, presumably to promote the device’s unveiling. However, there was no announcement made (more on that later).
The video refers to the watch as the Huawei Watch Buds. The earbuds are concealed and stored beneath the dial of the watch. The device appears to be the same size as Huawei’s Watch GT line and runs on Huawei’s own HarmonyOS. Deng Li, a self-proclaimed Huawei enthusiast, tweeted a link to the video Huawei uploaded to Weibo. Assuming that the earbuds charge while they are concealed within the watch, the battery powering the device must be larger than that of a typical smartwatch.
Huawei Watch Buds teaser, launching on December 2 pic.twitter.com/60kyibwIdX
— Deng Li (@MrDengLi) November 30, 2022
Due to the postponement of the Winter 2022 event on December 2, it is unclear when the Huawei Watch Buds will be introduced formally. The earbuds found inside the watch are described as “plain and simple,” but this should not matter. The concept is to conceal a pair of earbuds in your watch, making them instantly accessible. In addition, they will be fully charged and ready to go. Since the earbuds are located on the user’s wrist, they are less likely to be lost.
The CEO of Huawei’s Consumer Business Group, Yu Chengdong (also known as Richard Yu), was recently spotted wearing the watch. Using Google Translate to read his Weibo post, Yu described the device as a “revolutionary breakthrough in Huawei’s wearable product form and structure design.”
This is not the first time Huawei has created a wrist-worn device with dual functionality. In 2014, the Talk Band B1 was a fitness tracker and Bluetooth headset combined. When separated from the band, the display would also serve as the earpiece for the user.
The company continues to innovate despite U.S. restrictions, as evidenced by the fact that the Huawei Mate 50 series was met with high demand and long lines in China earlier this year.
As soon as we learn a new date for the Huawei Watch Buds’ release, we will update this article.