My favorite earbuds of the year just got an open-ear makeover, as this top cheap headphone brand debuts 7 new models

• September 3, 2026

• Anker sub-brand Soundcore unveils 7 new headphones at IFA
• New wireless open-ears, over-ears and in-ears, as well as sleep buds
• These include Aerofit 2, taking features from some top options released earlier in the year

Released in May, the Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro are my favorite earbuds of 2026 so far, leading to a glowing 4.5-star review… and now Soundcore has taken that DNA, and given it a little twist.

I’m talking about the Soundcore Aeroclip 2, which have just been unveiled at IFA 2026. On the surface, they seem like simple successors to the original Aeroclip, and an odd comparison for the aforementioned in-ear buds. But it’s all about the feature set.

You see, the Aeroclip 2 come with Anker‘s Thus chip, the firm’s very own internal AI chipset, used in the Liberty 5 Pro. This brings a suite of advantages that other earbuds of this design simply don’t have, including clearer call quality, optimized battery life and a listening test. The new buds are due to cost $169.99 / £159.99 (about AU$320) and go on sale on September 22.

Another point of comparison is that both the Liberty 5 Pro and Aeroclip 2 also now have an advanced model: the 5 Pro Max and Aeroclip 2 Pro respectively. In the latter case, as in the former, the big upgrade is a control panel on the charging case, as well as a note-taking and transcription tool which uses the actual case to take notes. The advanced model is due to cost $229.99 (about £200, AU$400) but has no set release date just yet.

Not all of the Thus chip’s features are present: I loved its noise cancellation capabilities, but since clip-style earbuds are designed to not cancel noise, naturally that won’t show its face here. But if I want ANC, I have plenty of other options…

A busy IFA for Anker

Anker’s Soundcore sub-brand had plenty of other devices at IFA.

First up, there’s the Soundcore Space 2 Pro, over-ear headphones which build on the Space 2 we saw earlier this year. Again, the improvement is that they use the Thus chip, with noise cancellation that’s apparently 1.5x better than on the original model. There’s also a listening test, longer battery life and comfier build, with whatever an “optimized headband” is. These cans are set to cost $199 / £199 (about AU$400), and again go on sale on September 22.

Don’t want over-ears? Well, Soundcore has standard earbuds too, in the form of the Liberty Buds 2. These are lightweight, without long stems, and weigh 4.7g each. They use 9.2mm wool paper diaphragms, and once again have the Thus chip, for the listening test and clear calling.

You can buy the Liberty Buds 2 on the same day as these other gadgets: September 22. They’ll sell for $129.99 / £129.99 (about AU$230).

Soundcore is continuing its line of sleep earbuds with the… Sleep Earbuds 4 (and 4 Pro). These follow on from the Sleep A30, so the brand is changing up its naming conventions here.

These have build-in photoplethysmography sensors to track your sleep stage, heart rate, heart rate variation and other metrics, with “snore masking” and a redesigned shape so they’re even smaller. A neat tool is that they offer dynamic audio: if it notices you waking up, it’ll start playing a sleep sound to lull you back to sleep.

The standard buds come in October, and I wasn’t provided a price. The Pro models come later, in November, and their main upgrade is that they have a screen on the case, so you don’t need to use your phone to manage or monitor them.

Finally, we have the Anker RIC Hearing Aids, which continue a growing trend among audio companies: using their tech to create over-the-counter hearing devices. These use the Thus chip, and therefore the clear-calling and Hear ID tools, to boost sounds you struggle to hear. No word on a price or release date for these.

Phew. Take a breath. That’s only the tip of the iceberg for Anker at IFA, with charging devices and home security cameras and more, but luckily for this missive, none of them go on (or near) your ear.

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Anker sub-brand Soundcore unveils 7 new headphones at IFA New wireless open-ears, over-ears and in-ears, as well as sleep buds These include Aerofit 2, taking features from some top options released earlier in the year Released in May, the Soundcore Liberty 5 Pro are my favorite earbuds of 2026 so…