Huawei’s latest smartwatch has hidden earbuds inside

If you’d already seen any leaks of the Huawei Watch Buds on the web, then you’d be forgiven for thinking it was some fan-made concept or an early-development product destined to never see the light of day. But, in an announcement on Weibo, Huawei has not only confirmed that the Huawei Watch Buds are a genuine product, but provided a teaser video for us to get a better look (via The Register).

As the name suggests, the Huawei Watch Buds are a pair of earbuds concealed within a smartwatch that looks similar to the Huawei Watch 3. Details are a little sparse so there’s no word yet on what kind of performance or battery life you can expect from either of the products, but the watch itself does appear to be running HarmonyOS.

The earbuds don’t seem to resemble any previous Huawei products, sporting a bare-bones black and silver design. While the concept feels more than a little gimmicky, it could be a neat solution for runners and other sporty folks who don’t want to carry a separate earbud case during a workout. (If they don’t mind the extra bulk on their wrists.)

Addressing the elephant in the room, it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to buy this wacky gadget in the US anyway, regardless of its legitimacy. Huawei products have been effectively banned in the country since the company was placed on the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security Entity list in 2019.