The new Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro Wi-Fi earbuds were the biggest product launch of Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2025 in Barcelona, an event that is traditionally rich in terms of true wireless solutions that many manufacturers like to announce together with their latest smartphones and wearable products. In this case, Xiaomi - a company that doesn’t cease to surprise with their expanded range of products, from vacuum cleaners to electric cars - surprised the industry by being the first to market with Qualcomm’s XPAN technology, enabled by the S7 Pro Snapdragon Sound platform.
The solution allows wireless headphones and earbuds to be directly connected via Wi-Fi and supports high-res lossless audio streaming and an extended range. In fact, XPAN leverages both Bluetooth and micro-power Wi-Fi so users can benefit from the best audio streaming and connectivity experience when transitioning from home, work, or on the move. This is a significant development, given that not only micro-power Wi-Fi doesn’t compromise on battery life, but it also enables a seamless streaming experience from the limited range and limited data rates of Bluetooth directly to expanded range and bandwidth of Wi-Fi networks, which can be one’s home LAN or a campus-wide network in the university. The streaming experience in either of those connections is made seamless by Qualcomm’s aptX Adaptive, that is able to leverage up to 4.2Mbps bandwidth in aptX Lossless and transition to aptX/aptX HD when only Bluetooth is available.
The concept of direct connectivity via micro-power Wi-Fi also enables many outer possibilities that Xiaomi fully leveraged at MWC 2025, promoting the possibilities of “Connected Intelligence” with many of its other devices from smartphones to laptops. In fact, at MWC 2025, Xiaomi promoted its complete “Human x Car x Home" smart ecosystem, allowing seamless connectivity and intelligent integration of all its products. In all the products that it announces, the Chinese company almost always incorporates strategic collaborations with third-party suppliers or through licensing.
The new Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro and Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro (Wi-Fi) TWS earbuds are part of this year’s vision, that expands to the Xiaomi Watch S4, Xiaomi Electric Scooter 5 Max, and Xiaomi Smart Band 9 Pro, showcasing technology innovations across multiple lifestyle categories. The standard version of the Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro earbuds also leverages the latest Snapdragon Sound Technology Suite and Qualcomm aptX Lossless technology, delivering 24-bit/48kHz at a high transmission bandwidth of up to 2.1Mbps. The Bluetooth 5.4 design features a dual-amplifier and coaxial triple-driver system (11mm dynamic, planar driver, and piezo tweeter, all coaxially aligned), with sound tuned by the Harman Golden Ear Team with two professionally crafted EQ profiles.
Claiming up to 55dB hybrid active noise cancellation (ANC), the Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro can also adapt to different environments, support dual-device connectivity, and have an extended battery life for uninterrupted listening. Including the case battery, users can get up to 40 hours of battery life and 4.5 hours of playback with just 10 minutes of fast charging from this IP54 design.
The Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro Wi-Fi model expands on these features by adding direct Wi-Fi connectivity with smartphones, powered by Snapdragon Sound and Qualcomm XPAN technology, for up to 4.2Mbps audio streaming. It retains the same battery life and specifications, with an exclusive model available in Translucent Black, to offer a futuristic and sophisticated finish exclusive to that premium model. The standard Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro are announced to retail for €199.99 Euros, while the Xiaomi Buds 5 Pro Wi-Fi model will retail not much higher, for €219.99 Euros.
To fully leverage the possibilities of the XPAN technology, this model needs to connect to a compatible Qualcomm Snapdragon-equipped phone or source device via Wi-Fi. At MWC 2025, Qualcomm was already demonstrating headphones that connect directly to Wi-Fi networks using the same technology, but that is still not possible on a TWS earbud form factor, yet. The company also doesn't mention specifically LE Audio or Auracast support for the two new earbuds, although they should be ready for it.
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