HMD has taken time at Mobile World Congress 2025 to introduce a new set of earbuds with a unique feature. The brand’s new Amped Buds include a massive (for in-ear buds) battery in the case, capable of wirelessly topping up your smartphone.
Your phone will have to support wireless charging, of course, but it’s still a world first for… anyone. Not just the brand that resurrected and is now sunsetting Nokia in favour of its own name. Whether reverse-wireless charging in an earbuds case is a good idea will depend entirely on you.
Extra-Amped Buds
HMD’s Amped Buds reside in a case about the same size as a human palm, though somewhat thinner. These things are supposed to be portable, after all. The earbuds slot into the shorter sides, with the stems sitting flush with the case’s 14mm edge. At 80 grams in total, they’ll be pocketable and, if you’re not keen on Qi2 reverse-wireless charging, should last ages between sessions plugged into a wall charger.
HMD offers users both hybrid active noise cancellation (ANC) and environmental noise cancellation (ENC), thanks to a triple microphone array, with 10mm drivers sending wireless audio into skulls over Bluetooth. The buds are IP54 rated, making them suitable for active types, and the case is IPX4 rated, so it’ll have some durability — unless you manage to cram something into the holes the earbuds live inside.
The Amped Buds are rated for eight hours of listening with ANC turned off and four hours with ANC before you’ll have to return them home. All told, with the case used only for the buds, you’ll have up to 96 hours of listening before anything has to be recharged using a wall socket.
HMD has a companion app that’ll provide EQ options for more discerning listeners. The hardware, according to HMD, can “dynamically amplify low frequencies for responsive bass that creates a true-to-life, balanced soundscape capable of power and depth.” That’s marketing speak for ‘We’re going to send Stuff a pair so they can see this for themselves.’ Right, HMD?
