Nearly four years after the emergence of ChatGPT, no company has yet managed to convince ordinary users to replace their smartphones with dedicated AI devices.
Despite numerous attempts, some of which ended in failure, the smartphone remains the primary tool people rely on to interact with modern technology and AI models.
Plaud is attempting to chart a different course for wearables, distancing itself from the experiences of companies like Rabbit and Humane with earbuds designed to record conversations, meetings and calls, then automatically convert them into transcripts and summaries.
The new earbuds, called Plaud One, can record personal and virtual conversations without needing to connect to a phone, according to a report published by Engadget and reviewed by Al Arabiya Business.
Recording Meetings Without Phone
Plaud is perhaps best known for its Plaud Note and Note Pro devices, which attach magnetically to a phone to record personal conversations, then automatically convert the recordings into text and summaries using AI.
Plaud One takes the concept further by integrating LTE connectivity into the charging case, allowing the earbuds to connect to the internet and upload recordings without requiring a companion phone.
The company says it has struck agreements with telecom operators in more than 80 countries and regions, enabling the earbuds to connect to the internet without a separate cellular subscription.
Each earbud contains 16 MB of local storage, while the charging case provides an additional 512 MB, a capacity the company says is sufficient to record up to 30 hours of audio.
The earbuds are not limited to traditional voice calls; they can also record audio directly from video calling apps such as Google Meet and Zoom.
The charging case itself includes a set of microphones, enabling the recording of meetings, conversations and personal voice notes even without wearing the earbuds.
AI Summarizes Meeting Before You Return to Your Desk
The core idea behind Plaud One is that recordings can be automatically uploaded to Plaud’s servers, where the company’s software transcribes the speech, converts it to text and then summarizes it.
This allows users to return to the office and find meeting details ready, instead of having to listen to the full recording or take notes manually.
Functionality extends beyond summarization: Plaud’s personal assistant can create reports, draft follow-up messages and execute actions across a range of supported third-party apps, including Gmail, Google Calendar, Notion and Slack.
The voice assistant can be activated by saying “Hey, Plaud” or by pressing a dedicated button on the side of the charging case.
Music Playback, but with Limitations
Plaud One can be used to listen to music and podcasts, but this requires pairing the earbuds with a phone or another device.
The earbuds support Bluetooth 5.4 with multipoint connectivity, allowing them to be connected to two devices simultaneously.
However, audio codec support is not ideal. In addition to SBC, the earbuds support LDAC, which theoretically enables high-resolution audio playback. But iPhone users will not benefit from LDAC, as their phones will rely on SBC.
Some Android users may face the same limitations, given the lack of support for Qualcomm’s AptX codecs.
While this may not be an issue for Plaud One’s primary target audience, the limited codec support may prevent the earbuds from being fully featured wireless earbuds across all use cases.
Noise Cancellation, up to 36 Hours of Battery Life
The earbuds also support active noise cancellation (ANC), with Plaud stating they can reduce ambient noise by up to 40 decibels.
They offer a range of equalizer settings, along with dust and water spray resistance rated at IP54.
The earbuds support Apple Find My, as well as Google Fast Pair to simplify pairing with Android devices.
Battery life reaches up to 6 hours with ANC off when used primarily for listening to music.
Plaud expects this to drop to around 4 hours when used mainly for calls.
The charging case, with an 830 mAh battery, provides up to an additional 36 hours of use.
Users can also gain about 2 extra hours of use after charging the earbuds for 10 minutes via a USB-C port, while a full charge takes around 1 hour.
Total Cost of Ownership Exceeds $250 Sticker Price
Plaud is launching a special version called the Explorer Edition at $250, targeting early users before expanding the earbuds’ rollout.
Pre-orders begin today in select markets, while the company expects to start shipping devices before the end of the year.
During the same period, Plaud will release version 4.0 of its app, with the update reaching all its existing devices.
But the actual cost does not stop at the price of the earbuds.
Each Explorer Edition unit will come with $200 worth of free Plaud credits, which are required to use features that rely on AI agents.
The company is still determining how many credits will be provided under different subscription tiers.
Even users who are not interested in AI features may need one of Plaud’s subscriptions to fully benefit from the transcription capabilities, as each subscription tier receives a different number of transcription minutes.
For example, the free Starter plan provides around 300 minutes per month of transcription, while the Pro plan, costing $20 per month, offers 1,200 minutes every 30 days.
As a result, users may end up paying significantly more than $250 to fully utilize Plaud One, making the total cost of owning the earbuds and using their AI services much higher than the initial purchase price.
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