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The first week of January is one of the busiest in the tech calendar as CES takes over Las Vegas to provide brands with a platform to launch all manner of crazy new gear.
Headphones and projectors may not fall into the crazy category, especially not when compared to AI-powered robots that sense when your child is sad and provide reassuring hugs, but Anker Soundcore’s latest products are far less threatening to the moral fabric of society.
I stopped by the Chinese manufacturer’s suite in The Venetian to check out various new additions to its extensive personal audio and home entertainment ranges, and left excited by what’s arriving in the coming months.
The Soundcore AeroFit 2 Pro offer a novel solution to open-fit headphones’ biggest issue
First up, both in terms of my excitement levels and release date, are the noise–cancelling Soundcore AeroFit 2 Pro. They’re Anker’s answer to a question several brands have sought to tackle in recent months: how can open-ear headphones be designed to provide effective noise cancellation when necessary?
Apple’s AirPods 4 rest neatly in your ear canals without sealing them off and use ANC to impressive effect, while the Shokz OpenFit Pro, which sit just in front of your ear canals, lean on “noise-reduction” technology to dampen external distractions.
Soundcore’s solution is slightly different, with the AeroFit Pro 2 combining the two above approaches in what Anker is calling the “world’s first dual-form earbuds”. They have AirPods-like buds that rest in your ears, but also earhooks that loop around your lug holes for additional stability. However, the cleverest part is that you can manually adjust the positioning of the buds to optimise for open-ear listening or noise cancellation.
You’ve got five positions available, and switching between them is as simple as moving the earhooks on the hinge that joins them to the buds. Positions (or Levels as Anker is calling them) 1 and 2 are designed to let sound in, while 4 and 5 seek to keep it out. Level 3 is a neutral setting that should work reasonably well for either type of listening.
I can’t comment on the quality of sound the AeroFit 2 Pro generate, but their positioning mechanism works well, and they’re very comfortable to wear. They support spatial audio with head tracking too, alongside Bluetooth multipoint pairing, and have stated battery life of up to seven hours, with the accompanying charging case taking that total to 34 hours.
Available from 20 January, the AeroFit 2 Pro can be picked up in four colours: Matte Black, Gloss White, Matt Purple and Gloss Blue. They have an RRP of £180, but by registering your interest on Soundcore’s Aero Fit 2 Pro product page, you can save yourself £20 and secure an extended 45-day return window should they not meet your expectations.
I’ve got a review sample on the way, so you can expect to read my thoughts on the AeroFit 2 Pro in the next few weeks.
The Soundcore Nebula X1 goes Pro
Second up, and also available on 20 January, are the Soundcore Nebula X1 Pro, an upgrade to the Nebula X1 projector-cum-home cinema system that Stuart Andrews gave a Recommended award to last May.
The 4K triple laser shares the same stated brightness and native contrast ratio as its predecessor (3,500 ANSI Lumens and 5,000:1, respectively), but comes with four wireless speakers and a pair of mics included, while also being designed for easy transportation.
Soundcore is describing the product as “the world’s first mobile theatre station”, and with the ability to project images of up to 200in, and 7.1.4-channel Dolby Atmos sound, it certainly ticks the right boxes for recreating a cinema experience at home and further afield.
I didn’t get to hear it in action, but I loved how easily the speakers can be housed in and removed from the body of the projector. The speakers are so well-integrated into the overall design that I wasn’t even aware of their presence when I first caught sight of the X1 Pro.
A telescopic handle and two wheels on the base of the unit allow you to roll it around with minimal effort, and the IP43 rating gives the system a reasonable level of water resistance, though you’ll still want to prevent it from being exposed to heavy rain.
Having raised over $8m on Kickstarter, the Nebula X1 Pro will cost a cool £4,999. It will also be available as part of a bundle that includes an inflatable 200in screen and is priced at £6,998. Those are some huge numbers for a brand typically regarded as value-oriented, but there’s nothing else quite like the X1 Pro out there, and if the X1’s picture and audio quality are anything to go by, those who backed it on Kickstarter will be very pleased with their investment.
The Nebula P1i looks like it could take off, literally and figuratively
Joining the X1 Pro in the brand’s 2026 projector lineup is the eminently more affordable Soundcore Nebula P1i. This portable beamer screams satellite, which is apt given the stellar nomenclature of the Anker sub-brand.
Uniquely, the P1i features flip-open speakers that can be rotated to send sound out in different directions depending on your environment. Once flipped away from the projector’s body, they look like wings with which the P1i might take flight into outer space.
The innovative speaker design is backed up with solid projector specs, too, especially given the £370 price tag. Peak brightness is claimed to be 400 ANSI Lumens, which is twice as bright as the pint-sized Nebula Capsule 3, which also projects 1080p images. Content is accessed via the ever-reliable Google TV platform, which includes support for the official Netflix app. You’re also getting auto keystone correction to help ensure that images are optimised as and when you decide to move the P1i.
Anker hasn’t revealed a firm release date for the Soundcore P1i just yet, but it’s coming in 2026, so we’ll be looking to get one in for testing soon.
