Samsung prepares its first Galaxy H1 headphones to overshadow the AirPods Max

Samsung would be preparing its first over-ear headphones under the Galaxy branda movement with which the South Korean company would seek directly stand up to the Apple AirPods Max and the Sony WH-1000XM6. As revealed by SamMobile, the discovery comes from code references and icons found within the Samsung Galaxy Wearable application, where the product is identified internally under the codename Galaxy H1.

Galaxy H1, the code name discovered in the Galaxy Wearable app

Icons localized by SamMobile in the application code clearly show the silhouette of over-ear headphonesavailable in white, gray and black tones for the main structure, with interchangeable pads in gray or green. These types of graphical references usually appear in complementary apps months before the official launch of a product, as they serve to represent the connection status and battery level of the paired device.

The name Galaxy H1 is, in all likelihood, an internal development name and not the one that will finally bring the product to the market, something common in Samsung’s way of working with its devices before an official announcement.

According to the interpretation of the leaked icons, the design of the future headphones I would combine a wide headband very similar to the one Apple uses in its AirPods Max, with thicker headphones that are more reminiscent of the design language of the Sony WH-1000XM6 than the finest proposals from other manufacturers.

The headphones would have Bluetooth 6.0 connectivitywhich would guarantee compatibility with the latest wireless protocol standards. At the moment no real images of the product have been leaked, only the vector icons extracted from the application code.

Samsung Seamless UHQ codec and expected features

Among the functions expected for this model, the use of the Samsung’s own Seamless Ultra-High Quality (UHQ) codeccapable in theory of transmitting 24-bit and 96 kHz audio with a rate of up to 2.3 Mbit/s, although in practice it is common for this type of codec to work with significantly higher compression to maintain the stability of the connection in daily use.

In addition to its own codec, it would be normal for future Galaxy H1s to incorporate active noise cancellation (ANC), ambient sound mode, integration with artificial intelligence assistant and support for Auto Switchthe feature that allows you to automatically switch between different paired Samsung devices without having to reconfigure the connection manually.

Why Samsung needs its own over-ear headphones

It is striking that Samsung does not yet have its own over-ear headphones under its main brand, especially considering that the company controls one of the largest audio catalogs on the marketwith brands such as JBL, Harman Kardon, AKG, Mark Levinson, Bowers & Wilkins and Infinity under its corporate umbrella.

Launching over-ear headphones under the Galaxy brand would allow Samsung to integrate the product more directly into its ecosystem of mobile devices, taking advantage of exclusive features for users of Galaxy smartphones and tablets in the same way as is already the case with the current Galaxy Buds.

According to estimates, The launch of these headphones could occur during 2027although other sources place the date more specifically in the spring of that same year. At the moment there is no official confirmation from Samsung about the product, its final commercial name or its starting price.

The premium headband headphones segment has gained weight in recent years within the audio business of large technology manufacturers, in part thanks to the commercial success of Apple’s AirPods Max despite their price, and the consolidation of Sony’s WH-1000X series as a reference in noise cancellation. Xiaomi, Huawei and other Chinese manufacturers have also strengthened their offering in this format in recent months, leaving Samsung as one of the few high-end generalist brands without its own recognizable product in this specific category.

That the leak comes just a few days after the new Galaxy Buds with ear hook and clip format were announced suggests that Samsung is preparing a coordinated renewal of its entire personal audio range, rather than an isolated launch. If the Galaxy H1 finally hits the market with the trade name and leaked functions, it would mark Samsung’s entry into a segment where until now it had preferred to give prominence to its group’s audio brands, such as JBL, instead of competing directly under its own name.