A well-rounded pair of truly wireless earbuds

Great sound; Bountiful battery life; Useful run tracking features

You lose some features on other phones; Tricky touch interface; Occasional audio dropouts

In Samsung's efforts to lean into everything that worked about the original IconX, they've pivoted away from everything the product could be. They're successful in that they improve upon the original, but every step of the way it's clear that Samsung took the road of least resistance in achieving...

On-board storage still good; Improved ergonomics

Not a huge improvement over original buds

The Gear Icon Xs throw Samsung's previous headphone form out of the window - not only do they boast a lengthy feature list, but they're talented performers too

Finely balanced sound; Rhythmically and dynamically adept; Long battery life

Coarse upper mids and highs

These are easily the best earbuds I have ever owned. I'm not an audiophile, but the sound in these things is amazing and rich. My music has never sounded better. I absolutely love the battery life. I once forgot my case at home, and listened at various points throughout the day without issue.

Lightweight; well-designed

expensive

The Icon X offers a tonne of features and decent dynamic sound, making them among the most versatile wire-free in-ear earphones on the market. However, fiddly touch controls and no heart-rate monitor limit overall potential. In short: a great all-rounder that's not quite perfect.

Dynamic sound; Ambient sound adjustment to hear the outside world; Secure fit during exercise; Lots of features

Touch controls are fiddly at times; Connection not perfect; No built-in heart-rate sensor limits fitness potential

These are great. Connection to a Samsung phone is really easy, but it became harder when I tried an iPhone, iPad and PC. There is bluetooth, but it is hard to control the links it does.

The Samsung Gear IconX (2018) delivers where it counts, and is well recommended for those who are not restricted by budget. It has above average sound quality, very good battery life and some interesting smart features, in a compact package that fits your pocket.

Low-profile; compact build; Very good battery life; Great sound for its size; Wide soundstage; Ambient Mode and Voice Mode; Auto workout tracking

Samsung Gear app does not work on Android P; Seperate Gear IconX Plugin needed for Android 8.1; Gets slippery due to sweat; No heart rate monitor; Finicky touch controls; More expensive than competition; including AirPods

The Gear IconX (2018) are a vast improvement on last year's model with an excellent battery life that won't disappoint. Less capable in fitness, sure, but the trade-off is a smoother, better overall experience.

Significantly better battery life; Comfortable fit; Great sound quality

Finickity tap controls; Clumsy assistant feature; Bluetooth problems persist

Samsung has a truly differentiated product that could attract a sizable segment of users who like the idea of true-wireless zero-device music enjoyment. I see parallel to Sony's MP3 earphones series, which prove to be quite popular and unique on its own due to its waterproof capabilities.

No wires

One ear piece isn't as loud as the other and the charging system isn't very good