Fairphone's Fairbuds 2 launch in the US on November 2 at $119, $10 less than Apple's AirPods 5, The Verge reports. They are already on sale in the UK from £99 and in Europe from €119, which Fairphone's shop confirms for the euro price.

Price as of Oct. 14, 2026: $119 in the US from Nov. 2. Apple's AirPods 5 were $129.00 at Amazon, sold and shipped by Amazon, and the Nothing Ear (3) in white $110.99, also sold and shipped by Amazon.

What you get

  • Batteries: Fairphone lists up to 8 hours on the buds with ANC off and 6 hours with ANC on, and 40 hours total with the case and ANC off.
  • Sound: 11mm bio-cellulose drivers, LDAC support, hybrid ANC, a five-band EQ in the app, and two active devices at once with multipoint.
  • Build: IP54 dust and splash resistance, and a warranty of up to three years on Fairphone's euro shop page; US warranty terms are unconfirmed.
  • Charging: USB-C only. The Verge says Qi wireless charging is missing, as it is on the AirPods 5.
  • Design: a stemmed shape in green or black. The Verge says the case is 37% smaller and 32% lighter than on the first Fairbuds.

The repair angle

Fairphone says the earbuds have seven replaceable parts, and its page lists replaceable batteries in both buds and the case. The Verge found each bud's battery comes out in under a minute without tools. The Verge adds that the case battery sits behind one Torx T5 screw.

Fairphone's shop prices spares in euros: €9.95 for the earbud battery kit and €12.95 for the case battery. US spare-part pricing remains unconfirmed.

Why it matters

At $119, the Fairbuds 2 let you replace worn batteries in both earbuds and the case.

The cost is polish. The Verge says audio is good but "a little muddy at times," with a narrower soundstage than some rivals, and that they are not the most premium earbuds at about $120. If sound quality comes first, that matters more than a screw.

What to watch

The US launch is a date, not a shipping confirmation, and US spare-part pricing remains unconfirmed. The Verge says it used the earbuds for about two weeks; this is a hands-on report, not a full review, and RR Tech Pulse has not tested them.