Cloud-managed earbuds sound strange - as a concept, and on a plane

"Divya Soni, a go to market lead, showed me Dell's cloudy Device Management Console, a tool that lets admins enroll and track the buds, send them new firmware, or do things like turn on active noise cancellation by default across a fleet of earbuds."

"New firmware matters for earbuds because they're Bluetooth devices and the wireless protocol has had its fair share of security scares over the years. The buds have already earned Microsoft's Teams Open Office Certification - a seal of approval for being able to handle noisy offices, plus a Zoom accreditation. New firmware might help there, too."

"Soni admitted earbuds aren't the main priority for the Device Management Console, which Dell expects customers will mostly use to manage docks and displays. Dell delivers firmware updates to those devices at least once a year, to address security issues or fix bugs. The tool can do the same for keyboards or headsets."

"I can't imagine anyone would adopt Dell's Device Manager just to keep an eye on earbuds. I'm also not sure anyone would buy the buds for personal use. I say that because I own two sets of wireless earbuds and in their own way both are better than the Dells."

Dell Pro Plus wireless earbuds are positioned as cloud-manageable devices with a Device Management Console for enrolling and tracking earbuds, pushing firmware updates, and applying settings such as enabling active noise cancellation by default across a fleet. Firmware updates are important because earbuds are Bluetooth devices and the wireless protocol has faced security concerns. The earbuds have earned Microsoft Teams Open Office Certification and Zoom accreditation, indicating performance in noisy environments. Dell expects the management console to be used primarily for docks and displays, with annual firmware delivery for security fixes and bug fixes. The console can also manage other peripherals like keyboards and headsets.

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