We may be on the brink of the Headphone Wars

We are caught in the middle of a war...of headphones. More specifically, we are trapped in the "smart" headphones war, and we have another party joining.

For years now, the titans have battled over who has the best digital assistant. While Cortana and Alexa may have gotten a little closer lately, there is still very much the endless tussle to have the best assistant. With that endless battling, the jockeying for not only most helpful, but most accessible emerged.

Trust me, if you need further proof, look at the Amazon announcement last week.

With Microsoft, Google, Apple, Amazon, and Samsung all trying to make their assistant as popular as possible, every device from speakers to watches to tablets to cameras started emerging with assistants and voice control built in. It was not long until manufactures began looking at a near omnipresent accessory: the headphones.

Thus, Google rolled out the Pixel Buds which could summon the assistant with just a touch of the bud or speaking the hotword. Minds were blown that an assistant could be summoned totally hands free.

Just yesterday, Cortana and Microsoft joined the party. With their new over-the-ear Surface headphones, Cortana is just a touch away ready to (valiantly try to) answer your questions and entertain your whims. The competition has officially begun.

Earlier this year, the rumors were already swirling about the possibility of an over-the-ear Airpods with built-in Siri, and it won't be long before the Galaxy Headphone rumors will be all over the map. With Amazon putting Alexa in to everything but pencils this year, I can only imagine that we will be talking about EchoPhones next year.

While watches were an excellent extension for the phone and a solid landing spot for digital assistants, headphones just make so much sense. If you look around, you are sure to see at least 30% wearing headphones at any given time; they are not only an accessory, but a fashion piece.

With two competitors firmly in the ring and another already on the horizon, next year may very well become the "Year of the Headphone Wars".

(Yes I am aware that other manufacturers have made headphones with digital assistant capabilities, but we are talking about first-party manufacturers).