Ahead of Apple’s much-hyped It’s Glowtime iPhone 16 event this coming Monday, September 9 (starting at 10am Pacific/1pm Eastern/6pm British Summer Time… that’s 3am Australian Eastern Time), Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman has given his clearest claim yet that two new sets of AirPods are coming – and there almost certainly won’t be two.
Gurman has shared his biggest and most detailed AirPods predictions yet in his latest message to Bloomberg, ahead of Apple’s upcoming event next week. Is this concrete proof of the AirPods’ imminent appearance? No, but it’s pretty conclusive that you trust the well-known Apple insider, and most people do when it comes to iOS products.
So what exactly What did the tech analyst reveal? Here's a rundown of what Gurman has prophesied (there's a lot to unpack)…
Two new AirPods: the big predictions
- Apple, Gurman says, is preparing two new AirPods models to replace the second-generation entry-level earbuds (aka AirPods 2019) and the third-generation mid-level model (aka AirPods 3).
- Both new versions will apparently resemble the AirPods Pro (it's unclear whether Gurman is referring to the original 2019 Pros or the AirPods Pro 2) and will include a new case, USB-C charging, and “improved audio quality.”
- Apple will reportedly distinguish the two new AirPods models by giving the mid-tier version a more premium case with a speaker, making it easier to locate with Apple's Find My feature, plus noise cancellation “to match the AirPods Pro.”
- Gurman says one of the new AirPods' main goals is to “give a bigger boost to hearing health.” Apple has reportedly been trying to turn AirPods into a viable replacement for hearing aids and a device capable of performing hearing tests. The Cupertino giant is preparing to announce these updates (codenamed Yodel), but Gurman adds that they have “hit some delays and may not be available until later.”
- According to the expert, a new version of the AirPods Pro is “still in development,” with an improved design and enhanced active noise cancellation. But we won’t see them on Monday. Why? Gurman tells us that what sounds like the AirPods Pro 3 are “coming next year.” (Boo!)
- Finally, Apple has reportedly been working on updated AirPods Max earbuds that will be available in new colors and will swap the Lightning connector to USB-C to comply with the latest EU laws. But with plenty of current AirPods Max inventory on hand, Gurman believes the AirPods Max 2 will also be “coming later” — i.e., not on Monday…
Anything else? Actually, yes…
Interestingly, the Apple tipster also reports that a few weeks ago, “Apple discovered a bug in upcoming AirPods that caused the earbuds to quickly drain their battery.” The issue was apparently attributed to software and was resolved before factories shipped units.
Regular readers will also remember that we told you that the AirPods Pro 2 will receive an update for gesture, calling, and control support ahead of the full release of iOS 18. Insiders say we should get a release date for that feature on Monday.
Look, we shouldn't be surprised by any of this: Apple's biggest AirPods launch to date was prophesied earlier in the year, and a dual AirPods launch would be that one.
Yes, it's sad that we probably won't see the AirPods Pro 3 or AirPods Max 2 on Monday, but come on, it's been over two years since the launch of the Apple AirPods 3, the most recent earbuds from Tim Cook's juggernaut (because we're not counting the September 2023 addition of a USB-C charging port for the case, okay?), and we'd rather have two pairs of icy white earbuds than nothing at all, thank you very much.
Price? Gurman hasn't specified, but given that the AirPods 3 currently sell for around $179 / £169 / AU$279, a price point closer to that range for the mid-range option seems about right.
The entry-level model? It's impossible to say for sure, but wouldn't it be refreshing to see a $99, £99 or AU$149 price tag (something to compete with the hugely popular Nothing Ear (a), for example)?
