The Apple AirPods Pro 2 – the second generation of the company’s noise-cancelling true wireless earbuds – will launch in late 2022, according to respected Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.
Kuo says the new AirPods Pro will also come with a “significantly upgraded chip”, which means Apple might be moving away from the H1 headphones chip that powers its current lineup of AirPods earbuds and over-ear headphones.
The chip inside the AirPods is the processor that enables them to connect to your device and deliver audio to your speakers. Therefore, a new chip for the AirPods Pro 2 could bring with it a host of upgrades, both to Bluetooth connectivity and audio performance.
The H1 chip was launched with the 2019 AirPods, and brought in faster pairing times, lower latency for gaming, and the ability to summon Siri with your voice alone. If Apple is introducing a new chip with the AirPods Pro 2, we’d love to see support for aptX HD, which would allow for wireless streaming of hi-res audio codecs at 24-bit/48kHz .
That could help Apple get the audiophiles onside in a way it hasn’t managed to do with the recently released AirPods 3; plus, the lack of hi-res audio support seems a bit of an oversight now that the original AirPods Pro can support other codecs like Dolby Atmos spatial audio and Apple Music offers lossless audio at no extra cost for subscribers.
How accurate are these claims?
As with any rumor, we can’t say for sure that the AirPods Pro 2 will launch in late 2022 – Apple hasn’t confirmed if or when it plans to release a new version of its noise-cancelling earbuds.
However, Ming-Chi Kuo has often been proven right in his predictions, and his claims back up a previous report from Twitter user @FrontTron (via MacRumors), who said the launch of the premium wireless earbuds has been pushed back from Q2 2022 to Q3 2022 for an as-yet-unspecified reason.
Previous rumors had pointed to an early 2022 release date for the AirPods Pro 2; but as we saw with the AirPods 3, which were seemingly pushed back and back again throughout 2021, delays are pretty commonplace with Apple devices.
As well as hearing about when they might arrive, we’ve also heard a few rumors about the new features that will come with the AirPods Pro 2. According to LeaksApplePro, the new earbuds will launch with improved active noise cancellation and fitness tracking features – including the ability to measure your blood oxygen levels, as on the Apple Watch 6.
They could look very different to the original AirPods Pro, too. According to a Bloomberg report that cites “people familiar with the plans”, the AirPods Pro will get a design overhaul in 2021, eliminating the ear stems altogether, in favor of a “more rounded shape that fills more of a user’s ear” – perhaps taking a few design cues from the Samsung Galaxy Buds and the Google Pixel Buds.
That design isn’t set in stone, however. Bloomberg says that fitting the features of the AirPods Pro, including the antennas and microphones, into a more compact build has proved to be a challenge so Apple far, which “could result in a less ambitious design when the final product is finalized”.
Whatever the AirPods Pro 2 look, sound, and perform like, it doesn’t look like we’ll be finding out for around another year – and if the previous year’s rumor-then-disappointment cycle of the AirPods 3 is anything to go by, we could be waiting longer still.
- Read our guide to the best AirPods you can buy today