According to information from Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple could launch new noise-canceling wireless headphones before this fall. The main novelty would however be quite minimal since it would be to offer a box with USB-C connectivity.
While Apple launched its latest pair of high-end wireless headphones, the AirPods Pro 2, late last year, it looks like the manufacturer is already working on a new pair. According to information from analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the firm could indeed launch a new version of the AirPods Pro 2 with new connectivity at the end of the year.
In a tweet published on Friday March 24, the analyst from the firm TF International Securities indicates that he is “probable that a USB-C version of the AirPods Pro 2 is planned for the second or third quarter of 2023“. Ming-Chi kuo specifies, however, that Apple has no plans to change the connectors on its two pairs of more accessible headphones, the AirPods 2 and the AirPods 3.
I think this is likely the USB-C version of the AirPods Pro 2, with mass shipments expected in 2Q23-3Q23. By the way, Apple currently appears to have no plans for USB-C versions of the AirPods 2 & 3.
我覺得這應該是AirPods Pro… https://t.co/aWKJvGh1lW
— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) March 24, 2023
However, unlike a simple generation change, as between the first AirPods Pro and the second version, this change should be content to modify the connectors integrated into the charging case in order to switch from Lightning to USB-C.
Compliance more than a new generation
Remember that Apple has been in the spotlight for a few months because of new European regulations requiring manufacturers to use USB-C connectors to charge their devices. This obviously concerns smartphones – and therefore iPhones – but also other mobile devices such as tablets, cameras, headphones, game consoles, portable speakers… or wireless headphones.
The switch from AirPods Pro 2 to USB-C should allow users of Android smartphones, already equipped with USB-C cables, to be able to use the headphones more easily by recharging their case with their phone’s charger.
It seems unlikely that Apple will drastically change the characteristics of its noise reduction headphones just one year after the launch of the AirPods Pro 2. Remember that the firm took three years to renew its first AirPods Pro. It therefore seems unlikely that it will launch AirPods Pro 3 in 2023.
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