Apple today announced the third generation of AirPods featuring spatial audio, delivering advanced features and a magical experience in a new contoured design. By combining the power of the H1 chip with an Apple-designed acoustic system, the new AirPods use computational audio to deliver breakthrough sound with Adaptive EQ. Users can enjoy spatial audio featuring Dolby Atmos in Apple Music, movies, and tv shows, along with dynamic head tracking, across Apple devices. The new AirPods are resistant to sweat and water, and feature a force sensor for easy and intuitive control of music and phone calls. The extended battery life enables up to six hours of listening time1 and up to 30 hours of total listening time with the convenient charging case. AirPods (3rd generation) join the world’s most popular family of headphones and are available to order starting today, and in stores beginning Tuesday, October 26.
“AirPods forever changed wireless headphones with their groundbreaking design, incredible sound, and magical experience,” said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “We are excited to introduce the next generation of AirPods, featuring unrivaled sound through Adaptive EQ and spatial audio with dynamic head tracking, along with seamless interaction between Apple devices — making the world’s best-selling headphones even better.”
All-New Design
The new design of AirPods is lightweight and contoured, sitting at just the right angle for comfort and to direct audio into the ear. For a more subtle appearance, the stem is shorter than the previous generation and features the same intuitive force sensor as AirPods Pro for media control. The new AirPods are resistant to both sweat and water, with an IPX4 rating for both the earbuds and the charging case.
Breakthrough Audio Features
AirPods (3rd generation) build on the great sound quality that AirPods are known for, starting with a custom driver and a high dynamic range amplifier that together produce powerful bass with crisp, clean high frequencies. The microphone is covered by an acoustic mesh to help reduce the sound of wind, so the speaker’s voice comes across distinctly on calls. AirPods also feature AAC-ELD, a superior speech codec that offers full HD voice quality, providing clear, natural communication for FaceTime calls.
The new AirPods use computational audio to bring the breakthrough experiences that customers love on AirPods Pro and AirPods Max — like Adaptive EQ and spatial audio with dynamic head tracking — to even more people.
For an optimal listening experience with rich detail, the new AirPods feature Adaptive EQ that tunes sound in real time based on how AirPods fit in the user’s ear. An inward-facing microphone monitors for sound, and then Adaptive EQ, powered by computational audio, tunes the low and mid frequencies to account for what may be lost due to variances in fit.
Spatial audio creates a three-dimensional theater-like experience, placing sound virtually anywhere in space, and with Dolby Atmos, AirPods have never sounded better. Users can also enjoy this multi-level experience with dynamic head tracking, so music, video, and even Group FaceTime calls feel more immersive than ever before. Using advanced spatial audio algorithms, and by applying directional audio filters to subtly adjust the frequencies that each ear receives, the new AirPods can place sound all around the user.