Technologies

Apple’s Flagship AirPods Pro 3 Could Launch This Year: Here’s What I’d Like to See

Rumors suggest Apple will upgrade its flagship noise-canceling earbuds later this year. Here’s everything I know about the AirPods Pro 3.

With Apple typically updating one of its AirPods models every year and the AirPods Pro due for an upgrade, we’re seeing plenty of chatter that Apple will release its 3rd-generation AirPods Pro 3 sometime in 2025. Last year, we got the all-new AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with Active Noise Canceling. However, all of us anticipating the arrival of the AirPods Max 2 were disappointed when Apple only refreshed its premium over-ear headphones with USB-C charging and new colors. So, we can only wait and speculate. Here’s a look at the latest AirPods Pro 3 rumors and what improvements I’d like to see.

Read more: Best wireless earbuds of 2025

Rumored AirPods Pro 3 release date

MacOS Rumors recently spotted a post on X from a tipster called Kosutami who said Apple was planning to launch the AirPods Pro 3 and AirTag 2 in May or June of this year. That seems unlikely, given that Apple has previously launched next-generation AirPods alongside new iPhones in the fall. One exception was the AirPods Max, which was announced on Dec. 8, 2020, or about six weeks after the iPhone 12 was released.

While anything is possible, it seems more likely that the AirPods Pro 3 will arrive at the same time as the iPhone 17 in September. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, who’s usually a more reliable Apple whisperer, has said the AirPods Pro 3 will have a new design and feature heart-rate monitoring like Apple’s new Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 — but they’re still months away from being launched. New

New temperature and heart-rate sensors

With the Powerbeats Pro 2 getting the aforementioned heart-rate sensors, it now seems more likely that the AirPods Pro 3 will get them, too. I’m not sure how useful that feature is, especially if you already own an Apple Watch. However, Apple likely has grander plans for its buds’ heart-rate monitoring and is still fleshing everything out, using the Powerbeats Pro 2 as a bit of a guinea pig.

Several tech outlets picked up on another Gurman report mentioning the possibility of temperature sensors and other physiological measurements coming to the AirPods. Both he and Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo also reported that Apple was working on adding infrared cameras to future AirPods. Kuo’s report suggested that the IR cameras could be used for everything including in-air hand gesture detection, enhancing spatial audio or detecting environmental changes for software, including Apple Intelligence. Don’t expect to see any of that camera tech in the AirPods Pro 3, but maybe the AirPods Pro 4 will get it.

AirPods case with touch screen display

The rumored feature I find most intriguing is an interactive touch display in the AirPods Pro 3’s charging case that acts as a remote control. With Apple filing a patent for it back in 2022, the rumor has been kicking around for a while, and several AirPods knockoffs with touchscreens have shown up on Amazon in recent months. Also, last year JBL released three new Live 3 earbuds, including the Live Beam 3, as a follow-up to 2023’s Tour Pro 2 earbuds, which featured a color touchscreen in their case. All the new Live 3 models feature a 1.5-inch LED touch display in their charging cases, so the feature appears in competing earbuds.

I don’t know what the odds are that the AirPods Pro 3 will get a charging case with a touchscreen, but some changes to the charging case are likely, with some saying the case may shrink a bit. If nothing else, the physical Bluetooth pairing and reset button should get swapped out for a hidden touch-capacitive «button» like the one found in the AirPods 4’s case.

Given that Apple made two versions of the AirPods 4, I could see it making two versions of the AirPods Pro 3 — a more premium model with some extra features like a touchscreen in the charging case and a step-down version that cuts them out.

Improved AirPods Pro 3 performance with H3 chip

The AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 and Powerbeats Pro 2 are all powered by Apple’s H2 chip. Rumor has it that the AirPods Pro 3 could get the new H3 chip, presuming Apple sticks with its current earbuds/headphones chip nomenclature. Adding a more powerful, energy-efficient chip along with tweaks to the design of the buds’ acoustic architecture and microphones could lead to several performance improvements, including enhanced sound quality, upgraded active noise canceling and better voice-calling performance. We could also see slightly better battery life.

I don’t expect a huge jump in performance, but the AirPods Pro 3 could sound a little clearer with better bass definition than their predecessor. Their noise canceling may be more proficient and able to muffle a wider range of frequencies. Also, when it comes to voice calling, the buds will likely do an even better job of picking up your voice while reducing background noise.

The AirPods Pro 2 and Powerbeats Pro 2 are ultralow-latency and can even do lossless audio when paired with Apple’s pricey Vision Pro headset. From what I’ve been told, the reason the AirPods Pro 2 and Powerbeats Pro 2 are able to do true lossless audio with the Vision Pro headset is that the buds and headset sit only a few inches apart, making for an extremely short wireless connection that can reliably transmit lossless audio. There’s been talk of Apple coming up with a solution to bring lossless audio to next-gen AirPods when paired with your iPhone. I hope the AirPods Pro 3 has a lossless audio option when connected to the latest iPhones, iPads and Macs, but I’m not counting on it.

Live translation feature for AirPods Pro 3 (and maybe AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4)

Lately I’ve encountered several no-name Chinese earbuds on Amazon with live translation features, so it wasn’t a huge surprise when Bloomberg recently reported that the AirPods Pro 3 may be adding live translation via Apple’s Translate app with the release of iOS 19 this fall. The iOS Translate app already has fairly robust translation capabilities, but the report talks about how Apple plans to simplify the translation experience with the feature built into its earbuds, as well improve the iOS Translation app. (For those who can’t access Bloomberg’s content behind its paywall, MacRumors has a synopsis of the report).

Since this is more of an iPhone/iOS 19 feature, with the translation of what you say played through your iPhone’s speakers for others to hear, live translation seems pretty likely to come to the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4, both of which are equipped with Apple’s H2 chip and have plenty of processing power. Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 might also get the live translation feature.

My AirPods Pro 3 wishlist: Better sound quality and one key feature

I don’t care too much about some of these rumored extra features, like heart-rate monitoring and temperature sensing. I’m more excited about any enhancements to the buds’ design and performance upgrades across the board.

I’ve previously written about how I’d like to see all new AirPods get a case that turns into a Bluetooth transmitter to wirelessly stream the audio from inflight entertainment to the buds. A few true wireless earbuds, including the Jabra Elite 8 Active Gen 2 and Elite 10 Gen 2, Bowers & Wilkins Pi7 S2 and Poly Voyager Free 60 Plus, have charging cases that act as Bluetooth transmitters. With the included cable, you simply connect the case to the 3.5mm port in your seat’s console or armrest and you’re good to go. I don’t expect the AirPods Pro 3 will get this feature, but I sure wish they would.

I’d also like to see Apple add a set of extra large eartips. I barely get a tight seal with the AirPods Pro 2’s current large tips and could really use an XL tip for my left ear, which is slightly different from my right (I have tested a variety of third-party foam tips). When Apple released the AirPods Pro 2, it added a fourth extra small ear tip for those with smaller ears. The challenge to adding a fifth XL tip is that the charging case would have to be able to accommodate a slightly larger ear tip. Since getting a tight seal is so important for optimizing sound quality and noise-canceling performance, it would behoove Apple to offer that fifth XL tip for those who require bigger eartips for that reason.

Read more: The One Feature I Wish Apple Would Add to All New AirPods

Technologies

Facebook Brings Back Local Job Listings: How to Apply

One of Facebook’s most practical features from 2022 is being revived by Meta.

On the hunt for work? A Local Jobs search is being rolled out by Meta to make it easier for people in the US to discover and apply for nearby work directly on Facebook. The feature is inside Facebook Marketplace, Groups and Pages, Meta said last week, letting employers post openings and job seekers filter roles by distance, category or employment type.

You can apply or message employers directly through Facebook Messenger, while employers can publish job listings with just a few taps — similar to how you would post items for sale on Marketplace.

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Facebook offered a Jobs feature before discontinuing it in 2022, pushing business hiring toward its other platforms. Its return suggests Meta is attempting to expand Facebook’s usefulness beyond social networking and to position it once again as a hub for community-driven opportunities.

«We’ve always been about connecting with people, whether through shared interests or key life events,» the press release states. «Now, if you’re looking for entry-level, trade and service industry employment in your community, Facebook can help you connect with local people and small businesses who are hiring.»

How to get started with Local Jobs on Facebook

According to Meta, Local Jobs will appear as a dedicated section in Facebook Marketplace starting this week. If you’re 18 or older, you can:

Tap the Marketplace tab on the Facebook app or website.
Select Jobs to browse available positions nearby.
Use filters for job type, category and distance.
Tap Apply or message the employer directly via Messenger.

Businesses and page admins can post jobs by creating a new listing in Marketplace or from their Facebook Page. Listings can include job details, pay range, and scheduling information and will appear in local searches automatically.

The Local Jobs feature is rolling out across the US now, with Meta saying it plans to expand it in the months ahead.

Technologies

Tesla Has a New Range of Affordable Electric Cars: How Much They Cost

The new, stripped-back versions of the Model Y and Model 3 have a more affordable starting price.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 22 #598

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle for Oct. 22, No. 598.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle is a fun one — I definitely have at least two of these in my house. Some of the answers are a bit tough to unscramble, so if you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Catch all.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: A mess of items.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

BATE, LICE, SLUM, CAPE, HOLE, CARE, BARE, THEN, SLAM, SAMBA, BACK

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

TAPE, COIN, PENCIL, BATTERY, SHOELACE, THUMBTACK

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is JUNKDRAWER. To find it, look for the J that’s five letters down on the far-left row, and wind down, over and then up.

Quick tips for Strands

#1: To get more clue words, see if you can tweak the words you’ve already found, by adding an «S» or other variants. And if you find a word like WILL, see if other letters are close enough to help you make SILL, or BILL.

#2: Once you get one theme word, look at the puzzle to see if you can spot other related words.

#3: If you’ve been given the letters for a theme word, but can’t figure it out, guess three more clue words, and the puzzle will light up each letter in order, revealing the word.