AirPods Pro 3: News and Expected Price, Release Date, Specs; and More Rumors

The AirPods Pro 3 are the third-generation version of Apple's high-end wireless earbuds. They're expected to arrive in 2025 and to bring with them improvements like new hardware, hearing health features, a thermometer, and improved audio quality.

What Is the AirPods Pro 3 Release Date?

The AirPods Pro 3 release date is expected to be sometime in 2025, according to Bloomberg's Marc Gurman (one of the best-sourced Apple reporters). The rumor gets even more solid when we look at the history of AirPods Pro release dates:

• 1st Gen. AirPods Pro: Oct. 2019
• 2nd Gen. AirPods Pro: Sept. 2022

Based on that pattern—and Apple is a company that loves sticking to product-release patterns—we can see that new AirPods Pro models arrive about every three years, making 2025 a good estimate.

AirPods Pro 3 Price Rumors

Both the 1st- and 2nd-generation AirPods Pro earbuds cost $249. Given that, we expect that the 3rd-gen. model will cost about the same. It's possible that the price could go up a bit, especially depending on the features, but there are no rumors one way or the other right now.

Pre-Order Information

Once Apple officially announces the AirPods Pro 3, they'll be available for pre-order. If they come out in fall 2025, we'd expect this to happen at the company's usual September event, at which they typically unveil new iPhones.

AirPods Pro 3 Features

With the AirPods Pro 3 still as much as a year away, there's not a lot of hard news about what they'll offer. As more information becomes available, we'll update this article. For now, though, thanks to a combination of rumors and educated guesses, the features we expect to see include:

• A new design
• Improved audio quality
• Hearing test and hearing aid improvements
• Body temperature monitoring
• H3 chip.
  

A New Design

Bloomberg's Marc Gurman reported that Apple is working on a new physical design for the AirPods Pro 3. Whether that means a new case design, new earbud shape, or both is unclear, but expect the 3rd-generation AirPods Pro to look different from their predecessors.

Improved Audio Quality

Each new generation of the AirPods Pro delivers improvements to the earbuds' audio quality, and the AirPods Pro 3 should be no different.

The marquee audio features of the AirPods Pro 2 were Transparency and Conversation Awareness. Transparency combines the benefits of noise cancellation with the ability to hear important noises around you (traffic, shouting, etc.), so you aren't totally cut off from the world.

Conversation Awareness is similar, focusing on improving communication while wearing the earbuds by automatically lowering audio and increasing the volume of voices.

Whether the AirPods Pro 3's new audio features will be that significant remains to be seen, but expect better-sounding audio and more intelligent features.

Hearing Test and Hearing Aid Improvements

There may be two new features related to hearing health and assistance coming in the AirPods Pro 3.

First, the AirPods Pro 3 may add a hearing test when used in conjunction with an iPhone. This feature could help a user determine if they have hearing loss or other problems that should lead them to consult a doctor.

Second, the new AirPods could build on hearing aid-style features present in current models. Those models allow AirPods to act as microphones and hearing aids to assist hearing for those with impairments, especially in noisy environments. Those features could get a boost, too.

Body Temperature Monitoring

Apple packs a lot of sensors into its devices–especially ones for monitoring health–and the AirPods Pro 3 may add a thermometer for detecting body temperature. Combined with Apple's Health app, the thermometer could help detect early symptoms of illness and medical conditions.

H3 Chip

The AirPods Pro 2 are powered by Apple's custom-designed and -built H2 chip. Apple tends to deliver new versions of its processors with each major new version of a product (see the M4 in the iPad Pro, the new generation A-series processors in each iPhone, and more).

The H3 arriving in the AirPods Pro 3 seems likely. Exactly what will set the H3 apart from the H2 remains to be seen, but if these AirPods Pro deliver powerful new features, they'll need a powerful processor.

The Latest News About the AirPods Pro 3

Lifewire covers all of the latest Apple news and rumors, so check back regularly to stay informed. In the meantime, here are some Apple articles that you might be interested in: