Apple's AirPods Pro are some of the best wireless earbuds on the market right now, despite Apple deciding not to update them for over 1,000 days.
Of course, in that time Apple hasn't been idle: we've had the excellent AirPods Max over-ear headphones and updated AirPods (3rd generation).
But given it has been such a long time, Apple is clearly planning something special for the AirPods Pro 2, expected sometime later in 2022.
According to MacRumors, summarising reports from various reliable sources, Apple is expected to release AirPods 2 in the second half of this year, potentially alongside the iPhone 14 in either September or October.
In terms of the updates, Apple is expected to do several key things, including keeping roughly the same design, which are slightly larger than the other AirPods earbuds.
The internals are expected to get a refresh, too, with an upgraded internal wireless chip, skin-detection sensors over IR sensors, and updated motion sensors for better fitness tracking. Some more unreliable rumours even suggest a USB-C port.
On top of these welcome additions, Apple could add support for Apple Lossless Audio Codec (ALAC), which makes tracks on Apple Music that much crisper and clearer, especially those optimised for the format.
None of the current AirPods, even the high-end AirPods Pro Max, support ALAC, making this a potentially huge upgrade and a reason to pick up the high-end Apple earbuds.
MacRumors suggests that this is because most current formats use Bluetooth, which does not have the available bandwidth to support ALAC. Apple would therefore need to steam music directly between devices.
For anyone that really cares about high-fidelity music, especially over a wireless connection, Apple is pushing the ball forward by some margin.
Finally, rumours suggest that the AirPods Pro 2 could come with a new case that emits some kind of sound to make tracking down the earbuds even easier, possibly integrating directly with Apple's Find My app.
Check back on T3 for all the latest AirPods Pro 2 rumours and news over the coming months.
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