It wasn’t too long ago that Apple refreshed the AirPods lineup, adding another version of the truly wireless headphones that include a slightly better battery life, and a wireless charging case. But a new rumor suggests the company could launch yet another version later this year.
As was first shared by Philip Elmer-DeWitt (via MacRumors) on Tuesday, analyst Daniel Ives of Wedbush expects that Apple will launch what he’s referring to as “AirPods 3” later this year, and that the main selling point of the new variant will be a water resistance rating. Both versions of the AirPods currently available do not have any kind of water or dust resistance ratings (but the latest AirPods still fare pretty well when in contact with water).
The analyst believes that Apple intends on launching the new water resistant AirPods in time for the holiday shopping season this year. The report also indicates that the company could include some “unspecified design enhancements”, whatever that could mean. If Apple is planning on giving the newest version of the AirPods a slightly new design, that could certainly make them stand out when compared to the two previous versions.
This is not the first time that we’ve heard something along these lines. Indeed, most recently analyst Ming-Chi Kuo came out and said that Apple is planning on launching two new versions of the AirPods before the end of 2019 and in 2020, one of which will have an all-new design. If these reports are lining up, that means we could see water resistant AirPods with an all-new design before the end of this year.
There’s no denying that water and dust resistance is one of the most oft-requested features of the AirPods lineup, and if Apple is planning on launching a new pair of the truly wireless headphones before the end of this year –despite launching the “AirPods 2” in the same year– that feature could help boost adoption. Though, the folks who purchased AirPods 2 might not be thrilled that a newer, better version is already up for sale just several months later.
What do you think? Should Apple launch a brand new version of AirPods so soon?