Third-generation AirPods again rumored to launch in 2021

AirPods Pro

If you have been waiting for new AirPods, but don’t want to switch to AirPods Pro, you may not have too much longer.

According to DigiTimes, as part of a paywalled future report, Apple is gearing up to launch new AirPods soon. Not before the end of this year, though. The preview indicates that supply partner Inventec is only going to pick up 20% (or less!) of assembly orders for the upcoming truly wireless headphones. At the same time, the preview notes the new AirPods will launch “in the first half” of next year.

Here’s the preview:

Inventec unlikely to grab major orders for next-gen ‌AirPods‌

Inventec will still be among the assemblers of Apple’s next-generation ‌AirPods‌ slated for release in the first half of 2021, but may account for 20% or less of the total orders demanded, according to industry sources.

As is par for the course with these preview, DigiTimes will unlock the full report tomorrow. When that happens, and if anything new and noteworthy is included, we will update this article accordingly.

If this all sounds familiar, it’s because we’ve heard it before. The new third-generation AirPods have been rumored for early 2021 for quite some time now. Back in July, for instance, we heard new AirPods Pro could launch alongside the third-gen AirPods in early 2021.

Nothing is set in stone quite yet, though. So while we’ve been hearing about an early 2021 launch for months now, things could change.

As far as what we can expect from third-gen AirPods, the design is said to be similar to the AirPods Pro. Which means they’ll have user-replaceable ear tips and a more in-ear design. However, the more advanced features, like Active Noise Cancellation, won’t be included. Apple still has to differentiate the more expensive AirPods Pro models, after all.

Are you looking forward to third-generation AirPods? Or do you plan on waiting for the second-generation AirPods Pro?