AirPods Pro

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Apple releases iOS 18.1, macOS 15.1 with Apple Intelligence

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Today, Apple released iOS 18.1, iPadOS 18.1, macOS Sequoia 15.1, tvOS 18.1, visionOS 2.1, and watchOS 11.1. The iPhone, iPad, and Mac updates are focused on bringing the first AI features the company has marketed as “Apple Intelligence” to users.

Once they update, users with supported devices in supported regions can enter a waitlist to begin using the first wave of Apple Intelligence features, including writing tools, notification summaries, and the “reduce interruptions” focus mode.

In terms of features baked into specific apps, Photos has natural language search, the ability to generate memories (those short gallery sequences set to video) from a text prompt, and a tool to remove certain objects from the background in photos. Mail and Messages get summaries and smart reply (auto-generating contextual responses).

Apple says many of the other Apple Intelligence features will become available in an update this December, including Genmoji, Image Playground, ChatGPT integration, visual intelligence, and more. The company says more features will come even later than that, though, like Siri’s onscreen awareness.

Note that all the features under the Apple Intelligence banner require devices that have either an A17 Pro, A18, A18 Pro, or M1 chip or later.

There are also some region limitations. While those in the US can use the new Apple Intelligence features on all supported devices right away, those in the European Union can only do so on macOS in US English. Apple says Apple Intelligence will roll out to EU iPhone and iPad owners in April.

Beyond Apple Intelligence, these software updates also bring some promised new features to AirPods Pro (second generation and later): Hearing Test, Hearing Aid, and Hearing Protection.

watchOS and visionOS don’t’t yet support Apple Intelligence, so they don’t have much to show for this update beyond bug fixes and optimizations. tvOS is mostly similar, though it does add a new “watchlist” view in the TV app that is exclusively populated by items you’ve added, as opposed to the existing continue watching (formerly called “up next”) feed that included both the items you added and items added automatically when you started playing them.

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Apple announces $179 AirPods 4 with active noise cancellation

airpods, AirPods Pro, Apple, Tech / /

Apple Audio —

AirPods Pro and Max get new features, too.

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  • The AirPods 4.

    Apple

  • The new earbuds have shorter stems.

    Apple

  • Inside the earbuds.

    Apple

  • A closer look at the stems.

    Apple

  • The new AirPods case with USB-C and wireless charging.

    Apple

  • The AirPods 3 with its longer stems.

    Valentina Palladino

Apple announced the fourth-generation AirPods today during its It’s Glowtime event. As you can tell from the gallery above, the AirPods 4 look different from their predecessor. They also have Active Noise Cancellation (ANC) if you’re willing to pay extra.

Apple said that it mapped and analyzed “thousands” of ear shapes with 3D photogrammetry, laser topography, and other modeling tools to design the AirPods 4’s new form. Apple claims the new shape will make for a better fit. The new earbuds appear to have shorter stems. They look more similar to the AirPods Pro now but without the silicone tips. The stems also allow users to play/pause media and end or mute calls with a “quick press,” Apple claims, noting a new force sensor.

The new AirPods move from Apple’s H1 chip to the H2, which the current AirPods Pro use. Compared to the H1, Apple has said that the H2 is supposed to be up to twice as good at noise cancellation. Upgraded mics and computational audio are also supposed to aid in ANC.

The AirPods 4 inherit several AirPods Pro features. They claim personalized spatial audio, which uses head tracking, and machine learning-powered voice isolation as features. The AirPods are also supposed to be able to automatically lower the volume of whatever’s currently playing when you start talking to someone in real life. The Transparency mode lets you hear outside noises while media’s playing, and Adaptive Audio automatically blends Transparency mode with ANC.

The fourth-gen AirPods also have a new acoustic architecture that Apple claimed, without getting into much detail, delivers “richer” bass and “clearer” highs.

The new earbuds also have a redesigned case that’s 10 percent smaller by volume and is 2 inches (50 mm) long. It incorporates Apple’s slow, (European Union law-driven) shift from the proprietary Lightning charging port to USB-C. Apple said the case should last for up to 30 hours. It also supports wireless charging, including Qi.

The AirPods 4 will start at $129, which is cheaper than what the AirPods 3 have been going for ($179). But if you want ANC, they’ll cost $179. The AirPods 4 come out on September 20 but can be pre-ordered today.

Smaller updates to AirPods Pro and AirPods Max

Apple didn’t announce a new AirPods Pro or AirPods Max today but is adding some features to the current versions.

The AirPods Pro are getting a software update this fall that will allow the the earbuds to serve as a “clinical-grade hearing aid,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said. The feature is limited to people with “mild to moderate hearing loss,” Apple’s announcement said.

The fall update will also add a Hearing Protection feature to help quiet loud environmental sounds. “The ear tips help to provide passive noise reduction, while the H2 chip helps to actively reduce louder, more intermittent noise at 48,000 times per second,” per Apple’s announcement. Finally, the update will allow you to use the AirPods Pro as earplugs by use of an updated “multiband high dynamic range algorithm,” and add a hearing test.

AirPods Pro updates are all about hearing health.

Enlarge / AirPods Pro updates are all about hearing health.

Apple

The AirPods Max, meanwhile, are joining the move to USB-C. They’re also getting personalized spatial audio and new colors: midnight, blue, purple, orange, and starlight.

This version of the AirPods Max will be available on September 20 and will cost $549. Pre-orders start today.

Listing image by Apple

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Samsung delays Galaxy Buds3 Pro release over quality concerns

#earbuds, airpods, AirPods Pro, audio, samsung, Tech / /

Delayed until August 28 —

“It tore from the inside instantly.”

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Samsung Galaxy Buds3 Pro

Enlarge / A marketing image for the Galaxy Buds3 Pro.

Samsung

Samsung is delaying the release of the $250 Galaxy Buds3 Pro in the US from July 24 to August 28, per its website. The third-generation earbuds have Samsung moving from a bean-like shape to an Apple AirPods Pro-like design, including silicone ear tips. But some users have claimed that the new tips rip too easily.

Samsung confirmed to Android Authority today that it has temporarily stopped shipping units to stores. The devices were no longer available for preorder on Amazon or Best Buy as of this writing.

Samsung’s statement to Android Authority noted “reports relating to a limited number of early production devices” and asserted that it’s taking the problem “very seriously.” The statement continues:

We are urgently assessing and enhancing our quality control processes. To ensure all products meet our quality standards, we have temporarily suspended deliveries of Galaxy Buds 3 Pro devices to distribution channels to conduct a full quality control evaluation before shipments to consumers take place. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

Samsung also advised people who already have a pair to contact Samsung or go to a Samsung Service Center. Android Authority reported that some customers also received an email from Samsung informing them of the quality control concerns and offering a link where customers can find contact information to ask Samsung representatives about canceling their orders for a refund.

Samsung’s website says the earbuds have a one-year warranty that does not cover defects or damage “caused by accident, misuse, abnormal use, abnormal conditions, improper storage, neglect, or unusual physical, electrical or electromechanical stress.”

“It tore from the inside instantly”

Although the Galaxy Buds3 Pro were originally going to be available in the US on July 24, they have already been available for purchase in South Korea, per Android Police. Other people who already have the earbuds include reviewers, employees, and those who made their preorders early. (Some people also claimed that they were able to buy the earbuds at US Walmarts before Samsung announced them).

Some who reportedly had the earbuds claimed it was hard to remove their silicone tips without tearing them. Like AirPods Pros, Galaxy Buds3 Pros have a silicone tip that latches onto a plastic ring on the earbuds’ chassis. Various people reported trying to remove the tip and the tip ripping, with a piece of silicone remaining stuck on the plastic ring.

Some, including reviewers at The Verge and Android Authority, said they hadn’t experienced the problem yet. But others, including TechRadar, found it challenging to remove the ear tips without damaging them.

One Reddit user claimed that they pulled on an ear tip to remove it, and “it tore from the inside instantly.” They noted that because the silicone is clipped into the plastic ring, “you have to pull it strongly.” Similarly, another user said the “left ear tip ripped right off” when they tried to remove it.

Samsung has even published a support page on its Korean website explaining how to remove the ear tips to avoid damage. It notes various ways in which the silicone could tear, including, per a Google translation, if you hold them with your fingernails while inserting or removing, if you press or twist the ear tips hard, or if you pull the ear tips out quickly.

After numerous complaints online, including on Reddit (examples here, here, and here) and YouTube (examples here and here), Samsung has pushed back general availability. Complicating potential quick fixes, Samsung doesn’t yet offer replacement tips for the earbuds. People usually don’t have to frequently change their earbuds’ tips, but not offering replacement when Apple has for years seems like an oversight.

Samsung’s Galaxy Buds3 Pro look like the AirPods Pro that originally debuted almost five years ago, and it doesn’t care. What it definitely should care about, though, is a new design appearing weak and inferior before it’s even fully released. Samsung has at least taken the initiative in addressing early complaints rather than ignoring them and is instead offering refunds and delaying the release to limit the number of impacted customers. We’ll see if the earbuds are more sturdy by August.

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Apple’s AirPods Pro could be getting a “hearing aid mode” later this year

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Cheaper hearing aids —

In development for some time, AirPods could finally get the FDA label this fall.

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AirPods arranged at an Apple Store

Enlarge / Apple AirPods on display at the company’s Fifth Avenue store in New York in Feb. 2024.

Bing Guan/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Apple’s AirPods Pro are getting closer to becoming fully fledged hearing aids and marketed as such, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. The move could have a large impact on the hearing aid market, which has already been recently shaken up by over-the-counter models.

Gurman writes that AirPods Pro are due to receive a hearing-aid function in iOS 18, arriving this fall and likely to be announced and outlined at a Worldwide Developers Conference in June. The Wall Street Journal reported in the fall of 2021 that Apple was working toward a future AirPods Pro model that functioned as a hearing aid and would also be able to monitor body posture and even body temperature.

It was not clear from Gurman or the Journal’s reporting whether the hearing aid function would be available only in a new model of AirPods Pro or offered as a software update on prior models. Since the Journal’s report, Apple has released both a second-generation model of AirPods Pro and a refresh of that model with a USB-C port.

“Hearing aid” may also not be technically accurate, depending on Apple’s aims. The US Food and Drug Administration in 2022 provided for a new category of “Personal sound amplification products,” or PSAPs, that do not need to meet the stricter requirements for an FDA-approved hearing aid. This new category offered huge cost savings to people with mild to moderate hearing loss and kicked off a generation of hearing aids that connected to a smartphone over Bluetooth for setup, tuning, and monitoring. These are distinct from over-the-counter hearing aids, which, while still notably cheaper than “professional fit” hearing aids, are still regulated by the FDA.

A study in late 2022 found that first-generation AirPods Pro, with their “Live Listen” feature activated, could meet four of the five PSAP standards and just barely missed a sound-pressure threshold. Notably, the AirPods Pro, tested in relatively quiet environments, helped people hear about as well as hearing aid models that cost up to $10,000, within the PSAP standards.

The next version of Apple’s mobile operating system, iOS 18, is rumored to contain a multitude of features beyond AirPods updates. MacRumors (leaning on Gurman’s subscriber-only newsletter reporting) suggests that generative AI features, RCS support for text messages, and revamps to many core Apple apps are due.

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