Apple reportedly planning its biggest AirPods launch to date

In his latest “Power On” newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman says Apple suppliers are gearing up for the biggest AirPods launch to date. 

“The company’s vendors overseas are nearing the start of production for the next AirPods line, I’m told — and it could be a record-setting run. The company is planning to produce 20 million to 25 million units of the earbuds, an increase over prior new models. Production will formally kick off in May at GoerTek Inc. and Luxshare Precision Industry Co., setting the stage for a release around September or October. As I’ve written several times, the new AirPods are a renewed push into the lower end of the market.”

He says the  new models will replace the second- and third-generation AirPods. Both will purportedly have a new design, improved fit and charging cases with USB-C, but the mid-tier version will get active noise cancellation and Find My speakers in the case, making it easier to locate the product if it gets lost.

Gurman says Apple is also planning some serious AirPods-related software upgrades as part of the iOS 18 rollout this fall. One feature in development includes a hearing aid mode for the AirPods Pro. Guruman adds that Apple is also working on a hearing-test feature for AirPods. 

This info from Gurman is from the free edition of “Power On”. If you like it, consider subscribing to Bloomberg.com—you’ll receive th