Lower-Cost AirPods and New AirPods Max Said to Launch Later This Year

Apple plans to release lower-cost AirPods later this year, according to Jeff Pu, an analyst who covers companies within Apple's supply chain.

airpods 3 orange
In a research note today with investment firm Haitong International Securities, Pu said a Foxconn subsidiary will be one of the suppliers of the lower-cost AirPods. Pu said Foxconn will ramp up AirPods assembly at a factory in India in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Bloomberg's Mark Gurman previously said Apple plans to release two fourth-generation AirPods models in September or October, including entry-level and mid-tier models. He said both models will feature a new design with better fit, improved sound quality, and an updated charging case with a USB-C port, while the mid-tier model will also feature active noise cancellation and a speaker for Find My location tracking. It is unclear if the lower-priced AirPods and the entry-level fourth-generation AirPods are the same product, but it seems plausible.

Pu also expects updated AirPods Max to be released in the fourth quarter of 2024. Gurman previously said a USB-C charging port will be the only new feature for the over-ear headphones, and new color options are also a possibility.

Related Roundup: AirPods 4
Buyer's Guide: AirPods (Buy Now)
Related Forum: AirPods

Popular Stories

Generic iOS 19 Feature Mock Light

iOS 19 Will Bring Biggest Design Overhaul Since iOS 7

Monday March 10, 2025 12:17 pm PDT by
Apple is planning for a major design overhaul of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac interfaces with the introduction of iOS 19, iPadOS 19, and macOS 16 later this year, reports Bloomberg. The update will "fundamentally change" the look of Apple's operating system, introducing a more consistent cross-platform experience. Apple plans to update the style of icons, menus, apps, windows, and system...
ios 18 4 carplay

Apple Upgrades CarPlay in Two Ways

Wednesday March 12, 2025 6:05 am PDT by
The upcoming iOS 18.4 update for the iPhone includes a smaller but meaningful improvement for Apple's in-car iPhone mirroring system CarPlay. Specifically, CarPlay now shows a third row of icons, up from two rows previously. However, this change is only visible in vehicles with a larger center display. For example, a MacRumors Forums member noticed the change in a Toyota Tundra with a...
Apple One Apps Feature 2

Apple One's Best Plan Now Includes Two More Perks For Free

Monday March 10, 2025 6:40 am PDT by
Apple One allows you to subscribe to up to six Apple services for one discounted monthly price. There are three Apple One tiers: Individual, Family, and Premier. Over the last month, the highest-end ‌Apple One‌ Premier plan has gained two additional perks. Here is what Apple One Premier already included, for $37.95 per month:Apple Music Apple TV+ Apple Arcade Apple News+ Apple Fitness+...
airpods pro 2 gradient

AirPods Pro 3 Launch Now Just Months Away: Here's What We Know

Tuesday March 11, 2025 3:26 am PDT by
Despite being released over two years ago, Apple's AirPods Pro 2 continue to dominate the wireless earbud market. However, with the AirPods Pro 3 expected to launch in 2025, anyone thinking of buying Apple's premium earbuds may be wondering if the next generation is worth holding out for. Apart from their audio and noise-canceling performance, which are generally regarded as excellent for...
iOS 18

12 New Things Your iPhone Can Do in iOS 18.4

Monday March 10, 2025 9:28 am PDT by
Apple is set to release iOS 18.4 in early April, bringing further refinements to Apple Intelligence features, a neat new capability to iPhone 15 Pro devices, new emoji, and more. While not quite as packed with new features as Apple's preceding iOS 18 point releases, iOS 18.4 still introduces enhancements that aim to make your iPhone smarter and more intuitive. Below, we've listed 12 new...
iphone 17 mockups idevicehelp

Video Shows iPhone 17 Mockups Based on 'Internal Documents'

Monday March 10, 2025 4:41 am PDT by
YouTuber iDeviceHelp on Friday posted a video that shows off mockups of Apple's forthcoming iPhone 17 models that are purportedly based on "internal documents." We're sharing the video here since it was made in collaboration with leaker Majin Bu, who last month published similar iPhone 17 renders that were widely corroborated by separate leakers with links to Apple's Chinese supply chain....
iOS 18

iOS 18.3.2 Update Coming Soon for iPhones

Monday March 10, 2025 7:25 am PDT by
Apple employees are internally testing iOS 18.3.2 for iPhones, according to our website's visitor logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. The software update should be released in the next week or two. iOS 18.3.2 will be a minor update that addresses software bugs and/or security vulnerabilities. Don't expect any new features. iOS 18.3.2 will be an interim...
iOS 18

Apple Releases iOS 18.3.2 With Bug Fixes

Tuesday March 11, 2025 10:33 am PDT by
Apple today released iOS 18.3.2 and iPadOS 18.3.2, minor updates for the iOS 18 and iPadOS 18 operating systems that came out last September. iOS 18.3.2 and iOS 18.3.2 come a month after Apple released iOS 18.3.1 and iPadOS 18.3.1. The new software can be downloaded on eligible iPhones and iPads over-the-air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. According to Apple's release...
Apple Maps vs Google Maps Feature

iOS 18.4 Adds a Highly-Requested Setting to iPhones — But Not in U.S.

Wednesday March 12, 2025 1:05 pm PDT by
iPhones are finally getting a much-requested setting, but availability is limited. The upcoming iOS 18.4 update introduces an option to set a default navigation app, other than Apple Maps, but unfortunately this new setting is limited to users in the EU. There, you can now set an app like Google Maps or Waze as your default navigation app on the iPhone by opening the Settings app and tapping ...

Top Rated Comments

filmgirl Avatar
12 months ago
I have such a love/hate relationship with my AirPods Max. I refuse to charge my AirPods Max in the stupid bra (which I have also misplaced and I categorically refuse to buy a replacement from Apple…it is somewhere) so the battery life (which was never good at launch and is even worse years later, and this pair was replaced under warranty in December 2022 right before the AppleCare+ expired) is not great and I get to have the fun of manually re-pairing them every few days. I also don’t love the comfort and the noise cancellation isn’t as good as my Sony's. The sound quality is quite good, especially for spatial audio, but I have better headphones for serious listening. All things considered, these are absolutely the worst $550 headphones I own, and I own a lot of headphones in this price range.

That said, I’m counting down the days for the next generation, because even if the only change is a USB-C port, these are an instant-buy. The auto-pairing is just too good across devices and as much as it pains me, if my current pair died tomorrow, I’d be ordering a replacement immediately.

I do hope that whatever Sonos comes out with and whatever Sony's successor headphones are will encourage Apple to do a little more than just adding a USB-C port, but I doubt it. In any event, I look at my pink AirPods Max with disdain and look forward to replacing them with a pair I hate almost as much.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
vegetassj4 Avatar
12 months ago
What is old is new again:



Attachment Image
Score: 9 Votes (Like | Disagree)
gigapocket1 Avatar
12 months ago

What is old is new again:


Wow.. Can't believe those were 99.99....
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
JoeG4 Avatar
12 months ago

I have such a love/hate relationship with my AirPods Max. I refuse to charge my AirPods Max in the stupid bra
I hate that stupid bra less than I thought I would, but I also don't understand why they insisted on it. I bought them because I loved how convenient using my gen 2 airpods is. But I really like over-ear cans and needed something with noise cancellation. But I can't just have it sitting on my desk, it has to be in that case. lol.

That said, the case. I don't really care about headphone cases because the headphones live on my desk. Quite the opposite: I don't want to have to use a case. I get that having a power button isn't very Apple, but this seems to have been the perfect situation to have a power button. Or at least make them go to sleep when you turn the earcaps sideways! although I don't care much for that one...

Or if they wanted to sell overpriced crap, they could've made them detect when they were placed laying down on their side and/or when someone sets them on a special "Made for Airpods Max" stand. (oo plus points if the stand charged the airpods wirelessly!)

While we're at it: They can't be serious about "being eco friendly" with that headband. The design doesn't allow you to easily swap the mesh out. Why?! Who thought this was a good idea?!
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
syklee26 Avatar
12 months ago
Lower cost AirPods..... would the sound chip be sold separately?
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jetson Avatar
12 months ago
Will Apple ever give us BACK our 3.5mm headphone jacks?

I really dislike these earbuds. They fall out, often they fail within days of purchasing them, the sound quality is all over the place, etc.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)