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New AirPods Expected to Launch in Third Quarter as Production Gets Underway

Taiwanese supplier ASE Technology has started production of optical sensors for next-generation AirPods slated to launch in the third quarter of 2021, according to industry sources cited in a paywalled DigiTimes story preview (https://www.digitimes.com/newregister/join.asp?view=snapshots) today.





(https://images.macrumors.com/article-new/2021/03/airpods-3-1.jpg)


The full report has yet to be published, so there are no further details at this time, but the timeframe lines up with information shared by Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who earlier this month claimed that third-generation AirPods will enter mass production in the third quarter (https://www.macrumors.com/2021/03/15/airpods-3-mass-production-q3-2021/) of the year. The quarter runs from July through September.





Kuo previously said the third-generation AirPods would be released in the first half of 2021, and a series of leaked photos (https://www.macrumors.com/2021/02/21/next-gen-airpods-image-leak/) and renders (https://www.macrumors.com/2021/03/10/leaked-renders-for-third-gen-airpods/) certainly made it seem like a launch was imminent, but this no longer appears to be the case.





The third-generation AirPods are expected to have a similar design as the AirPods Pro, including shorter stems, but without silicone ear tips or active noise cancellation, allowing for a lower price. The second-generation AirPods retail for $159 with a wired charging case or for $199 with a wireless charging case, while the AirPods Pro run $249.





Apple released the second-generation AirPods in March 2019, followed by the AirPods Pro in October 2019.





<strong>Update:</strong> The full report has been published (https://www.digitimes.com/news/a20210326PD200.html).<div class="linkback">Related Roundup: AirPods (https://www.macrumors.com/roundup/airpods/)</div><div class="linkback">Tags: digitimes.com (https://www.macrumors.com/guide/digitimes-com/), AirPods 3 (https://www.macrumors.com/guide/airpods-3/)</div><div class="linkback">Buyer's Guide: AirPods (Don't Buy) (https://buyersguide.macrumors.com/#AirPods)</div>
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Source: New AirPods Expected to Launch in Third Quarter as Production Gets Underway (https://www.macrumors.com/2021/03/25/airpods-3-production-rumor/)