My AirPods 3 wishlist: everything I hope Apple will change this year

Apple might have the new AirPods 3 ready in 2021. After a year spent trapped in my house and trying to work, AirPods have become a practically essential tool. There are plenty of other great Bluetooth headphones out there, but AirPods are still incredibly instantaneous and have really good microphones. Plus, being able to switch from ear to ear has helped me extend battery life by giving me an ear in long meetings.

the Second generation AirPods are almost two years old, while AirPods Pro are over a year old, and have continued to evolve. Apple spatial audio added in 2020, and the very expensive AirPods Max came up with a different proposition (I prefer small headphones, not big headphones), so what will the AirPods 3 bring? And what do I even want? For me, it’s mostly about a better connection.

AirPods Pro Lite Earbuds Could Upgrade All AirPods To The Pro Look

The latest reports indicate that the third-generation AirPods will look like the Pros, without the active noise cancellation and spatial audio features. Which means they will have shorter stems and replaceable ear tips in different sizes.

I like the AirPod Pro’s design and its less visible appearance, but I have mixed feelings about the tips. The deeper in-ear feel seals in for better noise blocking, but I like the originals’ easier, more user-friendly design for occasional call monitoring. Maybe Apple will somehow divide the difference.

The AirPods Pro Lite could also end up being more expensive than the second generation AirPods, which is not at all ideal. Maybe they would offer better sound or better battery life to make the possible price tag worth it.

I want AirPods to swap devices even easier

Apple’s latest iOS 14 and Big Sur Updates to the operating system have helped AirPods automatically connect to Apple devices faster, but I still find that I need to verify AirPods are paired during Zoom or FaceTime. Sometimes I also encounter bugs that disconnect AirPods.

However, I don’t just want to switch to the device I’m using: I want to actively switch when multitasking, or even mixing sources. I watch my phone, my laptop and even a TV at the same time. I would love to press select to swap, or maybe even use my head orientation to allow AirPods to somehow detect the device I’m using. Apple’s latest devices have U1 chips which can spatially recognize where other Apple devices are located. Maybe the new AirPods could make more of that too. Keep in mind that even expensive AirPods Max don’t have a U1 chip, so the cheaper AirPods don’t either … but that’s an interesting thought.

Or I would even like a way to mix sources (a stream from my laptop, a video from my iPhone). Apple already mixes ambient outside noise with an audio source via Transparency – could he go further? Or could Apple adopt smarter audio analysis of ambient noise and adjust what you listen to to boost highs or lows or spoken voices?

What about AirPods fitness features?

Apple has just launched its own Fitness Plus training subscription service, which requires a Apple Watch. AirPods are a big part of the Apple Watch-music-workout triangle, but so far the Airpods’ built-in grip controls are pretty limiting and lack position awareness.

Read more: A Week With Apple Fitness Plus: Beat My Lockdown Weight Gain

Adding shortcuts or touch gestures for workouts and activity monitoring might be smart, and would it be possible for AirPods to recognize when you start to run or exercise? The AirPods Pro have gyroscopes and accelerometers that could unlock more movement and position awareness. The next-gen AirPods Pro might push more into that territory, but hopefully the third-gen AirPods will, too.

Apple is unlikely to add any real health-tracking sensors, such as step counting or heart rate, to AirPods. But the Apple Watch and AirPods should be even more of a symbiotic pair. Heart rate and fitness readings, maybe even deeper control of the watch with AirPods controls. But it should be noted that the ears are a great place to measure heart rate.

We’ll know more about the Airpods 3 later this year, probably

I wouldn’t be long in buying AirPods now, but keep in mind that new models are expected to arrive before the end of 2021. Battery life, audio performance, and fitness are logical areas to focus on. . But I hope they also find a way to be better portable devices connected to everything, more reliable.