Two AirPods 4 models coming this year with noise-cancellation and a lower price

Bloomberg leaker-analyst Mark Gurman has reiterated his prediction, which we covered back in December, that not one but two new sets of AirPods will launch in 2024. But we now have rather more details of the upcoming wireless earbud launch.

In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Gurman reveals that the new models will enter formal production in May, “setting the stage for a release around September or October [2024].” That means they could appear alongside the iPhone 16, or at a second fall event if Apple decides to pursue that strategy again.

Either way, this should be a big deal. For one thing, AirPods fans–of which there are many–have been starved of new releases in recent years. The only thing they got in 2023 was a USB-C case for the 2nd-gen AirPods Pro, which came out in September 2022. And the last time a non-Pro model came out was back in 2021.

For another, the new models incorporate a lot of changes from the status quo. Releasing a pair of non-Pro AirPods at the same time is a new strategy (designed to simplify the range, which currently presents customers with both the 2nd- and 3rd-gen AirPods but no obvious way to tell them apart or understand why the latter costs more). And targeting the budget range, which the cheaper of the two models is expected to do, is a new strategy.

Both the B768(E) and B768(M) models (the final letters in those codenames standing for entry and mid-tier respectively) will see a physical redesign, improved fit, and USB-C-equipped cases, but unsurprisingly only the mid-tier model will get new features worth mentioning: active noise cancellation, and Find My speakers in the case.

Gurman adds that there will be new AirPods Pro as well, but not until 2025. He says, intriguingly, that these will feature “low-resolution cameras that can scan the environment around a user.”

For all the latest news and rumors, check out our regularly updated guide to the new AirPods. Or, if you can’t wait until the fall, pick up a bargain on one of the current models with our roundup of the best AirPods deals.