Apple Expands Earphone Lineup... Headphones and Fitness AirPods Included
Over-Ear Headphones 'Studio Pod' Expected to Launch in Second Half of Year
AirPods 3rd Generation Anticipated to Release After 2021
[Asia Economy Reporter Jinju Han] Apple is expanding its wireless earphone lineup. It is expected to launch wireless over-ear headphones in the second half of this year, followed by the next-generation AirPods next year.
On the 23rd (local time), Ming-Chi Kuo, an Apple specialist analyst at TF Securities, stated, "Since the third-generation AirPods have been ready for mass production since the first half of 2021, no new AirPods models will be released until early next year," adding, "Mass production of over-ear headphones will begin from mid-year."
The over-ear headphones Apple plans to release this year are likely to be unveiled at Apple's developer conference WWDC in June and launched a few months later. Kuo introduced the product name as "Studio Pod" and explained that two models will be released: a premium model and one specialized for fitness. Meanwhile, Kuo did not mention the 'AirPods Pro Lite' model without noise-canceling functionality. Foreign media speculate that this product is likely to be one of the wireless earphone models under the Beats brand.
YouTuber Jon Prosser predicted the release of the 'AirPods X (tentative name)' in the second half of this year, but Kuo believes it is more likely to be released under the Beats brand rather than the Apple brand. Kuo forecasts it will have a design similar to the BeatsX and will offer noise-canceling functionality. Earlier, an icon for new headphones was spotted in the iOS 14 code, raising expectations that a new wireless headphone release is imminent.
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The third-generation AirPods are expected to be released after 2021. Apple is reportedly testing wireless earphones with added fitness-related features. Kuo analyzed, "The third-generation AirPods will have internal design changes but the external design will not differ significantly from the existing AirPods," adding, "Mass production will start from the first half of 2021, with large-scale production possible from the end of 2021."
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