According to noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the next generation of Apple‘s popular AirPods headphones could launch in the second half of 2024 or first half of 2025. The lineup is rumored to include a more affordable pair of AirPods priced at $99 and a new model of Apple’s over-ear AirPods Max headphones (released in 2020).

$99 AirPods could ship as early as next year alongside next-gen AirPods Max

The $99 AirPods would undercut the price of Apple’s current most affordable AirPods (its second-generation model) by $30. This move to reduce the price of the entry-level AirPods model mirrors what Apple did with its Apple TV lineup last year, when it launched a new set-top box that was $50 cheaper than its previously most affordable version.

Kuo previously reported that Apple would be launching a new USB-C charging case for all its AirPods models in 2023, around a year earlier than he’s now predicting the arrival of the next-gen headphones. However, it’s possible that Apple could refresh its AirPods charging cases in 2023 but leave the actual earbuds unchanged until 2024 or 2025.

In October, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported that Apple could launch USB-C compatible lineup of AirPods, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max by 2024, and recently said that Apple’s AirPods lineup is unlikely to get any updates of note in 2023.
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(via)

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Apple is reportedly working on a new, lower-priced version of its popular AirPods earbuds called “AirPods Lite,” according to analyst Jeff Pu of Haitong Intl Tech Research. The move comes as demand for AirPods is expected to drop from 73 million units in 2022 to 63 million in 2023, due in part to “soft AirPods 3 demand” and the possibility that Apple won’t release any new AirPods this year.

While AirPods have become wildly popular and have helped solidify Apple’s position as a leader in the personal audio market, they are not exactly cheap. In an effort to compete with cheaper wireless earbuds on the market, Apple is rumored to be developing the “AirPods Lite.” It’s unclear at this time what features the “AirPods Lite” will have, but Pu describes them as a “lower priced product” meant to compete with non-Apple earbuds.

Currently, Apple offers four different models of AirPods, ranging from the second-generation AirPods to the advanced AirPods Max. The current generation of AirPods, the AirPods 3, costs $169, while the second generation AirPods 2 is available for $129. It’s possible that the “AirPods Lite” will be priced lower than $129, or that Apple may simply reduce the price of the AirPods 2 even further. For example, the company could potentially reduce the price of the AirPods 2 to $99 in order to make them more competitive in the budget earbud market.

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(Via 9To5Google)

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