We figured AirPods would go USB-C as soon as the iPhone does, and that’s what Bloomberg reports will happen. Mark Gurman drops this line in his coverage of Apple’s September event announcement: “To match the new iPhones, Apple will introduce updated AirPods at the event that include a USB-C charging port.”
Which AirPods? Apple currently sells four models: AirPods 2 ($129), AirPods 3 ($169), AirPods Pro 2 ($249), and AirPods Max ($549).
AirPods Pro 2 are new enough that shifting to USB-C is a given. I mentioned anticipating the mid-cycle refresh in my review a year ago:
The charging case uses the Lightning port like the iPhone, but the tides are turning toward iPhones dropping Lightning in favor of USB-C next year.
I can’t remember the last time I charged my AirPods case with a wire, so it’s not a big deal for me. It might mean we’ll see a charging case revision before AirPods Pro 3, however, just like when the original AirPods added a wireless charging case and AirPods Pro added a MagSafe charging case.
AirPods 3, on the other hand, are two years old. I could see revising the charging case with USB-C if Apple doesn’t plan on updating the earphones any time soon, but it doesn’t seem as critical. The right question to ask about AirPods 2 is whether or not they’ll stick around.
AirPods Max need USB-C, but they need a bigger update in general. Frankly, I wouldn’t buy revised AirPods Max if the only change was the charging port. We’ll know for sure in two weeks!
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