Kuo: Mass Production on Third-Gen AirPods Starting in First Half of 2021, Design Unchanged But New Internals [Updated]

Apple is working on third-generation AirPods that will go into mass production during the first half of 2021, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a note to investors today.

airpodsdesign
The new AirPods will adopt the System-in-Package used for the AirPods Pro, replacing the rigid-flex PCB+SMT design of the second-generation AirPods. Kuo says that these internal updates will be the biggest change to the third-generation AirPods, suggesting the update will not include design changes and will continue to look like second-generation AirPods.

The third-generation AirPods will go to mass production in the 1H21, and the most significant change of the internal design of this new model is the adoption of SiP to replace the rigid-flex PCB+SMT design of second-generation AirPods. We believe that Apple will pull in this new model because of the declining demand for second-generation AirPods. Luxshare ICT will be the main supplier for this new model.

Kuo's prediction is somewhat confusing because there have been rumors of an AirPods update coming in 2020, while he suggests no new AirPods are coming until 2021. Leaker Jon Prosser, for example recently said that third-generation AirPods are ready to launch anytime.

There have also been rumors that Apple is working on set of ‌AirPods Pro‌ without Active Noise Cancellation that will feature the ‌AirPods Pro‌ design at a lower price point, but Kuo does not mention these earbuds.

He does, however, say that the market is expecting a new AirPods model in the second half of 2020, but that this is more likely to be a new set of Beats instead of a new set of AirPods, so it's possible all of the "‌AirPods Pro‌ Lite" rumors are referencing new headphones in the Beats lineup.

As for the ‌AirPods Pro‌, Kuo says that a new model will go into mass production in the fourth quarter of 2021 to the first quarter of 2022, which suggests no ‌AirPods Pro‌ refresh in 2020 or early 2021. We can expect Apple's high-end over-ear headphones in 2020, though, as Kuo says that these will enter mass production in mid-2020.

Update: ‌Ming-Chi Kuo‌ issued an update to his original report that indicated third-generation AirPods will go into production in the first half of 2021, not the first half of 2020 as first stated.

Related Roundups: AirPods 4, AirPods Max, AirPods Pro
Related Forum: AirPods

Popular Stories

best buy holiday

Best Buy Reveals Black Friday Plans With Sitewide Sales Available Now

Friday November 8, 2024 10:05 am PST by
Black Friday sales are continuing today with Best Buy kicking off early Black Friday deals that will last for the next few days. Similar to other retailers, Best Buy's early Black Friday event includes sitewide savings on Apple products, headphones, TVs, monitors, video games, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Best Buy. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may...
mac mini thermal architecture feature

New Mac Mini Has Modular Storage, 256GB Model Will Have Faster SSD

Friday November 8, 2024 7:06 am PST by
Apple has returned to using two 128GB storage chips in the new Mac mini with 256GB of storage, according to a partial teardown video shared on social media today. This means the base-model Mac mini with the M4 chip will not have significantly slower SSD speeds compared to higher-end configurations of the computer with 512GB, 1TB, or 2TB of storage, as multiple NAND chips allows for faster SSD...
General Final Cut Pro Feature

Apple Likely to Announce Final Cut Pro Update This Week With These New Features

Sunday November 10, 2024 12:13 pm PST by
In its announcement video for the new Mac mini last month, Apple teased an "upcoming" version of Final Cut Pro for the Mac. Apple will likely announce the update during the annual Final Cut Pro Creative Summit, which begins this Wednesday. The conference is held in association with Apple, and attendees will be visiting Apple Park on the first day. Apple already teased four new features...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases Firmware Updates for AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4

Monday November 11, 2024 11:28 am PST by
Apple today released firmware updates for both AirPods 4 models (version number 7B20) and the AirPods Pro 2 with both Lightning and USB-C charging cases (version number 7B21). All of these AirPods models were previously on firmware version 7B19. It is not immediately clear what new features or changes are included in firmware versions 7B20 and 7B21, but we will update this story if we find...
Generic iOS 18

Everything New in iOS 18.2 Beta 2

Monday November 4, 2024 12:34 pm PST by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.2 and iPadOS 18.2 updates to developers, and Apple is continuing to refine the Apple Intelligence capabilities. There are also a handful of smaller features that are worth knowing about. Find My Find My has a new option to Share Item Location with an "airline or trusted person" that can help you locate something that you've misplaced....
iphone passcode green

Cops Suspect iOS 18 iPhones Are Communicating to Force Reboots, Making Unlocking Harder

Thursday November 7, 2024 2:20 pm PST by
Law enforcement officials in Detroit, Michigan are warning other police officers about an alleged iPhone change that causes Apple devices stored for forensic examination to spontaneously restart, reports 404 Media. iPhones that are undergoing examination have apparently been rebooting, which makes them harder to unlock with brute force methods, and Michigan police think that it's due to a...
iphone 6 thickness

iPhone 17 'Air' May Not Be Much Thinner Than iPhone 6

Monday November 11, 2024 5:18 am PST by
Next year's iPhone 17 "Air" model may not be as thin as Apple planned, according to a rumor originating in Korea. According to the news aggregator account "yeux1122" on Naver, citing industry sources, Apple has run into problems making the new iPhone 17 model sufficiently thin. The device's reduced thickness is apparently dependent on manufacturing a battery with a thinner substrate, but...
maxresdefault

Hands On With Apple's New M4 Mac Mini

Friday November 8, 2024 12:21 pm PST by
Apple launched the new Mac mini, iMac, and MacBook Pro models with M4 chips today, and because the Mac mini is the only one of the machines that got a design update, we thought we'd check it out to see how it compares to the prior version. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. The 2024 version of the Mac mini is much smaller than the previous M2 model, so it takes up...

Top Rated Comments

AngerDanger Avatar
60 months ago

Kuo says that these internal updates will be the biggest change to the third-generation AirPods, suggesting the update will not include design changes and will continue to look like second-generation AirPods.
YESSSSSSSS!

I know I'm in the minority, but I actually prefer original AirPods to the Pros. I like the smaller size, the lack of a bulbous in-ear component, being able to quickly tap them with the back of my hand (verses squeezing, which is harder to do with dirty/occupied hands), the lack of the odd vacuum effect, longer battery life, and that I can comfortably lie on my side in bed and wear them.
Score: 25 Votes (Like | Disagree)
zorinlynx Avatar
60 months ago
I wonder if the new design will also include the much higher quality button cell batteries from the Airpods Pro.

I'm glad they didn't change the overall shape of the Airpods, though. I've never been able to use "plug" style earbuds; they either hurt or amplify every single sound in my head. They also don't work well unless they have a perfect seal; I find the original Airpod/earpod design doesn't need a perfect seal to work well. If they discontinued that design I wouldn't be able to use them anymore.
Score: 13 Votes (Like | Disagree)
imnotthewalrus Avatar
60 months ago

Just a few days ago you said they’d be released next month!!! Get your facts straight please!!!
The key word in Macrumors is rumors
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
trifid Avatar
60 months ago
Great news, I was concerned they might have been discontinued or would suffer in light of the pros. I bought the pros but returned them.

I love the open design of the originals, it lets me use them all day long without being isolated from my surroundings. And no, the pros' transparency mode is not as good as the original airpods open sound.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
thejoshuabradshaw Avatar
60 months ago
Yes! Great News for someone who likes the current form factor. Replacing AP01 soon!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
MrMojo1 Avatar
60 months ago
"The third-generation AirPods will go to mass production in the 1H21, and the most significant change of the internal design of this new model is the adoption of SiP to replace the rigid-flex PCB+SMT design of second-generation AirPods."

Will someone please translate that.
What will that do, for those who don't own the Airpods 1/2 versions?
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)