If you are fully immersed in Apple’s ecosystem, the AirPods Pro 2 have been a no-brainer since they launched in 2022.
At the time, we thought they were Apple’s best wireless earbuds to date and worth every penny because of their user-friendly design, excellent active noise-cancelling and brilliant sound quality. However, that could all change now that their successors, the AirPods Pro 3 are on the scene.
The new AirPods promise big improvements all around, so join us as we dive into every aspect of their design and features and explain all the key differences between the new and old.
Price
There’s good news and bad news when it comes to pricing.
The good news is that if you’re living in the UK, the AirPods Pro 3 are actually cheaper than their predecessors. The 2nd Gen model launched at £249, but the 3rd Gen model is £219, which is a nice surprise and a very welcome saving.
In the US and Australia, however, the Pro 3 cost $249 / AU$399, which is identical to the old version.
This makes the Apple earbuds a rival for the ageing Sony WF-1000XM5, which can be yours for similar money and places them in the same ballpark as the Technics EAH-AZ100 £259 / $299 / AU$499.
Slightly pricier but arguably in the same discussion will also be the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen) £299 / $299 / AU$450, which, in our opinion, are the current kings of noise-cancelling.
Design
While you’d be hard-pressed to spot any design differences between the second-generation model and the AirPods Pro 3 at a distance, look a little closer, and you’ll see Apple has actually made some significant tweaks.
In fact, Apple has looked at more than 10,000 3D ear scans in an attempt to get the optimum fit for most ear shapes.
So, the general stem design returns for the new model, but the eartips are now angled more inwards, so they face the opening of your ear canal as opposed to the tips approaching from more of an angle as in the Pro 2.
They are also slightly smaller than the older model, but only by a fraction. Conversely, the AirPods Pro 3 weigh a bit more than Pro 2 (5.55g versus 5.3g).
Each earbud also gets a new “multiport acoustic architecture”, which Apple claims precisely controls the airflow which carries sound into your ear and helps “transform the bass response”.
Another design change has happened to the eartips that the earbuds use. Apple has introduced what it describes as “a new layer of foam-infused microspheres”, which it claims improves isolation and, consequently, noise cancelling and sound quality.
You also get five sizes of eartips with the AirPods Pro 3, including an XXS size, compared with four sizes with the AirPods Pro 2 (XS, S, M, L).
Features
Like the AirPods Pro 2, the Pro 3 support Bluetooth 5.3 and use Apple’s H2 chip, which hasn’t been upgraded for the new model.
You get all the audio features present on the AirPods Pro 2, including Adaptive Audio, Transparency mode, Conversation Awareness, Voice Isolation, Personalised Volume, and Adaptive EQ and Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking.
Touch controls on the stems mirror those of the AirPods Pro 2, so we are expecting the same ease of use we have come to know and love from Apple’s flagship earbuds.
If you were hoping for a boost in battery life for the AirPods Pro 3, you’re in luck. The new model increases the figure to eight hours per charge, up from six hours in the old model.
However, total battery life, including the charging case, actually goes down from 30 hours with the Pro 2 to 24 hours for the Pro 3. For most people, it’s the figure per charge that is going to matter most, so it’s good to see the new model has moved with the times.
The wireless, USB-C charging case returns, but it comes with a new U2 chip inside it with Ultra Wideband technology, which increases Precision Finding by one and a half times when using an iPhone 17 or later. By comparison, the case for AirPods Pro 2 featured the older U1 chip.
The water- and sweat-resistance has been upped to an IP57 rating (compared with IP54 in the old model).
In a first for AirPods, the Pro 3 also feature a heart-rate sensor (Apple’s smallest to date) so you can use the buds to track certain health and exercise stats.
Finally, the hotly anticipated live translation feature powered by Apple Intelligence has been introduced in the Pro 3 – but this also works with the Pro 2.
Noise-cancelling and call quality
Apple claims the ANC in the AirPods Pro 3 is four times more efficient than that of the original AirPods Pro, and that they deliver twice the noise-cancelling performance of the AirPods Pro 2.
In fact, Apple claims the AirPods Pro 3 offer the “world’s best active noise cancellation of any in-ear wireless headphones.”
Apple says this is down to a combination of the buds’ ultra-low noise microphones, “advanced computational audio”, and the new foam-infused eartips, which promote greater passive noise-cancellation.
We can’t wait to try it out once we have a sample in for review, and we’ll be sure to put them up against the current class-leaders, the Bose Quiet Comfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen).
When it comes to calls, Apple has attempted to improve vocal clarity, while a more personalised Transparency mode should make your voice and the person you are speaking to also sound more natural.
Again, we’ll have to test this in person to see if the Pro 3 manage to stand up to scrutiny and beat their predecessors.
Sound quality
While a review sample of the AirPos Pro 3 will be making its way into our test rooms imminently, we haven’t been able to take the new earbuds for a spin just yet.
However, Apple claims that its design tweaks help deliver a wider soundstage and more precise sound and improved bass performance.
We are huge fans of the previous generation earbuds, and in our AirPods Pro 2 review, we praise the sound quality, which we describe as “engaging and entertaining right from the second we start listening”.
We also say they are “rhythmically agile and nimble” and are struck by how open and airy they sound; so should Apple be able to build on this level of sound quality, it could be onto another winner.
Initial verdict
While we are yet to put the AirPods 3 through their paces, on paper at least, it looks as though Apple has really made an effort to improve its flagship wireless earbuds across the board compared with their predecessors. And they are cheaper than the Pro 2 were at launch, too!
If Apple can take comfort, sound quality and ANC performance up a couple of notches, not only might it make sense to upgrade from the Pro 2 to the Pro 3, but the established class leaders from rival brands such as Sony and Bose might want to run for cover too.
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