AirPods 3 during Apple’s October event? Here’s why it’s the right timing

the apple airpods next to an iphone
(Image credit: TechRadar)

Since the start of the month we’ve been hearing rumors about a new Apple event that could arrive before the end of October, and been speculating as to what could be announced after the iPhone 13 line was revealed in September.

Thankfully, we got our confirmation earlier this week for an event Apple has dubbed "Unleashed" and now a new rumor has begun circulating that Apple might unveil not just one new product at the event – but two. 

While we originally believed this would be the place that we’d see the new MacBook Pro 16-inch powered by an upgraded Apple M1X chip, according to a rumor spotted on Weibo it turns out that we could see the new AirPods 3 there as well. 

With Black Friday 2021 right around the corner, now is as good of a time as ever for Apple to unleash its next flagship true wireless earbuds.


Analysis: Making the case for the AirPods 3 

It’s difficult to know exactly what Apple is cooking up behind closed doors at its Cupertino offices, but the timing does make sense for Apple to announce the AirPods 3. 

It’s been two years since the launch of the last AirPods model – the one with the wireless charging case – and since then Apple has enabled spatial audio. Well, sort of. You see, Apple enabled spatial audio support on the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max, but not the original AirPods.

That reason – combined with the fact that Apple’s been selling the AirPods at a reduced price recently and a desire to stay ahead as the world's largest seller of true wireless earbuds – leads us to believe that Apple could be ready to roll out AirPods 3. 

Of course, we don’t have long to wait to find out: Apple’s October event takes place on October 18 at 10am PDT and we’ll be right there following along, AirPods 3 or no. 

Via GSMArena

Nick Pino

Nick Pino is Managing Editor, TV and AV for TechRadar's sister site, Tom's Guide. Previously, he was the Senior Editor of Home Entertainment at TechRadar, covering TVs, headphones, speakers, video games, VR and streaming devices. He's also written for GamesRadar+, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and other outlets over the last decade, and he has a degree in computer science he's not using if anyone wants it.