I was in Cupertino for Apple’s AirPods Pro 3 reveal, brought a pair home, and did some early listening away from campus. The pitch lines up with what I’m hearing so far: a quieter backdrop and firmer low end. Apple’s explanation is straightforward. The buds use a new multiport acoustic architecture that controls airflow into the ear canal, paired with foam‑infused ear tips (now five sizes, including XXS) to improve the passive seal.
Apple claims the world’s best in‑ear ANC, rated as up to 2X more effective than AirPods Pro 2 and 4X over the original. That’s the “two‑prong” approach: better passive isolation plus stronger active cancellation. In practice, lower self‑noise means music opens up at sane volumes: the audio equivalent of OLED‑class black levels on a display.
These are also the first AirPods that double as a workout sensor. There’s an on‑bud PPG heart‑rate unit pulsing invisible light 256 times per second. Paired with iPhone, you can start up to 50 workout types in Apple’s Fitness app and log heart rate and calories. I tried the readout on site and again at home; behavior matched Apple’s description. If you prefer to run without a watch, the buds now cover the basics.
Live Translation is new, runs with Apple Intelligence on the iPhone, and—at launch—supports English (US/UK), French, German, Portuguese (Brazil), and Spanish (Spain). Apple flags two limits: it’s beta and not available in the EU if your Apple Account region is also in the EU. In use, one person can see a captioned transcript on iPhone while the other hears translations in‑ear; if both wear compatible AirPods, each hears their language.
Specs and practicalities: $249, pre‑orders open, stores September 19. Battery is rated up to 8 hours with ANC, 6.5 hours while tracking heart rate during workouts, and up to 10 hours in Transparency when using the Hearing Aid feature; with the case, Apple quotes up to 24 hours. Both buds and the case get IP57. The case’s U2 chip enables 1.5× longer‑range Precision Finding. A new Camera Remote control sits on the stem. Connectivity is Bluetooth 5.3. Apple no longer includes a USB‑C charge cable in the box.
On the format front, AirPods Pro 3 explicitly list “No Lossless Audio.” If you want Apple‑sanctioned lossless from iPhone inside the AirPods family, the current option is AirPods Max via USB‑C. Otherwise, it’s the usual wired‑DAC‑and‑headphones route. That said, with the darker noise floor and reworked bass system, the audiophile angle here isn’t codec bragging—it’s contrast. Loudness is like brightness; quiet is like black. Improve black level and the whole picture (and soundstage) snaps into focus. Early runs with my pair align with that notion.
