Exploring AirPods 4 ANC: This Changes Everything

With the launch of the latest AirPods 4 with ANC, Apple just proved that Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency, and Adaptive Audio can be done effectively in an open design. Thanks to the H2 chip, now both the AirPods 4 ANC and the existing AirPods Pro 2 in-ears support the same level features. This is a big deal and it changes everything in this competitive product segment, about to enter the age of hearables.

The news that Apple launched an updated version of its (regular) AirPods was somewhat muffled by the announcement of the hearing aid capabilities brought to AirPods Pro 2 with a simple software update. But the new AirPods 4 with ANC are a big deal for the industry which has been struggling to combine the benefits of the loose-fit (now also called open-ear) form-factor with the convenience of active noise cancellation when required. The key, as always for Apple, is in the elegant implementation of Adaptive Audio.

As expected, on September 12, Apple announced the new iPhone 15 series models, which now all have USB-C connectors (but only use USB3). More importantly, Apple introduced new AirPods Pro (2nd generation) with USB-C charging capabilities and anticipated new audio experiences to all AirPods Pro models with iOS 17 updates. Between the lines there is an announcement about an upcoming "groundbreaking wireless audio protocol" supporting lossless audio over 5GHz.