Image: Apple via AFP Relaxnews
Apple didn’t release a second-generation pair of AirPods at its 2018 events, but don’t worry, there’s a light at the end of the tunnel: a new model of the earphones just received Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) certification, as spotted by My Smart Price.
Fans of AirPods everywhere have been waiting for the release of the next generation of AirPods and the wireless charging case that Apple announced over a year ago. With their recent Bluetooth SIG certification, the earbuds are one step closer to being released.
My Smart Price noticed an Apple AirPod listing under the model numbers A2031 and A2032 on the Bluetooth SIG certification website, confirming that the device has passed this mandatory certification.
The filing reveals that the AirPods 2 will support Bluetooth 5.0, the most recent Bluetooth standard, which is just one of the plethora of expected new features.
After a year in the works — in March 2017, Apple received a patent for AirPods with biometrics and noise cancellation features and in June 2017, reports suggested that the second-gen model might integrate biometric sensors into the device — an official new trademark filing of the earbuds in Europe and Hong Kong suggests that the capabilities of the AirPods are expanding in the health and fitness direction.
The new Class 10 categorization, “General wellness instruments,” connotes a wide range of health-oriented elements including “health, fitness, exercise and wellness sensor; monitors, speaks and displays for measuring; and displaying, tracking, reporting, monitoring, storing and transmitting biometric data, heath rate, body movement and calories burned,” which is far more than the existing AirPods can do.
Sources also suggest that the AirPods 2 could support Siri and be water-resistant, in addition to releasing with the promised, yet evasive, wireless charging case, but none of those reports have been confirmed. KM
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