Owners of the AirPods Pro 2, which first appeared on the market two years ago and were equipped with USB-C a year ago, can look forward to a major firmware update this month: with iOS 18, there is also new internal software for plugs with active noise cancellation (ANC). In addition to smaller improvements, four central functions have been announced. Some of these will also be available for other Apple audio devices.
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Lower latency for better gaming
Apple plans to introduce lower audio latency with the new AirPods firmware. As part of the new “Game Mode”, in which iPhones can be fully optimized for high-end games, audio should reach the wireless plug more quickly. How well this works in practice remains to be seen – professionals have always relied on wired solutions, which are a better solution even from a purely physical point of view. Also, voice chat in games should be improved: through support for 16 bits at 48 kHz and dynamic head tracking.
Adapting spatial audio to gaming
Games will be able to be played on iPhone in the future Personalized 3D Audio usage. This means that the earbuds can optimize spatial sound for the respective listener, not only for movies and music, but also for games. However, to do this the developers must have a Unified API that Apple provides. Worth mentioning: Personalized spatial audio for gaming also works on AirPods Max and third-generation AirPods.
The nodding (and shaking of the head) arrives
Apple is also rolling out new gesture recognition to the second-generation AirPods Pro with iOS 18 and new AirPods firmware. This means you can accept phone calls by simply nodding or reject them by shaking your head – no need to speak to Siri directly anymore. This process can also be used to end alarms and accept Siri commands.
Improved sound isolation for AirPods Pro 2
Apple also promises better voice isolation directly on the AirPods Pro 2. This helps filter out annoying background noise so that users can be better understood in phone calls and audio chats. More modern computational audio algorithms are used.
All four updates are expected with the release of iOS 18, which will likely be released in a few weeks. As usual, the process of installing the new AirPods firmware is a bit complicated. It should actually come to the devices automatically, but you can also try playing some music from the iPhone (preferably through Apple Music) and then placing the plug in a charging cradle that is connected to power. Unfortunately, there is no solid way to force the plug to update.
(B.Sc.)
