AirPods 3 leak falls flat as Apple Music launches spatial audio solo

AirPods 3 leak falls apartment as Apple Music launches spatial audio solo

(Image credit: 52 Audio)

UPDATE: Apple has announced Apple Music spatial audio with Dolby Atmos, and that it will exist bringing lossless audio to its unabridged catalog for no additional monthly fee. Withal, the AirPods three has not been announced.

It's always a good thought to approach leaks with a critical eye, merely the latest AirPods iii release launch date rumor is hard to believe.

As reported by AppleTrack and originally tipped by YouTuber Luke Miani, the AirPods iii volition supposedly exist announced — if not launched outright on May xviii, just a couple of days from now.

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Here's why we're skeptical. AppleTrack is more of an aggregator of leaks than a leaks source itself, but Miani has no rail tape of providing insider information — much less information that turns out to be accurate later.

Second, a mid-May launch would contradict pretty much everything else we've heard about the AirPods 3 launch window, which consensus has largely built for existence in the 2nd half of 2021. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, for whom AppleTrack has a 75% leak accurateness rating, has suggested that the AirPods 3 hasn't even entered mass production yet.

Nosotros practice believe the AirPods 3 launch is getting pretty close, every bit the apparent blueprint has leaked repeatedly. And, although it would seemingly make more sense for Apple to announce its side by side big headphones release at an event, like WWDC 2021, both the AirPods two and AirPods Pro had much humbler launches via press release.

Miani apparently told AppleTracks that this volition be how Apple reveals the AirPods 3 equally well, alongside the launch of a new Apple Music Hullo-Fi service. This is rumored to offer lossless and Hello-Res music for the same $ix.99 per month.

That'south believable enough — a double-header of audio releases makes a lot of sense — and since Apple has now teased an official Apple tree Music announcement coming presently, it's viable at least that Apple Music Hello-Fi could indeed launch on May eighteen.

As for the AirPod three, nonetheless, this engagement just seems a little besides soon, given what nosotros've heard from more than established sources. For what it'southward worth, regular Apple tree tipster LeaksApplePro has suggested Apple Music HiFi will exist revealed on May 18, just the AirPods 3 won't be. LeaksApplePro has a mixed record, but recently did correctly name the products that launched during the Apple April event.

A May 18 launch would also see Apple competing with Google I/O 2021, which starts on the aforementioned day. And then again, Apple has shown that it could intendance less what the competition is doing.

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James is currently Hardware Editor at Rock Paper Shotgun, but earlier that was Audio Editor at Tom's Guide, where he covered headphones, speakers, soundbars and anything else that intentionally makes racket. A PC enthusiast, he also wrote calculating and gaming news for TG, commonly relating to how hard information technology is to observe graphics card stock.