AirPods Pro 3 Teased In New iOS 26 Beta 1 Code, Could Launch With iPhone 17 Series

AirPods Pro 3 was expected to make an appearance at the WWDC 2025 keynote this week but we got no major hardware news from the event. However, the latest iOS 26 beta 1 code has teased the presence of the AirPods Pro 3 model that could make its way later this year, probably with the iPhone 17 series launch.

The successor to the AirPods Pro 2 has been long awaited since its introduction in 2022 and we are hoping to see some major upgrades from the company. 

AirPods Pro 3 Teased In iOS 26 Code: What Does It Say 

The details around AirPods Pro 3 has been spotted by MacRumors in the iOS 26 beta 1 which has been seeded to the developers after the WWDC 2025 keynote on Monday. The tipster has seen references to the AirPods Pro 3 model in the code framework which is linked to headphones. 

AirPods Pod 3 has been mentioned earlier and analysts like Ming-Chi Kuo claimed the new model will have improved features but nothing more. The AirPods Pro 3 should offer better ANC performance and battery life thanks to the new H2 chip used by Apple for its audio range. 

If you are expecting the next AirPods Pro to feature cameras for health tracking, that seems to be lined up for the major AirPods upgrade which could be lined up for 2026 when Apple will enhance the use case of the Pods and make it more health-centric with new sensors embedded onto the device. 

The idea about AirPods with cameras is not completely novel. According to MacRumor, Kuo had earlier said that the Cupertino-based tech company could mass-produce redesigned AirPods with infrared cameras by 2026 and make it available later in the year. 

However, some of the new features coming to the existing AirPods lineup are not bad either. You can get gesture controls to activate the camera once the iPhone is updated to the iOS 26 version along with a better way to know when you have dozed off wearing the AirPods so that the playback can pause automatically.