The days of buying headphones and getting a static feature set are long gone. Since the launch of AirPods Pro 2 in particular, Apple has consistently upgraded AirPods products with new features via firmware. In iOS 26, there are five more new features coming—but more than half are exclusive to AirPods with an H2 chip.
iOS 26 continues trend of adding new AirPods features
When it comes to AirPods updates, Apple has gotten in the rhythm of big annual feature drops.
For example, iOS 18 added nonverbal Siri interactions, Voice Isolation, and improved Personalized Spatial Audio. In iOS 17, AirPods got Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness, and Personalized Volume.
So what’s new for this year?
There are five AirPods upgrades coming in iOS 26:
Automatic pausing when you fall asleep
Studio-quality audio recording
Camera remote
Automatic switching for CarPlay
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