About a month ago, Apple released AirPods Pro 2. The second generation of these wireless earbuds brings improved Active Noise Cancelling, better sound quality, revamped MagSafe case, and more.
With Bluetooth 5.3 support, for example, Apple could have added the new LC3 codec, which enables Lossless quality to be streamed when playing songs wirelessly. In an interview, an AirPods Pro 2 Apple engineer answered whether these earbuds will ever support Lossless connectivity.
What Hi-Fi interviewed Esge Andersen, an engineer from Apple’s acoustics team. He’s been at the company for 11 years and calls the AirPods Pro 2 “an AirPods Max” in people’s pockets.
Andersen explains that with a simplified venting system, the AirPods Pro 2 can reach higher, cleaner highs and better, deeper bass.
Andersen says the biggest challenge has been to improve the high frequency response in particular. And they have been able to do so by optimising “the airflow for the driver so we can get better excursion.”
While most reviewers have praised these wireless earbuds, there are one thing customers and reviewers were expecting: the introduction of Lossless support or a similar technology since the AirPods Pro 2 offers Bluetooth 5.3 and Apple was testing the LC3 codec for calls using the AirPods Max.
When questioned why Apple offers Lossless support on Apple Music but neither AirPods models can stream in this quality, Andersen says, “audio quality is always a priority” but that “it’s important to understand that we can still make big strides without changing the codec. And the codec choice we have there today, it’s more about reliability.”
“We want to push the sound quality forward, and we can do that with a lot of other elements.We don’t think that the codec currently is the limitation of audio quality on Bluetooth products.”
That said, the Apple engineer said the company “is always open to change,” meaning it could introduce LC3 codec support soon, as the hardware already exists.
Another exciting tidbit the engineer gives in the interview is that AirPods Pro 2 adjusts the sound depending on its connected device. So it provides different immersive experiences when you’re on your iPhone, Mac, or Apple TV.
More Apple coverage: Here’s when to expect AirPods Max 2 and new Apple wireless earbuds
