It's time to stop talking about AirPods with cameras… for now

Digital Trends

a day ago

A lingering question remains for me around the likely-forthcoming AirPods Pro 3, and it's not about when they'll launch.
It's still unclear whether we'll see new AirPods Pro with the iPhone 17 launch later this year, but if they do appear, there still seems to be debate over whether they'll have cameras embedded.
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Now, the general consensus is, if they do arrive in September, they'll be similar in shape to the current AirPods Pro 2, but with longer battery life, better sonic performance and enhanced health sensors.
However, a new feature in iOS 26, spotted by 9to5Mac, has suggested that there will be some camera smarts in the new earbuds. The site points out: 'in iOS 26's Settings app, AirPods' 'Remote Control' option is included in a new AirPods menu titled 'Camera Control.' There are currently no other settings in that menu, making the heading name seem more noteworthy.'
I agree that it's odd to have a menu with only one option inside, but to me that suggests more controls are coming for the AirPods, not that they're going to pack camera technology in the future.
Apple announced at WWDC that it'll allow users to start recording video from AirPods with the new iOS 26 software, so that makes sense.
However, even the simple fact that this was even questioned highlights that some still believe Apple could launch headphones with camera technology inside this year.
Perhaps because the only 'facts' we have to go on are from predictions, albeit from noted journalists and analysts.
But there are lots of other reasons why camera-enabled AirPods are unlikely this year, placing the potential launch data of a game-changing new feature being added to Apple's headphones firmly into next year at least.
So no new camera-packing AirPods?
The first thing to clear up in terms of likely rumors: if Apple does put cameras into its AirPods, it's hugely unlikely it'll be the same kind of lens found in a smartphone or even on smart glasses.
The reason for this is two-fold: firstly, there are a lot of issues with design. Meta's reported 'Camerabuds', which were talked about last year, were intriguing, but they apparently had problems figuring out the design.
Making a camera that small and packing it into a tiny earbud brings issues with power consumption, heat and being able to make the components small enough without sending the cost skyrocketing.
Oh, and of course: what about when hair gets in the way?
Then there's the privacy issues. The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses have an LED light on the front that's auto-enabled so people know when you're recording – how would something similar appear on an earbud?
Even if there was a light, it would be hard to see twinkling away on the side of the head. Apple wouldn't want to wade into a privacy war without having a decent solution there.
That's why most of the rumors have centered around the brand, if it does indeed add a camera to the AirPods Pro, will focus on using an infrared (IR) camera inside.
This would allow the headphones to understand the world around the user, using the light sensing to 'see' objects and give more information to the phone. This would mean sound playback could be more immersive and enriched, especially used in conjunction with the Vision Pro.
Apple Intelligence would be enhanced if it had more contextual understanding of its surroundings, again highlighting how the brand is thinking not about LLM chatbots for AI, but instead about using the new technology to enhance the phone's capabilities overall.
The issues mentioned above, around miniaturisation and hair getting in the way, are still going to be present with infra red technology, but wouldn't be as severe as Apple already has a lot of experience with IR emitters thanks to the presence of the Face ID camera on the front of every new iPhone.
IR tech in headphones could potentially also enable gesture technology, similar to that already used in the Vision Pro.
It sounds crazy that someone would want to walk around waving their hands in the air to control their mobile device (although never forget this guy when the Vision Pro came out). But just try it now – imagine you're on a keyboard and you want to change a track.
Swipe to the right with your hand and see how that feels. If changing a track was that easy, I'd be doing it all the time.
When will Apple likely deploy the tech?
When you start breaking down all the hurdles that would need to be overcome, it feels unlikely that we'd ever see AirPods Pro with cameras embedded this year, even if they are 'only' IR.
What makes more sense is that the new AirPods Pro – whether that's Pro 3 or Pro 4 – are launched with a refined Vision Pro headset, complementing one another and providing a great chance to upsell.
Want the new Vision Pro? Enhance it with new AirPods. Enjoying the new AirPods? Try the Vision Pro – they work really well with it.
Given that's tipped for 2026 at the earliest, according to noted analyst Mark Gurman, it would make sense that we don't see the IR-enhanced AirPods Pro until then.
Which leads us back to this year. Given Apple took three years to upgrade the original AirPods Pro to the Pro 2 (2019 to 2022), it seems unlikely that it would launch new headphones this year, even if that does fit the previous cadence.
This is a classic case of two rumors clashing – things like reference to new AirPods Pro 3 appearing in the new iOS 26 source code suggest they're imminent, and Gurman has already suggested that we'll see new AirPods Pro with heart-rate tracking this year.
But well-respected analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the 'other' strong source of Apple info, suggests they'll be debuted in 2026 to allow for the IR tech to be included, alongside an upgraded Vision Pro (according to analyst Jeff Pu).
So when the iPhone 17 launch happens later this year, keep an eye out for new headphones. Although having just outlined all of this, it's now inevitable that we'll see someone from the AirPods team on stage, showing off the 'third generation of AirPods, now with full cameras for enhanced Apple Intelligence…'