Apple patents new AirPods design for improved immersive sound

Apple makes tons of great technology, which includes some of the best earbuds on the market. The AirPods pioneered a lot of features that we currently consider staple on midrange true-wireless headphones and earbuds.

That, however, isn’t really a reason to stop trying to innovate. And, as judging by this new patent submission from Apple with the United States Trademark and Patent Office (USPTO), the next AirPods iteration may be focused on immersion.

Immersion is one of those things that differs from person to person. To one, it may mean true noise cancellation, while others are searching for a three-dimensional soundscape. In this case? It is all about taking your actual surroundings into consideration.



Now, in theory, this could result in a very unique experience. This means that your favorite song will sound totally different, depending on where you are located. It will feel different at the airport, and then different again at home, or while working out at the gym.

This magic will be enabled through a series of microphones and sensors, and a sound processing chip, which will continuously scan your surroundings. By the description of the technology from the patent, it sounds like that the data they’ve picked up on will be analyzed and then assigned to one out of several different profiles.

This patent, discovered by ItHome, is still just a patent though. These don’t always lead to a new product getting made and are sometimes just a mechanism to reserve an idea for future experimentation. That being said, if Apple announces such an AirPods unit, we’ll definitely let you know.