AirPods 3 could use the power of light to monitor your health
Have the AirPods seen the light?
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AirPods 3 rumorsare streaming in, with the latest tip to reach us suggesting thatAppleis planning to fit ambient light sensors to future versions of the AirPods – sensors which could make them much more useful as health monitoring devices, akin to thebest fitness headphonesin the world.
A report inDigiTimes(viaMacRumors) passes on information from the Apple supply chain that production of these ambient light sensors is being ramped up, quite possibly to get ready for some brand newwireless earbuds.
There are a lot of dots to join here, and there isn’t necessarily just one way to join them – but that said, it would make a lot of sense for Apple to want to boost the fitness tracking capabilities of future AirPod models, much as it did with theApple Watch.
Indeed, we’ve heardseveral rumorsalong these lines before. Health and fitness is a big focus for Apple, with the aforementionedApple Watchfeaturing all kinds of sensors and features to make your life a wholesome and well-balanced one.
We’ll have to wait and see whether these light sensors will come with the rumoredAirPods 3, theAirPods Pro Lite, or the over-earAirPods Studio– in any case, the next big Apple event will take place on June 22 withWWDC 2020, so we might not be waiting long.
Light up, light up
Apple analysts have alsopreviously weighed inwith predictions that the Apple AirPods would gradually get extra fitness-related sensors over time. The more data the Apple Health app can get the better, from Apple’s perspective.
Light can be shone through blood vessels to gauge heart rate and pulse rate, and to measure blood oxygen levels – the amount of light that passes through can be interpreted to determine these and other measurements.
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As MacRumors points out though, the AirPods might need something of a redesign for this to work. It’s possible that the technology will have to wait until a new version ofthe PowerBeats Pro, with their attached ear clips, reach the market.
This is perhaps something to look out for inthe 3rd-gen AirPods, tipped to be arriving this year or in 2021. Don’t be surprised if enhanced health and fitness tracking are among the key features included to tempt people to upgrade.
Dave is a freelance tech journalist who has been writing about gadgets, apps and the web for more than two decades. Based out of Stockport, England, on TechRadar you’ll find him covering news, features and reviews, particularly for phones, tablets and wearables. Working to ensure our breaking news coverage is the best in the business over weekends, David also has bylines at Gizmodo, T3, PopSci and a few other places besides, as well as being many years editing the likes of PC Explorer and The Hardware Handbook.
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