AirPods 4 have a new design and an ANC upgrade option

Apple’s annual iPhone event sure brought the fire on the handset side of things, but the company also announced two new AirPod models to join the ever-growing lineup. There’s the standard AirPods 4 and a slightly more high-tech AirPods 4 with ANC.

The biggest news is perhaps the addition of USB-C to the charging cases. This finally brings the AirPods in line with the rest of the world and, most importantly, newer iPhone and iPad releases. The AirPods 4 earbuds should also fit better, thanks to a refined design.

Both versions of the earbuds also include the H2 chip, allowing for an improvement in sound quality. There’s even personalized spatial audio, voice isolation and gesture-based Siri controls. You can nod your head, for instance, to make certain adjustments. All told, these buds should get 30 hours of battery life. The earbuds still don’t ship with removable ear tips, which is a bummer.

AirPods 4 with ANC may look identical to the standard model, but there’s an advanced feature set. This includes active noise cancellation, which isn’t always a given with earbuds, and wireless charging.

Both models are available to preorder right now, with shipments going out on September 20. The fourth-gen AirPods cost $129 and the AirPods 4 with ANC costs $179.

The company also announced the second-gen version of its AirPods Max over-ear headphones, after four long years of waiting. The latest model boasts USB-C charging (yay) and comes in new colors. The company did not announce a refresh of the AirPods Pro earbuds, and its long overdue.

Catch up on all the news from Apple’s iPhone 16 event!