Apple AirPods Pro 3 hands-on: New design and improved ANC are impressive

Apple's "pro" AirPods were due for an update. Despite continuously upgrading the AirPods Pro 2 with new features since their introduction in 2022, Apple hadn't produced another robust overhaul of its priciest earbuds yet. At today's iPhone 17 event (or iPhone Air event, depending on who you ask), the company unveiled the latest model: the AirPods Pro 3. The company has refined the design, added heart rate sensing, improved active noise cancellation (ANC), delivered live translation and more. And most importantly, it did so without increasing the price.

My brief demo with the AirPods Pro 3 focused entirely on the refined ANC. I wasn't able to try any sustained heart rate tracking or live translation just yet, but I hope to have other opportunities for that later this week. The product area is always set up just outside of Steve Jobs Theater ...