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Apple’s next generation AirPods Pro will include heart rate and temperature monitoring.
The next generation of AirPods Pro will include health monitoring features, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter, Gurman revealed Apple has been testing features including heart rate monitoring and temperature sensing.
The company is also considering putting cameras into the earbuds, a rumor that has circulated in the past. According to Gurman, Apple considers this “a priority” now as it works to bolster its AI services. But it will still probably be years before AirPods equipped with cameras appear on the market. Even still, Apple made $18 billion from AirPods sales in 2023—showcasing just how high a priority these earbuds are for the hardware giant.
As for heart rate and temperature monitoring, Gurman says “The capability could be ready for the next generation AirPods Pro, which are in early development.” In internal testing, Apple has found heart rate data is still “more accurate” on the Apple Watch compared to the AirPods, but Gurman says the AirPods “aren’t terribly far off.”
Meanwhile, Apple’s Powerbeats Pro 2 will also feature heart rate monitoring during workouts. According to MacRumors, iOS 18 code reveals you will be able to connect the Powerbeats Pro 2 to gym equipment such as a treadmill to measure heart rate, with the data visible in the Health app and other supported iPhone apps. Apple has announced the Powerbeats Pro 2 will be released in 2025, but an estimated time of arrival for the AirPods Pro 3 has yet to be suggested.
Also recently revealed by French site iPhoneSoft, iOS 19 will be compatible with any iPhone that is capable of running iOS 18. The report cites a source from Apple, which confirmed that iOS 19 will not drop support for any “current” iPhone models, meaning those that can run iOS 18.
The oldest devices listed are the iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and iPhone XR, all of which were released in September 2018. Still, some iOS 19 features will be unavailable on older iPhone models.
If the report is accurate, it will be the second year in a row that Apple did not drop support for any iPhone model in a major iOS release. But when it comes to iPadOS 19, the report says the update will drop support for the iPad 7, which was released in 2019.