Last year we heard rumors about a future pair of AirPods that may come with miniature infrared cameras. While they wouldn’t be usable to take photos, word was that they could potentially integrate with other Apple products to offer gesture controls.
We haven’t seen any sign of those AirPods yet, but apparently Apple is still pursuing the idea.
Apple 'exploring other types of wearable products'
This news comes from Mark Gurman in the latest issue of his Power On newsletter, noting that Apple is “exploring other types of wearable products”. This includes a pair of Apple glasses — a rival to Meta’s Ray-Ban glasses — and a set of camera-equipped AirPods. Gurman doesn’t elaborate much further, but the context of the article suggests that they could be related to AR devices.
Initial rumors for these AirPods suggested integration with Apple’s Vision Pro headset. However, since the headset has its own hand-tracking sensors and software, it wouldn’t be necessary to have a separate device do the heavy lifting. That’s not to say it couldn’t be put to use on different devices.
One of the biggest complaints about the Vision Pro is that it’s not comfortable to wear for long periods, on account of the weight. Considering Apple stuffed everything except the battery into the headset, it’s no surprise that there’s a fair bit of weight resting on the user’s head. That’s not going to work for the best smart glasses, or more lightweight AR devices.
A key Apple Glasses accessory?
This is where the AirPods with IR cameras would come into play. Splitting some of that hardware into other areas could give Apple a little more flexibility. Or, potentially, give users extra options to upgrade the experience from a base device.
A pair of smart glasses, for example, would have to be pretty limited to maintain the glasses look. So on their own they may not have the space to offer hand tracking or advanced gesture control. Connecting to a set of AirPods with these IR cameras could unlock that feature.
There are quite a lot of possibilities, and there’s no reason why the connectivity options should end at headgear. You could potentially use these new camera-equipped AirPods to add gesture control to your iPhone, iPad or MacBook.
But with no indication of when these AirPods might arrive, and the lukewarm reception to the Vision Pro seemingly causing Apple to alter its future plans, we’ll just have to wait and see how this all plays out with a Vision Pro 2 or the rumored Apple Glasses.
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