Apple AirPods (2019) Gallery

By Chris Davies/April 4, 2019 10:42 am EST

Apple's second-generation AirPods look the same, but the changes run deep. The familiar white earbuds and their floss-container-style charging case now use the new Apple H1 chipset. That improves Bluetooth connectivity, as well as battery life, and enables "Hey Siri" support.

Rather than having to double-tap to summon Siri, you can now simply call for her. Music playback time hasn't changed, but talktime for calls is up by 50-percent. With the wireless charging case, meanwhile, you don't need to plug in the Lightning cable to top the case or earbuds up.

Pricing has remained the same, at $159, compared to the first-generation. That only gets you the regular charging case, however; if you want the wireless version you're looking at $199. As before, Apple's focus is on its own iOS and macOS devices, and Android fans should probably look elsewhere.