If you have a pair of AirPods Pro 2, you’ll have a new firmware update to enjoy (once iOS 18 launches next week).
Apple has released a new firmware update for AirPods Pro 2. Firmware version 7A294 replaces version 6F8 and is available for USB-C and Lightning versions of the wireless headphones. Unlike previous betas, this update is available to all AirPods Pro users.
The update is likely to bring with it the usual round of bug fixes and performance improvements along with a host of features that will come with iOS 18 when it rolls out to everyone on Monday, September 16.
iOS 18 brings new features to AirPods Pro 2
The first feature now available on AirPods Pro 2 via firmware (once your iPhone is running iOS 18) is siri Interactions, the new feature that allows you to shake or nod your head to interact with Siri announcements while wearing your headphones. As Apple explains, “Siri Interactions allows users to answer or dismiss calls, interact with messages, manage notifications, and more, all without speaking.”
Voice Isolation is also available with iOS 18, which Apple brings directly to headphones after originally launching the feature on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. The company says that “machine learning, running on the H2 chip in AirPods Pro and the paired iPhone, iPad, or Mac, isolates and improves voice quality while eliminating significant background noise, such as wind around the caller, for the listener.”
The latest feature available now via firmware update is custom spatial audio with dynamic head tracking for gaming. While that is also reaching Airpods 3 and AirPods maximumthe company reserves “improved voice quality, including 16-bit, 48 kHz audio” for gaming with AirPods Pro 2.
AirPods Pro 2 are also getting a host of new health features this fall, including the ability to use the earbuds as clinical-grade hearing aids. You can also take a hearing test and get a completely personalized audio profile.
