AirPods Pro Lite with no noise cancelling to launch in first half of 2021

A Lite version of the AirPods Pro is expected to launch in the first half of 2021.

Korean publication TheElec claims that a South Korean material supplier is currently working on a system-in-package (SiP) with the AirPods' H1 chip. While the SiP used for the H1chip in the AirPods Pro is round-shaped, the SiP for the H1 chip in the Lite model will be square-shaped.

Apple is expected to review the design and quality by the end of the year and start mass production in 2021. A source told TheElec that the AirPods Pro Lite will cost 20 per cent lesser than the AirPods Pro. The more affordable price tag also means that there will be no noise cancelling technology.

It is said that the AirPods Pro Lite were initially planned to launch shortly after the introduction of the AirPods Pro. However, Apple put the launch on hold as the AirPods Pro were selling very well. The planned launch of the AirPods Pro Lite in the first half of 2021 is likely a strategy by Apple to sell more AirPods.

ALSO READ: Apple announces the AirPods Max for $849, available from 15 Dec

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo made a similar claim that the AirPods Pro Lite (or AirPods 3) will launch in the first half 2021 with a similar design as the AirPods Pro.

The purported design of the AirPods Pro Lite has been leaked by Chinese site 52audio. Bloomberg reported in October that the AirPods Pro Lite will have a shorter stem and replaceable ear tips.

This article was first published in Hardware Zone.