Like the EarPods that came from the hand of the iPod, they became an icon of the company, AirPods were a huge boost to the wireless headphone market. Again, Apple wasn’t the first, but it knew how to turn the market around with its particular proposition. So we’ve seen again how many other manufacturers have adopted the design and features of Apple’s headphones to use in their own devices.

Since the launch of the first generation of AirPods in 2016, two new generations have been produced, the second was released in 2019, while the third debuted in 2021. This suggests that we have to wait for the arrival of the fourth generation. or three years after the current one, i.e. sometime in 2023 or 2024. There are no rumors or leaks about it at the moment, so all indications are that we will have to wait a little longer.

As for its design, if we go by Apple’s history and policy in this regard, it is quite likely that there will be no major changes compared to the third-generation AirPods, a design that in turn drinks a little from the design of the AirPods Pro. It’s too early to say for sure, but first and foremost It doesn’t seem like the fourth generation should be a big leap from the previous one.

However, the fifth could be quite revolutionary if we consider a patent revealed by Patently Apple, a document that suggests that Apple designed AirPods with a touchscreen in the case. According to the said patent, which Apple filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office in September 2021, the said screen would offer information and control over the content that is playing with the AirPods at that moment.

From the text of the patent, the concept is quite clear: «Audio output device cases are normally passive devices used to charge audio output devices […] The utility of the headset cover can be extended and user control over the user’s wireless headset can be enhanced by configuring the headset cover with an interactive user interface that allows the user to control operations associated with the wireless headset.«.

So this hypothetical case with a screen for AirPods could be a substantial improvement over current casesbecause they would become a kind of remote control in which we could also see other information such as the charge level, the content being played, etc. To turn the case into something more than a case seems quite an achievement to me and something I look forward to I will see in the real world and not in the patent.