AirPods 5 Put Last Year’s ANC on a $129 Pair

Apple now sells AirPods 5 with active noise cancellation for $129, $50 below last year’s ANC model and the same as the old pair that had none. The $149 version adds a wireless case, stem volume swipe, and one extra hour. Preorders opened September 9, 2026, with store stock on Friday, September 18.

That is a gift to anyone shopping this month and a problem for two other Apple products. AirPods 4 with ANC launched at $179 in 2024. AirPods Pro 3 still lists at $249, with a sealed fit Apple now has to defend in public.

Last Year’s $179 ANC Tax Disappears

In September 2024 Apple split the standard AirPods line in two. One pair cost $129 and stayed open to the room. The other cost $179 and added ANC, Adaptive Audio, Transparency, Conversation Awareness, and a wireless case with a Find My speaker.

AirPods 5 kill that $50 gate. Both new models include ANC. Apple says the new open-ear system removes up to 50 percent more external noise than AirPods 4 with ANC, a figure it also writes as 1.5x. The claim is Apple’s own, tested to IEC 60268-24 against other open-ear wireless headphones without tips. Independent lab numbers are not out yet.

Dave Pakula, Apple’s vice president of Hardware Engineering, put the strategy in one line on September 9.

We’re thrilled that with AirPods 5, we’re able to bring Active Noise Cancellation to our most affordable AirPods.

Dave Pakula, vice president of Hardware Engineering, Apple newsroom

The $149 model is $30 cheaper than the 2024 ANC pair. Apple’s own film said that cut out loud. The remaining $20 gap between the two AirPods 5 SKUs is no longer about whether the buds can cancel noise. It is about the case, the stem, and one extra hour.

THE AIRPODS PRICE LADDER SINCE 2024

1. September 9, 2024: AirPods 4 launch at $129 without ANC and $179 with ANC, USB-C, and an H2 chip.
2. September 9, 2025: AirPods Pro 3 launch at $249 with a sealed in-ear fit, heart rate sensing, and hearing tools, in stores September 19, 2025.
3. September 9, 2026: AirPods 5 launch at $129 and $149, both with ANC, for store arrival on September 18.

Apple’s September 9 event also unveiled the iPhone 18 Pro Max that split the fall launch, plus a foldable iPhone Duo. The earbuds were the quiet SKU in that stack, and they were the ones that moved on price.

The $149 Pair Buys a Stem Swipe

The two AirPods 5 models look the same in the ear. Each bud weighs 4.3 grams and measures 30.2 mm high, 18.3 mm wide, and 18.1 mm deep, the same contour Apple used on AirPods 4. The extra $20 does not buy a new shape.

WHAT THE $149 MODEL ADDS

• Volume swipe: A force sensor on the stem lets you swipe up or down to change volume, a first on this open-ear style.
• Extra hour: Up to 5 hours with ANC on, against 4 hours on the $129 pair, using a redesigned battery cell in the same shell.
• Wireless case: The 34.7-gram case charges from an Apple Watch puck or a Qi pad, and it still takes USB-C.
• Find My speaker: The wireless case includes a speaker so you can ping it in a bag. The 32.3-gram USB-C-only case does not.

In the UAE the two prices are AED 539 and AED 629. In Saudi Arabia they are SAR 599 and SAR 699. Apple is taking preorders in the United States and more than 65 other countries.

Apple Still Says Pro 3 Cuts 3x the Noise

AirPods Pro 3 did not get a new chip, a new price, or a new case on September 9. They still start at $249. Apple’s own shop compare line now says they offer up to 3x more active noise cancellation than AirPods 5. That sentence exists because the cheap pair just inherited the feature that used to sell the expensive one.

AIRPODS 5 VERSUS AIRPODS PRO 3

The $100 to $120 you still pay above AirPods 5 is no longer “this one has ANC.” It is a seal, a much longer charge, and a set of health features the open-ear buds do not get.

What Hearing Health Still Costs Extra

AirPods Pro 3 keep Hearing Test, Hearing Aid, Hearing Protection, and Loud Sound Reduction. They also keep a heart rate sensor for workouts, skin-detect sensors, and five silicone tip sizes from XXS to L. Each Pro bud weighs 5.55 grams. The MagSafe case holds an Ultra Wideband chip, a lanyard loop, and a speaker, and Apple rates both the buds and that case IP57.

AirPods 5 list Adaptive Audio, Transparency, Conversation Awareness, Voice Isolation, Personalized Spatial Audio, and studio-quality recording. They do not list lossless audio, heart rate sensing, or any hearing-aid mode. If you want those, you are still on the $249 rung.

Camera AirPods Are a 2027 Problem

Apple did not refresh AirPods Pro 3 at the event. Mark Gurman, who had tracked camera-equipped AirPods through 2026, wrote after the keynote that the $149 pair raises the stakes for the next AirPods Pro. He has separately said the camera model is a 2027 product, with low-resolution sensors meant to feed Siri and Visual Intelligence rather than to shoot photos.

Until that lands, Pro 3 is a one-year-old flagship sitting next to a new $129 pair that already talks to Siri AI and Live Translation. The hardware gap is real. The software gap is thinner than the price gap.

Same Open-Ear Shell, New Acoustic Ports

Apple kept the H2 headphone chip. There is no H3 in these stems. The company credits a new multiport acoustic architecture and next-generation Adaptive EQ, work it says was inspired by AirPods Pro 3 and then rebuilt for an open ear. Personalized Spatial Audio is supposed to feel more immersive across a wider range of ear shapes because of that plumbing, not because of new silicon.

Both models carry dual beamforming mics, an inward-facing mic, an optical in-ear sensor, and motion and speech accelerometers. A force sensor handles play, pause, calls, and listening modes on each stem. Press once and the buds can also act as an iPhone camera remote. Nod yes or shake no to answer Siri without talking.

Durability is the other quiet upgrade. Apple now prints IP57 dust, sweat, and water resistance on AirPods 5, the same rating Pro 3 introduced as a first for AirPods in 2025. AirPods 4 were IP54. The AirPods 5 spec sheet does not extend that IP57 line to the case the way the Pro 3 sheet does.

Four Hours of Quiet Is the Trade

Apple rates the $129 pair at 4 hours with ANC on, and 20 hours with the case. The $149 pair reaches 5 hours and 22 hours. Five minutes in either case is good for about an hour. Those ANC-on numbers match AirPods 4 with ANC on the cheap side, and beat them by one hour on the wireless-case side.

Pro 3 still doubles that single-charge figure at 8 hours with ANC, or 7.5 hours with Spatial Audio and head tracking, and 24 hours with the MagSafe case. Hearing Aid users on Pro 3 can get 10 hours in Transparency. If your day is a long flight or a full shift, the open-ear pair still sends you back to the case at lunch.

That runtime sat next to the $129 price in every honest recap of the keynote, because it is the limit you actually feel. ANC at the old non-ANC price is the win. Four hours is the bill.

Siri AI and Live Translation Ride Along

The software layer is the same pitch Apple is making for the rest of the fall lineup. Siri AI rolls out as a beta in iOS 27 on Monday, September 14, in English, with French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish due in October. Apple says you can ask it to play a song a friend named in a message, or to navigate to a dinner reservation buried in an email, from the buds, hands-free.

Live Translation is now on the entire AirPods lineup when Apple Intelligence is on. After you set languages in the Translate app, you start it by pressing both stems, by saying “Siri, start Live Translation,” or by using the Action button on iPhone. Apple Intelligence itself arrives September 14 on supported devices in a long language list that includes English, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and several European languages. Some features stay region-locked.

Apple’s own product film walks through the ANC claim, the ports, and the $129 starting price in one pass.

Pakula called the pairing with Siri AI a game changer. The buds still need an iPhone, iPad, or Mac on current software for the new assistant, translation, and Adaptive Audio tricks. On older Apple software, or on a non-Apple phone, they fall back to basic Bluetooth 5.3 headphones.

Stores put AirPods 5 on shelves Friday, September 18. Until a camera-equipped Pro shows up in 2027, the $129 pair is the one that moved, and the $249 pair is the one that has to explain itself.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do AirPods 5 include a USB-C charging cable?

No. Apple’s in-the-box list is the earbuds, a USB-C charging case, and documentation. The cable is sold separately, which matches recent AirPods packs and means a first-time buyer still needs a USB-C lead from another device.

What chip is inside AirPods 5?

AirPods 5 use the H2 headphone chip, the same generation inside AirPods Pro 3, and they connect over Bluetooth 5.3. Apple did not put an H3 chip in this model. The ANC gain is billed to new ports, new Adaptive EQ, and updated computational audio on H2, not to a silicon bump.

Are the AirPods 5 charging cases dust and water resistant?

Apple rates the AirPods 5 earbuds IP57 for dust, sweat, and water, a step up from IP54 on AirPods 4. The AirPods 5 spec sheet does not print that IP57 line on the case. AirPods Pro 3 explicitly rate both the earbuds and the MagSafe case IP57.

Can AirPods 5 control the iPhone camera?

Yes. A single press on the stem can fire the iPhone shutter, a control Apple lists for both the $129 and $149 models. The same stem still handles playback, calls, and a press-and-hold to jump between listening modes.

When does Siri AI work on AirPods 5?

Siri AI is a beta in iOS 27 starting Monday, September 14, 2026, for supported iPhones set to English. Apple says French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish follow in October. Live Translation needs Apple Intelligence turned on, compatible AirPods firmware, and languages downloaded in the Translate app, and it is not offered in every region.