Apple is likely to release a successor to AirPods Max, hints a new patent granted to the company. The Cupertino-based company has acquired a patent on processing gestures on a touch-sensitive surface, indicating upcoming AirPods.
In the patent filed in October 2021, Apple has mentioned an electronic device comprising one or more motion sensors, an audio output mechanism, one or more processors and memory. It will have one or more programs configured to be executed by the processors, including the instructions for detecting a first motion of the electronic device.
Although there is no clear-cut confirmation that the patent would result in an AirPods Max's successor, the background in the patent claim indicates the same. The background explains traditional headphones with wire and how it communicates with a device to produce audio output.
Faster and Efficient Techniques and Power Saving Methodology
According to the claim document, the proposed methodology to be used in Apple AirPods Max 2 (most likely) provides electronic devices with faster, more efficient techniques and interfaces for electronic audio devices. The techniques for engaging with electronic audio devices can be complemented or replaced with new methods and interfaces. These technologies and interfaces will result in a more efficient human-machine interface. Such approaches and interfaces save power and increase the time between battery charges for battery-operated computing devices.
Overall, the recent patent granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office indicates that Apple’s second-generation headphones may come with touch controls ditching the Digital Crown that allows users to control volume, skip tracks, answer phone calls and activate Siri. Touch controls make it easier to activate Siri and command volume.
According to a report by Patently Apple, who first reported about the patent, this isn’t the first time that Apple is taking patents related to touch-sensitive controls. In July 2019, Apple got the patent for smart fabrics with touch sensor controls for over-ear headphones. In 2020, the company won two more patents, providing touch gesture input on the earcups’ exterior and control volume. In December 2020, Apple introduced Digital Crown.
In an interview given by Apple’s design team to a Japanese design website Casa BRUTUS in 2020, Apple planned to offer touch controls for AirPods Max, but the plan did not surface. Instead, the company introduced the Digital Crown design.
