Apple’s AirPods Pro 3 Earbuds Offer Enough Upgrades to Be a Must-Have

Apple Inc.’s AirPods Pro earbuds have grown so popular that any drastic changes to their design or sound would be a gamble for the company. But in a year that’s seen the consumer electronics giant introduce its most significant iPhone overhaul in a while, it’s taking similarly ambitious swings with the new AirPods Pro 3 — though you wouldn’t know it from the outside. First impressions can be deceiving like that.

The wireless earbuds, which went on sale Friday, maintain the recognizable style of their predecessors, and they still only come in white. But the company has made considerable improvements in key areas such as comfort, noise cancellation, audio quality, durability and microphone performance — all while keeping the same $249 price as the previous-generation AirPods Pro 2.