AirPods Pro 3 Expected To Introduce Two New Health Sensors

The iPhone 17 series will be the star of Apple's September 9 show, but Apple is also expected unveil additional products during the launch event, including the Apple Watch Series 11, the Apple Watch Ultra 3, and the AirPods Pro 3. The new earbuds are particularly notable, as Apple doesn't refresh the AirPods Pro line every year. The AirPods Pro 2 were unveiled in September 2022, alongside the iPhone 14 series. Three years later, the product is still selling well, but it could use a refresh that might include a welcome redesign.

A new report from 9to5Mac details three new features expected for the AirPods Pro 3. First up are two health sensors: a heart rate sensor and temperature sensor, both of which should be ready at launch. Meanwhile, AirPods Pro 3 owners might have to wait a while for Live Translation for in-person conversations. The details come from an anonymous source, but they align with other reports.

According to 9to5Mac's report, the AirPods Pro 3 will feature heart rate and temperature sensors. Both features have popped up sporadically in AirPods Pro 3 rumors in recent years. The heart rate sensor has been mentioned in several reports detailing purported health features for the next-generation AirPods Pro model. The rumored temperature sensor hasn't received quite as much attention.

The AirPods Pro 3 wouldn't be the first wireless earphones to feature heart rate sensors. Apple already added them to the Powerbeats Pro 2 wireless earbuds earlier this year. As for the temperature sensor, Apple can take temperature readings with the Apple Watch. The smartwatch doesn't provide actual temperature values, as it only monitors temperature fluctuations overnight, providing information about trends and irregularities. The Apple Watch does have a generally reliable heart rate sensor, which takes measurements at rest, during sleep, and during workouts.

It's unclear how the AirPods Pro 3 health sensors would work, but they could be useful to all sorts of users, including people who wear an Apple Watch and those who don't. The AirPods Pro 3 could provide heart and wellness insights that might complement the Apple Watch readings, or replace them if you don't own a smartwatch.

Apple isn't only interested in boosting the health capabilities of the AirPods Pro. As a reminder, the AirPods Pro 2 can work as hearing aids in supported markets, and now Apple is set to expand the features of the AirPods Pro to support Live Translation. The feature has been leaked more than once, with reports saying that Apple will bring Live Translation to the AirPods Pro with the iOS 26 update.

Apple did not announce the feature at WWDC 2025 when it unveiled iOS 26, which includes other AI-powered translation features for the iPhone that work in the Messages, FaceTime, and Phone apps. We've speculated that the AirPods Live Translation feature might need special hardware, like the upcoming iPhone 17 series, to process data for in-person translations. Also, it was never clear whether the feature would need new AirPods Pro hardware.

The 9to5Mac report says the tipster informed them that the Live Translation feature is not ready for the AirPods Pro 3 launch and will be added via a software update in the future. However, the report doesn't say whether Live Translation for in-person communication will be exclusive to AirPods Pro 3 or available on existing AirPods Pro models.

A few days ago, Google announced a Google Translate update that makes translation of real-time conversations possible. The feature works via the Google Translate app, but the translation is processed in the cloud with the help of AI.