New AirPods add wireless charging, Siri compatibility, more talk time
The refreshed AirPods are available starting at $159, offering better battery life and over 50 percent more talk time.
Apple revealed its updated AirPods on Wednesday.
Apple announced its second-generation AirPods early Wednesday, revealing that they'll be compatible with Siri and its Wireless Charging Case.
Read more: New AirPods review
The new AirPods work with Apple's Wireless Charging Case.
You can order the AirPods with or without the charging case via Apple's online store now, and they'll hit Apple Stores early next week. With a standard charging case, they'll set you back $159 (£159, AU$249) -- the same price as the original version. Getting them with a Wireless Charging Case will cost $199 (£199, AU$319), while getting the Wireless Charging Case on its own costs $79 (£79, AU$129).
If you're looking to add a little personal flourish, you can can add an engraving for free when you check out.
"The world's best wireless headphones just got even better with the new AirPods. They are powered by the new Apple-designed H1 chip which brings an extra hour of talk time, faster connections, hands-free 'Hey Siri' and the convenience of a new wireless battery case," said Phil Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of worldwide marketing, in a statement.
Commentary: The new 'AirPods 2' are really AirPods 1.5
The new AirPods offer five hours of listening time and three hours of talk time on a single charge -- 50 percent more than the previous version -- and the Wireless Charging Case holds multiple charges, according to Apple. If you put them in the case for 15 minutes, you can get an additional three hours of listening or two hours of talk.
Apple's AirPod news brings a highly anticipated update to one of the company's breakout accessories -- and it comes in the middle of a week that already has seen Apple sprinkling hardware news every morning. It follows changes to the iPad and iMac announced Monday and Tuesday, respectively
The parade of device updates suggests Apple's flashy event coming up Monday, March 25, at its Cupertino campus will be focused on its star-studded TV streaming service. Apple is expected to reveal a clutch of new services Monday, including a Netflix-like subscription video service and a news subscription bundle for Apple News.
Joan E. Solsman contributed to this report.
Originally published March 20 at 5:31 a.m. PT.
Updates at 6 a.m., 6:40 a.m. and 7:28 a.m. PT: Adds more detail, and buying links. Note that CNET may get a share of revenue from the sale of products featured on this page.
