Sorry, AirPods Pro 2’s coolest feature isn’t coming to the originals after all

Bad news, Apple fans: it looks like the original AirPods Pro earbuds aren’t getting a free feature upgrade courtesy of their new sibling, after all. 

Apple AirPods Pro (2019) and AirPods Max users testing the iOS 16.1 beta reported seeing Adaptive Transparency mode – a feature introduced on the new AirPods Pro 2 – appear in the settings for their first-gen devices, but Bloomberg’s resident Apple insider, Mark Gurman, has now poured cold water on the excitement. 

“I’m told this is a bug,” Gurman tweeted (opens in new tab) in light of the reports, adding that the feature is “not meant to work” when asked to clarify the nature of the hiccup. 

Adaptive Transparency is an extension of the original AirPods Pro’s Transparency mode that allows the AirPods Pro 2 to quieten loud sounds – sirens, construction noise and so on – without blocking out all noise, owing to the buds’ new H2 chip and its more advanced design.

AirPods Pro and AirPods Max users reported seeing the upgraded feature replace their device’s original Transparency mode after downloading the third iOS 16.1 beta, but Gurman has now dispelled hopes that Apple was planning on expanding Adaptive Transparency to all AirPods Pro generations. 

In truth, the revelation doesn’t come as a surprise. The H1 chip in the original AirPods Pro always seemed unlikely to be able to support Adaptive Transparency, which was supposedly introduced on the AirPods Pro 2 because its new H2 chip afforded as much. 

In all likelihood, then, the switch to activate the feature appeared for these devices in error. Adaptive Transparency never actually worked on these devices in practice – although some users disagree over the extent to which it did or didn’t function: 

According to Gurman, Apple’s official line is that Adaptive Transparency is “not meant to work” on AirPods Pro and AirPods Max, which suggests some further digging would need to be done to determine whether these older-gen products are indeed capable of using the feature. 

The Transparency mode that does officially exist on AirPods Pro and AirPods Max works in much the same way to let in outside sounds, albeit without the ability automatically quieten particularly loud outside sounds (those above 85db).

Many have found the AirPods Pro 2’s Adaptive Transparency mode to be one of its best features: TechRadar’s Senior Editor for Audio, Matt Bolton, wasn’t a fan of how the original AirPods Pro handle Transparency Mode, and wrote a guide on how he fixed it – but he finds the mode great in AirPods Pro 2 out of the box.