The work that began with EarPods continues to pay off as Apple prepares to ship the noise-canceling AirPods 4.

For the first time ever, the entry-level AirPods have active noise cancellation (ANC). Apple unveiled the new AirPods 4 on Sept. 9 at the "Glowtime" event where the Cupertino-based tech giant debuted the new line with two variants: one with ANC and one without ANC.

The new iPhone 16 smartphones and Apple Watch Series 10 smartwatches are chock full of new and enhanced health, fitness and safety features. At the same time Apple is updating the AirPods Pro 2 so they can be used as over-the-counter hearing aids. A new feature, called Hearing Protection, will also be unlocked.

Apple announced that its devices will have two new health-related capabilities: your Apple Watch will soon be able to tell if you have sleep apnea, and your AirPods Pro 2 can now double as hearing aids for those who need them.

Apple offers useful ANC while keeping your ears open on the AirPods 4. but the non-ANC model is much improved as well.

In a recent interview with Engadget, Apple's vice president of hardware engineering Kate Bergeron and AirPods marketing director Eric

The AirPods 4 with ANC went through a lot behind the scenes before it landed in our ears. Credit: / Mashable Before it got into your hands, it’s highly likely that engineers were hard at work, pulling their hair out and yelling obscenities,