Juli Clover, writing for MacRumors:

[KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Ku] suggests Apple is working on its own Bluetooth-like communication chip and its own Bluetooth headphones.

And:

The chip may be included in the wireless earbuds Apple has in development, which are said to be Bragi Dash-style wireless Bluetooth earbuds that are entirely wire free. The earbuds will be called “AirPods,” based on trademark filings that have been discovered, and the product could be unveiled as early as September 7 alongside the iPhone 7.

And:

According to Kuo, Apple will sell its Apple-branded Bluetooth headphones alongside its Beats line of headphones, targeting the high-end market with the “AirPods” and the mid-range market with the Beats headphones. It is not clear if that means the AirPods will be priced higher than Beats headphones are at the current time or if Apple plans to lower prices on Beats going forward.

Sounds like Apple is positioning Apple branded headphones at the high-end and Beats in the midrange. To me, it does make sense to position each brand at its own unique pricing tier.

Apple, traditionally, has not played at the audiophile level. If I encountered Apple headphones and say, Denon or Audeze headphones, my instinctive reaction would be to assume that the Denon/Audeze were the higher end product. Apple vs Beats might be more of a push. This means that Apple would have their work cut out for them presenting the Apple brand as an audiophile brand.

That said, Apple branded products have a high margin. Which means that if the product is better and reviews well, they’d have an easier time positioning the Apple brand at the high end. My 2 cents.