Apple AirPods

Apple’s AirPods have been available for a few months now and as the completely wireless earbuds make their way to more users, there have been increased requests for more customization options.

While it’s not explicitly clear from the start, there are a few changes you can make in the Settings app on your iOS device to slightly customize the AirPods experience. Read on for a breakdown…

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Apple is rolling out the fourth iOS 10.3 beta for developer testing on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The upcoming software update includes Find My AirPods support, CarPlay improvements, Apple’s new filesystem, and more. We’ll update and highlight any changes discovered below.

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Apple’s AirPods come in just one color, but it was only a matter of time before ColorWare provided a colorful alternative to the all white earbuds. As we noted earlier this week, ColorWare is now accepting orders for Apple Airpods in a variety of solid or metallic colors in a matte or glossy finish.

Jonathan Morrison of TLD already got his mitts on ColorWare’s handy work, and he went for one of the most logical choices — a glossy black finish that closely resembles the Jet Black iPhone 7.
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One of the more common requests for AirPods has been additional color options. Apple only offers them in the standard white option, but concepts have imagined AirPods in such colors as Jet Black.

Now, popular aftermarket coloring service ColorWare has announced the ability to customize AirPods with 58 different color options…

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Apple is rolling out the third iOS 10.3 beta for developer testing on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The upcoming software update includes Find My AirPods support, CarPlay improvements, Apple’s new filesystem, and more. We’ll update and highlight any changes discovered below.

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Six weeks after the launch of the iPhone 7 I wrote that life without a headphone jack was a confusing mess of adapters and a lack of cohesion between Apple products. That piece, however, was written before W1 earbuds hit the market.

Now, Apple has three pairs of W1 earbuds available and my opinions have done a total 180…

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Apple’s BeatsX wireless earphones (stylized as Beats^x) are now available to purchase from Apple.com after an extended delay following their introduction in September. Like AirPods, BeatsX earphones use Apple’s special W1 chip that makes pairing and switching between Apple devices nearly instant.

Apple.com is quoting short shipping times for the black and white BeatsX, with delivery for Valentine’s Day. Apple’s website is also selling the newly-announced gray and blue colors with longer 2-3 week wait times.

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The delayed BeatsX earbuds go on sale tomorrow on Apple.com and in retail stores after a lengthy delay. Ahead of the release to the public, a trio of YouTube reviewers got their hands on the W1-equipped headphones from Apple and Beats. The videos offer a first-look at BeatsX and compare them Apple’s own AirPods.

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Earlier today, it was officially confirmed that the delayed BeatsX would become available this Friday, February 10th. Announced back in September alongside the iPhone 7, the BeatsX were originally slated to be released sometime during the fall, but were then pushed back.

Now that we have a solid release date, and that AirPods are on the market as well, do you plan on purchasing the BeatsX? Or has the delay caused you to look at other options such as Apple’s own AirPods?

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Last week, Apple silently updated its completely wireless AirPods earbuds to version 3.5.1. The move came as a surprise to many as Apple hadn’t made it explicitly clear that the AirPods were capable of receiving firmware updates.

Nevertheless, read on for how to check the firmware of your AirPods and update it…

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Apple is rolling out the second iOS 10.3 beta for developer testing on iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. The upcoming software update includes Find My AirPods support, CarPlay improvements, Apple’s new filesystem, and more. We’ll update and highlight any changes discovered below.

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Apple has silently updated the Apple AirPods firmware to version 3.5.1, from 3.3.1, earlier today. The AirPods automatically update to the latest software when the earbuds are charging in the AirPods Case and close to a paired device. The new firmware does not appear to contain any new front-facing features.

There is no onscreen alert or notification that an update has taken place. You can however verify if your AirPods are up-to-date by checking the AirPods firmware version number in Settings on an iPhone …

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A little over a month later and one of the biggest challenges using AirPods has to be the primary means of control, Siri. Within Wi-Fi networks or strong cellular service, Siri usually works reliably, even if with some delay. Step into an elevator or subway, and that voice control interface is rendered useless. Without a good internet connection, Siri just doesn’t work and that means pulling out your phone or using your Apple Watch for controls. It’s a first world problem, sure, but that doesn’t mean we can’t push for a better solution. However, even if it’s temporary, there is an offline option to use for now…

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In this week’s top stories: iOS 10.3 beta arrives with a new Find My AirPods feature, Ben walks through Getting started with HomeKit in his first Smart Home Diary, macOS Sierra 10.12.4 beta brings Apple’s Night Shift feature to Macs, and much more.

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Apple’s AirPods have only been available for a little over a month and still have 6 week shipping times, but it’s possible we could see a second generation sooner rather than later if Apple launches updated AirPods annually and alongside the iPhone 8. Let’s take a look at some of the potential upgrades we might see this year.

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As we noted earlier, Apple has released iOS 10.3 beta 1 to developers. The update brings several new features to the table, including Find My AirPods for helping to keep track of Apple’s recently-released and highly popular AirPods. But that’s not all that’s new in iOS 10.3. In this hands-on video walkthrough, we’ll step through some of the other new additions.
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Apple just released iOS 10.3 beta for developers and within has surprised with a new Find My AirPods feature that allows users to locate their missing cord-free Apple earbuds.

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AirPods may not appear to be the best earphones solution for flying based on specs, but I found them to be near perfect on a recent flight across the country. AirPods are a totally different product than my wireless Bose QC35s which have longer battery life and active noise cancellation not to mention superior audio quality, but AirPods were easily preferred as my travel earphones after real world testing for a few reasons.

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