AirPods

AirPods are Apple’s Bluetooth earbuds. Initially released December 13, 2016, they used the special W1 chip to make pairing easier with other Apple devices, handling a common pain point for users of third-party Bluetooth headphones.

In 2019, Apple released AirPods pro, adding a fully-sealed earpiece allowing for noise isolation, cancelation, and more.

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Apple Music Lossless Audio Doesn't Work on AirPods, Not Even Wired AirPods Max

Charlotte Henry ·

It turns out that no AirPods will be able to play lossless audio when the feature arrives on Apple Music.  This includes the US$549 AirPods Max, even when they are using a wired connection, The Verge reported.

“Lossless audio is not supported on AirPods, any model,” an Apple spokesperson said by email. “AirPods Max wired listening mode accepts analog output sources only. AirPods Max currently does not support digital audio formats in wired mode.” It makes complete sense that the AirPods and AirPods Pro have no way of playing lossless audio. They’re totally wireless, and Apple supports the AAC codec over Bluetooth. AAC sounds plenty good, but it’s nowhere near the bit rate of CD-quality or high-resolution tracks. To do any better, Apple would need to come up with some new wireless codec — its own version of Sony’s LDAC, sort of — or make these things play music over Wi-Fi instead of Bluetooth. None of that is happening today or by June when Apple Music will start offering lossless. Things are a little more complicated with the AirPods Max, which can be plugged into audio sources with a cable. However, it turns out that even if you have Apple’s $35 Lightning-to-3.5mm cable plugged into a device that’s streaming lossless Apple Music tracks, you’re not going to hear the full audio fidelity of the source.

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Telegram Beta Supports Siri Announce Message Feature

Charlotte Henry ·

Users of the latest beta of security-focusssesd messaging app Telegram can now access Siri’s ability to announce messages through AirPods, The 8-Bit reported. It is the first third-party aim to support this feature.

Those on the latest Telegram beta via Testflight will see an option to enable the feature Telegram in Settings – Notifications – Announce Messages With Siri. It’s worth noting that only Apple’s AirPods, AirPods Pro, Powerbeats, Powerbeats Pro, and Beats Solo Pro support this feature. Moreover, only iPhones and iPads running on iOS 13.2 and later are supported. The Announce Messages with Siri feature uses Siri to announce incoming messages out loud when a user’s headphones are connected to their iPhone or iPad, they are wearing them, and their device is locked, according to Apple. Upon the arrival of an incoming message, Siri plays a tone, announces a sender’s name, and then reads the message.

AirPods Menu Bar Tool ‘ToothFairy’ Updated to Version 2.7
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AirPods Menu Bar Tool ‘ToothFairy’ Updated to Version 2.7

Andrew Orr ·

ToothFairy is a Mac app that lives in the menu bar to connect your AirPods with a single click or key press. It works with other Bluetooth accessories too, like mice, keyboards, and gaming controllers. Version 2.7 readies the app for macOS Big Sur and brings changes: Added AppleScript support for listing devices, getting their properties, and toggling connections; Updated the sample scripts in the “Run shell script after connecting/disconnecting” section of the manual; Added new icons for AirPods Pro, Beats Studio 3, controller, headphones, Playstation, Powerbeats 2020, Siri Remote, and Xbox; The “Improve sound quality by disabling audio input from device” option now works better when a Bluetooth device auto-connects rather than being connected via ToothFairy. It’s also more reliable in cases where macOS reports that it has set the audio input device but actually hasn’t. ToothFairy is available on the Mac App Store for US$4.99.