Apple’s new AirPods ad promotes its wireless charging case

This isn’t the first time Apple made an ad for its AirPods, but it is the first one highlighting the wireless charging case for this second-generation earbuds. It shows a bored or melancholic man getting ready for the day. He takes the AirPods and its case off a wireless charging pad before he heads outside. There he discovers ordinary street items are somehow bouncy like a trampoline. The song that plays in the background is “I Learnt Some Jazz Today,” adding vibrancy to this monochromatic video. The AirPods with its wireless charging case retails for $269, or you can get the wireless charging case on its own for $99. It will work with any Qi-based charging mats, like the Apple-exclusive Belkin model.

The AirPods 2 are here

After much speculation and rumours, they’re finally here. But perhaps not in the form you expected them to come in. We’ll talk about what they don’t have first. There are no new looks or colour options and the rumoured biometric features aren’t here either. But these do finally get wireless charging in the case—which existing AirPods users can covet at a price. What is also missing is AirPower wireless charging dock. At this point, it looks like we aren’t getting the accessory. So now, AirPods 2 owners will have to get Qi-compatible charging mats to use this feature. The base model starts at $219 for the regular charging case. You have to shell out $50 more for the one with the wireless charging case. And if you own the existing AirPods, you can get the case on its own for a price, which is $99. If you want, you can get laser-etched engraving on your AirPods case for free.

The other new thing coming to the AirPods 2 is its new H1 chip. This promises connection times that are twice as fast than any Apple device you own with 50 percent more talk time or an extra hour than the first-gen AirPods. For music listening, you’re promised the same five hours as before. But a 15-minute recharge promises to give you three hours of listening time and two hours of talk time. The H1 chip also brings always-on voice recognition to the AirPods, meaning you no longer need to tap on the AirPods to activate Siri. Just say, “Hey, Siri” and you’re good to go. Apple didn’t mention any audio boost, though so we can’t speak for audio quality improvements at the moment.

Source: CNET

AirPods 2 to retain the looks of the original

The AirPods second iteration is expected to arrive soon. New details have been leaked about the Bluetooth earbuds. The AirPods 2 are rumoured to be carrying the same design as the original AirPods. What's being improved is the bass response as well as the addition of more health-related tech (like heart rate sensor). Its battery life is expected to be roughly the same. It would supposedly also get a new coating for better grip and would cost US$200 instead of $150.

Source: GSMArena

Latest iOS beta hints at ‘AirPods 2’ getting ‘Hey Siri’ support

A strange quirk of the existing Apple AirPods is you can’t go “Hey Siri” and have the earbuds respond to you immediately. You’ll need to double-tap on them first. But that might change in the rumoured next iteration. 9to5Mac’s Guilherme Rambo discovered a prompt in the just-released iOS 12.2 beta that reads, “Talk to Siri with your AirPods or iPhone by saying ‘Hey Siri.’” And since that feature isn’t available with the current AirPods, it’s assumed that the next-gen version of the AirPods might be getting this feature. With iOS 12.2 coming out to the public later this year, it’s being suggested the “AirPods 2” might be ready for a launch soon.