Apple Watch won’t have serious rivals in the foreseeable future. Photo: Leander Kahney/Cult of Mac
Apple Watch has the lion’s share of smart watch sales today, and that’ll hold true through at least 2023, according to a market-research firm. This ultra-mobile computer will stay in the lead as the entire market for wrist-worn wearables grows strongly.
Sales of AirPods and other hearables are also expected see healthy growth in the coming years.
Get yours before the discount disappears. Photo: Apple
Can’t agree on the music to get you and your partner in the mood? That’s what AirPods are for.
A survey exploring the intersection of sex and music turned up this fun little finding. Out of 1,010 people surveyed, 17 percent said they wore AirPods during sex.
What the...? Microsoft’s stylus and earpiece combination looks decidedly odd. Photo: Apple/Microsoft/Cult of Mac
Microsoft proposes combining two very different peripherals. It dreamed up a tablet stylus that when not in use wraps around the user’s ear to become a wireless headset.
Is there a point to such a stylus? It’s debatable.
Delfina Pignatiello was so pumped up for her race, she forgot to take out her AirPods before the starter's pistol. Screenshot: Fernando Cicutti/Twitter
Apple recommends keeping AirPods out of the water. But an Argentine swimmer evidently forgot she had them in her ears when she proceeded to break her own record during an international race in France.
Despite finishing second in the 800-meter freestyle, Delfina Pignatiello broke her own national record with a time of 8:24.33. Her AirPods were in her ears tucked under her swim cap the whole way.
Back in 2014 – long before the AirPods – I picked up what would become my go-to fitness earbuds – the PowerBeats2. A year and a half later, the AirPods came out, replacing my PowerBeats2 that were literally falling apart.
Fast forward to now, and I’ve been using my AirPods – both my first gen, and more recently, my second gen – in almost every situation. I use them all the time and carry them almost everywhere I go. But sometimes I hate my AirPods. No matter how simple and convenient they are, they insist on slipping just a little when I wear them while exercising. And if there’s any background noise or wind, even the loudest volume is inaudible while wearing the AirPods.
Even with those minor drawbacks, they were my favorite headphones. Then I got the new Powerbeats Pro.
We’ve never seen AirPods like these. Photo: Sam Cashbook
Forking over $200 for new AirPods that you’re probably just going to lose anyway seems like a bad investment. A 15-year old boy found a brilliant and cheap work around though that turns Apple’s wired EarPods into AirPods for just $4.
After seeing one of his friends get gifted a set of AirPods, Sam Cashbook decided to make his own. Using a cheap bone conduction headset he found on eBay, Cashbook managed to hot glue together his DIY AirPods.
You can now order Apple’s new Powerbeats Pro wireless headphones in the U.K., France, and Germany.
They’re only available in black for now, with other color options coming this summer, and it seems that stock is limited. You can expect delivery around June 6 if you’re fast enough.
Apple is the Goliath of the wearables market. Photo: @SCOTUSPlaces/Twitter
Apple’s lineup of wearables for this year’s first quarter earned the company the largest share of an exploding wearable devices market, according to a report from the International Data Corp.
Shipments of Apple Watches, AirPods and Beats headphones totaled 12.8 million for a 25.8 percent Q1 market share. While its share slipped a 1 percent, its year-over-year growth nearly topped 50 percent, according to IDC’s Worldwide Quarterly Wearable Device Tracker.
Global shipments reached 49.6 million, up 55 percent from the previous year.
You’ll be able to preorder Apple’s new Powerbeats Pro wireless headphones this Friday in the U.K., France, and Germany.
Apple has posted a new promotional video on social media to confirm their arrival. The 15-second clip features British boxer Anthony Joshua wearing an ivory pair while he trains.
Not everyone has the ears for AirPods Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
An AirPod falling out of your ear is not a question of if, but when.
The when for many unlucky souls in the San Francisco Bay Area offers the rest of us a warning to not wear wireless earbuds anywhere near train or subway tracks. Still, when one falls on the tracks, it isn’t the end of the world. Or even sometimes the AirPod itself.
Some lucky Apple fans who preordered its new Powerbeats Pro buds are set to enjoy early deliveries.
Apple originally stated a delivery date of May 13 for its latest Beats headphones. However, many customers are now expecting to receive theirs on Friday, May 10.
AirPods Pro could be more affordable thank you think. Photo: Ian Fuchs/Cult of Mac
Apple’s third-generation AirPods could bring big internal design changes, according to a new report.
Supply chain sources claim Apple will switch to system-in-package (SiP) technology that frees up space inside each bud. The move could allow other components to be squeezed inside the tiny wireless headphones.
Do not eat your AirPods. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Apple may need to update the specs for AirPods to include one new surprising feature: “stomach-proof”.
One unlucky Taiwanese man discovered this the hard way. After falling asleep, Ben Hsu woke up with one of his AirPods missing. Using Find My iPhone to track down the missing earbud, he started hearing a beeping sound that followed him around the room and realized he made a serious mistake. The AirPod was in his stomach.
“Don’t talk to me, I’m wearing AirPods” said just about everyone who’s ever worked in an open office. Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Open offices were supposed to get employees to interact with each other more, but a recent study shows it hasn’t worked out that way. Instead, workers have turned to AirPods to give themselves some privacy.
This has helped fuel the rise of wireless hearables, especially Apple’s.
European Commission could get even tougher on tech in 2020 Image: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
Wall Street received surprisingly better-than-expected news from Apple’s Q2 2019 earnings report today — and the stock is soaring in after-hours trading.
iPhone sales remain down, but pretty much every other facet of the company’s business is firing on all cylinders. Customers are falling in love with the iPad all over again. Services are booming. And Apple’s wearables business is now the size of a Fortune 200 company.
Despite plenty of doom and gloom from analysts over the last 12 months, Apple’s future is looking bright again.
Apple's Apple Watch business grew 50% last quarter. Photo: Graham Bower/Cult of Mac
Apple’s wearables business continues to grow like gangbusters.
Sales of the Apple Watch grew 50% compared to the same quarter last year, Apple CEO Tim Cook said on Apple’s Q2 2019 quarterly analyst call Tuesday.
If Apple’s wearables business — which includes the Apple Watch and the popular AirPods earbuds — were a stand-alone company, it would be in the Fortune 200, Cook said.
According to a new report, the AirPods 3 headphones will go on sale by the end of 2019. The main selling point of the new AirPods will be their smart noise-cancelling tech.
Beats fans that are hoping to scoop up the colorful new Powerbeats Pro might be a bit disappointed with the color options when units arrive in stores in May.
Apple revealed the Powerbeats Pro wireless earbuds earlier this month with black, ivory, moss and navy color options. The ivory ones look especially sleek, but it appears that only the black ones will be available at launch.
AirPods fit perfectly into the AirSnap case, and the charging light remains visible. Photo: Twelve South
AirSnap is back on our radar with a new 10% discount. As part of our Watch Store’s limited-time deals and discounts, over the next few days we’ll be offering price slashes on some of your favorite products and tech accessories.
A clear customer favorite, AirSnap is a super-tough, ultra-stylish leather case for AirPods. Compatible with Qi charging pads and your new wireless charging AirPods case (pictured above), this compact, portable case became a megahit in the Cult of Mac Watch Store.
Snap these up fast for a real deal before they sell out.
LeBron has been rocking Beats since day one. Photo: Beats
Some of the biggest names in sports can be seen rocking the new Powerbeats Pro in the latest video put out by Apple’s headphone company.
Beats’ new ad unleashes the Powerbeats Pro everywhere from the basketball court to the skate park as superstars like LeBron James and Serena Williams train to dominate their respective games. With over a dozen athletes making a cameo, the action-packed ad has a lot to take in.
WTF is going on here? Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac
I love my AirPods, but I hate that they don’t fit right in my ears. They’re not designed to seal the ear canal, and therefore block external noise, but they often sit so loose in my ears that a) I can’t hear them without setting the volume way too high, and b) they feel like they’re about to fall out.
Today we’ll see how to add grippy dots to your AirPods. These dots will make the AirPods fit snugly in your ears, but — crucially — they will still fit in their charging case.
Just don't blame Apple for it! Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac
AirPods are great. But that doesn’t mean that they’re without their problems as a replacement for your traditional wired headphones.
Some users on Twitter have been observing that their AirPods can be prone to cutting in and out, or occasionally producing static sounds. The reason? Bluetooth interference. This can come from having the signal blocked by physical barriers. It could also be due to using a frequency that’s too overcrowded.