How to Use AirPods to Listen to Movies in Flight
I love my Bluetooth headphones, and given the runaway success of the Apple AirPods , I’m not alone. But from time to time I come across a situation where I wish I had any headphones left with a good old 3.5mm cable.
Airplanes are a great example, mainly because there is no easy way to connect your AirPods to your in-flight entertainment system. It’s the same in the gym if you enjoy watching live TV on the treadmill.
There is an easy way to do all this: just buy a cheap set of headphones specifically for flight and training. But if you are looking for a more elegant and high-tech solution, you have several options.
Known for their quality Apple accessories, Twelve South has just released AirFly , a Bluetooth adapter with a tiny 3.5mm cable at one end and an eight-hour battery (enough for most cross-country flights). The device also has a slim white design that matches the AirPods’ body and is small enough to fit right in your carry-on.
Engadget didn’t notice any audio issues with AirFly in their product brief. Their only real problem is that plugging the earbuds into the adapter during flight means having to reconnect them to your smartphone upon landing. It might be annoying if you use them at the gym every day, but it’s a small price to pay for the convenience of connecting your Bluetooth headphones to a non-Bluetooth device.
At $ 40, AirFly isn’t cheap, especially considering that most Bluetooth adapters (according to a quick scan from Amazon) hover between $ 10 and $ 30 . Most of these alternatives are also fairly well priced – assuming these reviews are even to be trusted .
However, you might not want to buy a cheap Bluetooth adapter for your AirPods. If you pick up a lame device with mediocre audio quality, the next time you’re stuck on a six-hour airplane flight and can’t get away (or a podcast ), you’re going to be pretty uncomfortable. to pass the time.