New AirPods features

I haven’t had a lot of luck with my AirPods Pro lately.

I have three sets, all in various states of disrepair.

Three sets, you say? Isn’t that excessive?

Yes, I readily admit this is indeed a bit excessive, but hear me out. My original AirPods Pro are the first-generation model, and won’t support the Hearing Aid feature, which I was keen to test out.

But then with the second-gen pair I bought, one of the earbuds went on the fritz and played very scratchy and distorted audio.

So I bought a new pair cheap from Costco on impulse, and ordered a single earbud from an online service that sells individual replacements for a lot less than Apple does.

But somehow, I managed to mix up the buds so none of them work!

My iPhone tells me I’m trying to simultaneously use first-generation and second-generation AirPods Pro 2 in a pair, which isn’t supported.

I tried swapping them to fix it, but can’t find the right combination — and it’s driving me mad!!!

The whole process is a rigmarole of resetting the earbuds and case, and trying again. And none of the combinations work!

They’re all on their last legs anyway. They’re heavily cracked from multiple falls when riding my bicycle. And more often than not, they don’t charge properly. However, I hate throwing out old electronics and I’m determined to make them work — despite the hours of frustrating pissing about.

If I ever do get them working again, I’m really looking forward to a couple of the new features heading their way in iOS 26. I’m especially excited about manual firmware updates!

Also in today’s newsletter:

• Apple is rumored to be prototyping a large folding display that might turn out to be a touchscreen Mac or a super-size folding iPad. Our resident iPad expert Ed Hardy reads the tea leaves and is convinced all signs point to the latter.

• OpenAI over the weekend pulled all details of its blockbuster deal with Jony Ive, throwing the whole thing into doubt. Here’s what’s going on. Also, check out the X post below with some very interesting details of a lawsuit against the pair.

• If you have a Mac and a PC, this inexpensive bundle includes some really handy apps, especially for using your iPhone with your Windows machine.

• EarFun’s new Clip earbuds bring premium sound to an open-ear design at a very modest price. See our hands-on review.

• Today’s the day in Apple history that saw the release of the gorgeous Power Mac G5 — a truly awesome-looking machine that looked as good on the inside as it did on the outside.

— Leander Kahney, EIC.

^{A message from the Cult of Mac Deals team}

^{A message from the Cult of Mac Deals team}

Tweets of the day

Wallpaper of the day

One more thing ...

Today’s poll

Results from last Friday’s poll: Favorite headphone brand?

Best reader comments

Subscribe to The Weekender — Get the week's best Apple news, reviews and how-tos from Cult of Mac, every Saturday morning. Our readers say: "Thank you guys for always posting cool stuff" -- Vaughn Nevins. "Very informative" -- Kenly Xavier.