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iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

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Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#311

Post by hu3 »

hapticmonkey wrote: post #205

I don't know much about this, but does "proximity pairing" use some open standard API that's part of the bluetooth spec? Are there any examples of other devices using something like this? Part of the appeal of Airpods is how seamless they are to pair and share between devices. The UX of bluetooth headphones pairing and device switching before Airpods came along seemed atrocious. Is this a case of Apple arbitrarily lo…

I don't know how proximity pairing works in Apple land. My wife uses Apple devices.

But between my Android phone and my contractor issued Windows laptop, the $20 headphone I use just works. It connects to both of them because of multi-pairing. If one of the devices is playing, say, a Youtube video, the other doesn't take over the sound even if I start playing music there. And if I pause the Youtube video in one device, the other is free to play sounds.

It's seamless and intuitive.

I should try also pairing to my Linux workstation. If that works too I would be impressed.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#312

Post by kmeisthax »

deaux wrote: post #232
kmeisthax wrote: post #223

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I do! I've been an Android stalwart since I first got a smartphone over a decade ago. Problem is, every year Android announces some new stupid-ass restriction or anti-feature that significantly degrades the capability of application software on the OS in the name of security. In other words, Google keeps trying to turn my Android into a shittier iPhone. It's gotten so bad that they recently floated the idea of mandat…

> Every time the EU passes a law intended to stop obviously monopolistic shit like this from happening, a certain brand of Ayn Randroid Apple fan comes out of the woodwork These companies spend billions in dollars on PR agencies and lobbying. They spend the most on lobbying the EU out of everyone. The likelihood that zero of that goes towards writing such comments in places like HN is minuscule. And then there's the…

If you're alleging that I replied to an Apple-affiliated troll farm employee, the possibility is there. But Apple is particularly unique in that it has a certain brand of customer that stuck it out during the days where System 7 was being absolutely clowned on by Windows 95 and NT. These hardcore Apple customers treat the company as if they are members of a persecuted minority religion. In other words, Apple doesn't need a troll farm, they have their fans to do it.

(Which, ironically, was also the strategy of Epic's entire Fortnite stunt...)

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#313

Post by kmeisthax »

ankit219 wrote: post #241
kmeisthax wrote: post #224

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The components are modular under the hood, they have to be. Apple just doesn't let you take advantage of it. iOS has a daemon that reads your notifications and ships them to Apple Watch. They have a daemon that scans for AirPods and gives you UI to pair them. But you as an app developer cannot do any of those things. There was no public API for notification stream access, scanning for specific Bluetooth devices, floa…

modular does not mean in terms of how the library is architected, but in terms of how many vendors/customers it needs to support. Airpods' hardware is built and then kernels are written in a way to compliment each other and get the most out of the system. With another set of headphones with a different chip, there is a very good chance that code written today would not be optimal because other builders could manufact…

> If third party headphones are given access

Third-party headphones already have access. Bluetooth audio is a standard that is well-supported both by iOS and headphones of any kind[0]. The problem is that the process for pairing a device on iOS (or, for that matter, Android) is a pain in the ass for knowledgeable users and completely untenable for everyone else.

Apple recognized that this was a problem, and made their phone detect if you were trying to pair new headphones and pop up a notification for it. But only for Apple's headphones. Which is stupid.

[0] In fact, this is why I use AirPods Pro on an Android phone.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#314

Post by llmslave2 »

nutjob2 wrote: post #300
hopelite wrote: post #285

Earlier quoted context omitted.

HN should really just do away with the down/negative voting or at the least only use it for order sorting, not “points”. The point-punishment only enables abusive and toxic people and behaviors. I for one believe every human has equal worth and right to speak whatever they want. It may not be relevant, important, smart, or even benevolent; but I still think they should be allowed to say it and even more importantly t…

> The point-punishment only enables abusive and toxic people and behaviors. Actually that's what it's fighting, people like you. > I for one believe every human... People can say what they like, that doesn't mean anyone has to listen to it. Freedom of speech also means the ability to silence speech you don't like. You don't have the right to spread hate and division on a company's website any more than pedophiles hav…

> Freedom of speech also means the ability to silence speech you don't like.

That's akin to saying the right to physical autonomy means the ability to dominate others. A completely meaningless and self-defeating argument.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#315

Post by deaux »

disgruntledphd2 wrote: post #281
deaux wrote: post #279

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're wrong in everything but a meaningless "well technically" sense. People spouting "EU regulations strangle business" nonsense are never talking about the lack of capital markets union. Let alone in a thread about "iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA". > So in fact, this is a case where the answer is more EU (specifically, a better set of cross-country capital markets). Ca…

> Can you give me a set of non-EU countries with better cross-country capital markets, that are as such now instead the place to build this? Especially for a set size bigger than 3? Serious question, as I've never heard of one and am fairly sure it doesn't exist, though I'd love to be proven wrong. This does not exist, however the EU single market is also pretty unique in terms of how many countries are involved. If…

If it does not exist, it is not a disadvantage compared to anywhere else. In a sense it's an advantage, as despite the barriers, the capital markets of two EU countries (especially if they use the Euro) are still a lot more integrated than if you'd pick two random non-EU countries. The disadvantages of being from a small EU country would apply the exact same way but even worse if you were from a small non-EU country.

Digital regulation is not a serious blocker, as any EU founder can tell you. Per above, neither are cross-country capital markets a disadvantage of the EU compared to the non-EU world. Then what is the disadvantage? Do Japanese startups have it any better? Korean? Kenyan? Serbian? Mexican? Taiwanese? Malaysian? Singaporean? Do those startups benefit from "less regulations" or from cross-country capital markets? Of course they don't, yet I've never seen a single person in my life mention those countries' regulations or lack of cross-country capital markets. Because they don't have an advantage in those areas, showing that the EU indeed doesn't actually cause any disadvantages in them.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#316

Post by deaux »

morshu9001 wrote: post #291
deaux wrote: post #279

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They're wrong in everything but a meaningless "well technically" sense. People spouting "EU regulations strangle business" nonsense are never talking about the lack of capital markets union. Let alone in a thread about "iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA". > So in fact, this is a case where the answer is more EU (specifically, a better set of cross-country capital markets). Ca…

Right, I'm not talking about capital markets, just regulations. Overall tech doesn't thrive in the EU. Their attitude probably predates EU founding too. And I'm not just saying that because of this relatively small AirPods situation (where I actually agree with EU).

Tech "not thriving" in the EU - by what standards, what does this mean? - has zero to do with EU regulations, or we'd see tech thrive much more in Japan, Korea, Kenya, Serbia, Mexico, Taiwan, Malaysia, Singapore, all those non-EU countries with supposedly less regulations and as such more thriving tech. Before you point to the chip companies that some of those countries have, those already existed 30+ years ago and aren't an example of tech "thriving" due to less regulations, it would be like pointing at ASML and Airbus to prove that in the EU it is thriving.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#317

Post by deaux »

kmeisthax wrote: post #312
deaux wrote: post #232

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Every time the EU passes a law intended to stop obviously monopolistic shit like this from happening, a certain brand of Ayn Randroid Apple fan comes out of the woodwork These companies spend billions in dollars on PR agencies and lobbying. They spend the most on lobbying the EU out of everyone. The likelihood that zero of that goes towards writing such comments in places like HN is minuscule. And then there's the…

If you're alleging that I replied to an Apple-affiliated troll farm employee, the possibility is there. But Apple is particularly unique in that it has a certain brand of customer that stuck it out during the days where System 7 was being absolutely clowned on by Windows 95 and NT. These hardcore Apple customers treat the company as if they are members of a persecuted minority religion. In other words, Apple doesn't…

I am alleging that specifically because it's always the same old dumb anti-EU narrative that they're pushing. If it was something else, then sure. Those hardcore customers you're talking about have existed similarly for other tech brands like Microsoft or Sony - or even more laughably, Intel or Nvidia - they're just less active in these spaces, and even they can't really excuse Windows 11 and its idiocy.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#318

Post by avianlyric »

ExoticPearTree wrote: post #294
avianlyric wrote: post #280

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We’re talking about a UI interface here. How exactly would you ask Apple to “license its technology” there? Apple needs tell people how to trigger that interface, and Apple needs to support 3rd parties trigging that interface. Apple could “license its technology”, but what use would that be. Having other phone manufacturers implement the same UI doesn’t change the market distorting effects of the iPhone.

Device manufacturers could pay Apple to register their devices to be recognized by the iPhone that they know how to use the advanced features it is capable of, for example. Also, device manufacturers can create apps for their devices and trigger those apps when a device is close by. I am against the idea of having a company spend resources on designing and implementing features for its devices and then being forced t…

> Device manufacturers could pay Apple to register their devices to be recognized by the iPhone that they know how to use the advanced features it is capable of, for example.

Maybe if Apple actually offered that at a reasonable price, and to be clear they have never offered this at any price, the EU wouldn’t have felt compelled to act. AirPods have been around for a decade now, the DSA has been in the works for five years. So it’s not like Apple hasn’t had time to act. They chose to do nothing, so now the EU is removing their right to choose.

> Also, device manufacturers can create apps for their devices and trigger those apps when a device is close by.

This would require support from Apple, which notably, it doesn’t provide.

> I am against the idea of having a company spend resources on designing and implementing features for its devices and then being forced to give them away for free.

We’re talking about Apple here, one of the richest companies on the planet. I think it can survive. The DSA only applies to companies that achieve gatekeeper status, which basically means they’re an effective monopoly in a market that many people are forced to participate in (in this case smartphones). It’s a heck of bar to cross, and something that only been achieved by unbelievably profitable companies.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#319

Post by nutjob2 »

llmslave2 wrote: post #314
nutjob2 wrote: post #300

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The point-punishment only enables abusive and toxic people and behaviors. Actually that's what it's fighting, people like you. > I for one believe every human... People can say what they like, that doesn't mean anyone has to listen to it. Freedom of speech also means the ability to silence speech you don't like. You don't have the right to spread hate and division on a company's website any more than pedophiles hav…

> Freedom of speech also means the ability to silence speech you don't like. That's akin to saying the right to physical autonomy means the ability to dominate others. A completely meaningless and self-defeating argument.

It's akin to physical autonomy meaning you can't trespass.

> A completely meaningless and self-defeating argument.

Your example is literally true: in Texas you have the right to kill someone entering your home without permission.

So far from being "meaningless and self-defeating", it's reality.

Just like you can't walk on my property without my permission, you can't speak on my property without my permission, including my website. I decide who speaks and who doesn't there.

It's not hard to understand for most people.

Re: iOS 26.3 brings AirPods-like pairing to third-party devices in EU under DMA

#320

Post by [deleted] »

reorder9695 wrote: post #275
DANmode wrote: post #259

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why they need to be forced to, you mean? I'm not seeing an incentive structure for them to change being the only source of good workflows for their users - it's their whole thing "It just works" - regardless of if it's true in practice or not.

If you want the "it just works" experience, you can still buy the Apple products though, that's not changing. You just also have the option to not do so.

[deleted]
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