Don't lose your cool: Apple will help you find your errant AirPods
SAN FRANCISCO — So first Apple made the iPhone 7 with no headphone jack. Gasp.
Then it made wireless headphones called AirPods. Which of course made everyone immediately panic they would lose them. Mind you, that was before they even went on sale.
The problem: These pricey ($159!), magically tiny devices have no built-in GPS connection so you can't nail down their whereabouts when they forcefully fling themselves from your ears. The penalty for replacing those little buggers: $69. Outrageous.
So this nearly Freudian fear of losing Air Pods spread throughout an anxious land in Internet memes, Facebook and Twitter rants and maybe on Snapchat. (We're not sure because those darn things disappear, too.) And iPhone owners everywhere blamed Apple and even mocked the artistry of its television commercials.
No more. It turns out Apple didn't need your helpful hints that it should create a feature to capture fugitive AirPods. It was already working on one. And soon there will be no need to lose your cool along with your headphones.
With the next iOS update, you will be able to put your grubby little hands on your misplaced AirPods by using the Find My iPhone app to locate them.
If they are within Bluetooth range of any of your iOS devices that are signed in to iCloud, they will be able to show where to look. Find My iPhone can also play a special sound on either or both AirPods to help you find them. If your AirPods are out of range or need to be recharged or if they are inside of a closed AirPod case, Find My iPhone will show the time and location where they were last connected to your iOS device.
The feature, Apple says, will be available via the Find My iPhone app with the iOS 10.3 update or from any computer at icloud.com/find.
Phew.