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Four AirPods and an iPhone: Share music with a friend in iOS 13

Apple will allow two AirPods users to listen to one iPhone with a forthcoming update, while Android users have had the equivalent ability for some time.

Ty Pendlebury Editor
Ty Pendlebury is a journalism graduate of RMIT Melbourne, and has worked at CNET since 2006. He lives in New York City where he writes about streaming and home audio.
Expertise Ty has worked for radio, print, and online publications, and has been writing about home entertainment since 2004. He majored in Cinema Studies when studying at RMIT. He is an avid record collector and streaming music enthusiast. Credentials
  • Ty was nominated for Best New Journalist at the Australian IT Journalism awards, but he has only ever won one thing. As a youth, he was awarded a free session for the photography studio at a local supermarket.
Ty Pendlebury
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Music sharing is one of the highlights of iOS 13

James Mart

Apple has unveiled the ability to connect two pairs of AirPods with a single iPhone , which will be available in iOS 13.

The updated mobile OS, including this new dual-connect feature, is expected in fall 2019, which is also when the company is expected to unveil the iPhone 11.   

Previously, users of wired headphones could buy an inexpensive headphone splitter to share audio between two or more users, but Bluetooth has traditionally only allowed single connections.

Meanwhile the ability to connect two Bluetooth devices of any type has been available on some Android phones for several years. For example, Samsung debuted Dual Audio with the Samsung Galaxy S8.

Apple has yet to confirm if multiple non-AirPod devices will also be able to connect via Bluetooth at once. Representatives for Apple did not immediately respond to CNET's request for clarification.

Follow all today's Apple news here.

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