The wireless Apple Airpods, otherwise known as the "I have a new iPhone please rob me" earphones, are rumoured to be getting a wireless charging upgrade sometime in 2019 and an "all-new design" sometime in 2020. AppleInsider, citing the predictions of apple analyst/earphone oracle Ming-Chi Kuo, report that Apple will release new upgrades to the earbuds in the first quarter of 2019. Aside from "wireless charging support," this will mean a possible upgrade to Bluetooth 5.0 and likely more compatibility with other Apple products. There is no word on whether or not the Airpower Mat will be involved with this "wireless charging support," although it would make a lot of sense if it were.
What the good people at Apple (and those who speculate on them) have not mentioned is a technological breakthrough that would solve the problem of losing headphones that aren't attached to wires. Although I don't know what the expected inclusion of a "W-series chip" in the earbuds means, let's hope that it allows them to be called back to you like a dog or the remote controlled sports cars in so many spy movies.
While we await the new, intelligent, wirelessly chargeable earphones, let's look back at where it all started, with those iconic wired earbuds:
