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In today’s gaming world, multi-platform titles are becoming the standard. Some players are now using Boosteroid to stream PlayStation exclusives on Xbox consoles. Only purchased PC ports are compatible with the cloud gaming service.
PS5 logo shown on Xbox using Boosteroid cloud gaming (Image source: Xbox Wire, Sony PlayStation)
Microsoft loyalists may feel betrayed as more Xbox titles becomeplayable on the PS5. However, some gamers are gaining revenge by playing former PlayStation exclusives on Xbox consoles. TheBoosteroidcloud gaming service allows streaming select PlayStation games in the Edge browser. Of course, there are caveats, like needing to own a PC port of any PS4 or PS5 title.
Just asXbox Gaming has gone cross-platform, Sony has increased its presence on PCs. Titles, includingGod of War Ragnarok,Last of Us Part 1, andHelldivers 2, are available on Steam or the Epic Games Store. Still, Sony has tried to prevent any cloud gaming service from streaming these titles on Xbox consoles.Nvidia GeForce Nowhas an Xbox app, but the service doesn’t offer PlayStation exclusives.
God of War Ragnarok playing on Xbox console (Image source: screenshot, Console Gaming subreddit)
Instead of an app, Boosteroid relies on the Edge browser, accessible on Xbox consoles. Gamers must subscribe to the service for $7-$10 monthly and own the PlayStation game on Steam or another compatible marketplace. With a fast enough internet connection, gamers can play titles likeGod of War Ragnarokin 4K and up to 120 fps. Some gamers have postedsuccess stories on Reddit, reporting reasonable latency.
Critics may argue that using Boosteroid on an Xbox isn’t that appealing. Gamers still need to buy a PlayStation exclusive on PCs and a monthly subscription, so they aren’t saving much in costs. Also, the selection of compatible titles doesn’t include console-only games likeGran Turismo 7. Nevertheless, for cloud gaming supporters, it bypasses the need for a powerful gaming PC.
Considering the GeForce Now restrictions, the above workaround may not work much longer. Until then, the Xbox Series X|S has unexpectedly become more versatile.
Fresh round of emails encourages upgrades to Windows 11, but I’m not happy with the way some of this messaging is angled
Image Credit: Microsoft(Image credit: Microsoft)
Microsoft is sending out emails to push people to upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11
While on the face of it, that seems a useful move to help some users, Microsoft’s angling of the email is far from ideal
It also runs the risk of making Windows 10 users feel spammed, particularly as they’re still getting nudged numerous times within the OS itself
Microsoftis once again trying to persuadeWindows 10users that they need toupgrade to Windows 11, ahead of the impending cessation of support for the older operating system later this year.
This time, though, the nudge to upgrade isn’t being delivered within Windows 10 itself, but via email – although it isn’t the first time Microsoft has tried this approach.
I received an email from Microsoft (sent to the email address linked to my Microsoft account) regarding my Windows 10 PC needing an upgrade at the end of November 2024, a few months back, but now the software giant is sending out fresh messages to upgrade this month.
I didn’t get this latest mail (not yet, anyway), butWindows Latestdid, and although it carries the same title, a warning that ‘End of support for Windows 10 is approaching,’ the email itself is somewhat different.
The overall thrust of the content is similar though. There’s a prominent reminder of the exact date that Microsoft halts support for Windows 10 – which happens on October 14, 2025 – and some suggestions of what to do with your old PC (trade it in, or recycle the machine). You can also click a link to check your upgrade eligibility forWindows 11.
Microsoft also clarifies that your PC will continue to work, it’s just that there will be no more support – as in software updates – piped through. There’s also a link to some blurb on how Windows 11 is more secure (which is certainly true), and a nudge to use OneDrive to back up your files if you plan to use Windows 10 after the deadline has passed, heading into 2026.
Analysis: Overstepping boundaries and taking some odd angles
There are a couple of things that strike me as odd here. Firstly, the plug for OneDrive feels very gratuitous, and hardly a solution to counter the prospect of having your PC compromised by running an out-of-date OS. Where on earth is the stern warning that it really isn’t a good idea to run Windows 10 on your PC when support for theoperating systemexpires?
As you may be aware, without security updates, your computer will be left vulnerable to exploits, as when holes appear in Windows 10, they will no longer be patched up – a recipe for disaster, potentially.
Of course, if you really want to stick with Windows 10, then for the first time ever, consumers can pay to extend support, and I’d recommend you do so. Oddly enough, Microsoft doesn’t mention this extension of support in its email.
I say it’s odd, but then, Microsoft would really prefer you upgrade to Windows 11 anyway, either on your current PC – if it’s eligible – or by purchasing a new Windows 11 computer. And to that end, there’s a link in the email to ‘explore new computers’ which is something Microsoft has been urging us to do for a while now.As I’ve discussed before, there’s arguably merit to the suggestion in some ways, but a whole lot of other concerns outweighing that around the environmental toll that aton of Windows 10 PCs ending up on the scrapheapmight usher in.
These are serious worries, and likely why Microsoft is sending the other message in this email advising on recycling (or trading in) your old Windows 10 PC if you do upgrade.
The other point here is do you want to be getting emails direct from Microsoft about Windows 10 upgrades? Well, in some ways, I guess it’s better (or at least slightly less annoying) than being pushed to upgrade within the operating system itself, but the problem is,Microsoft is doing that as well– so Windows 10 users are getting both barrels, as it were. Sigh…
We can likely expect several further barrages of these kind of emails as 2025 progresses, and the October support deadline draws nearer – messages that folks may well be wanting their spam filter to deal with, frankly.
Don’t get me wrong here: I’m not saying it isn’t important to warn consumers about the dangers of an out-of-date operating system – it definitely is – but Microsoft is rather overstepping with its broad approach here, and worse still, this particular email actually undersells those dangers (while overselling other Microsoft products).
A German retailer and a UAE classifieds site have listed the Pixel 9a for sale
Specs and images were also included
These listings suggest the phone will be launching imminently
TheGoogle Pixel 9amust be one of the most heavily leaked phones in recent memory, as along with leaked specs and images we recently saw detailedhands-on Pixel 9a videos– and now the phone has popped up for sale in two different places.
As spotted byGSMArena, the phone was listed on a now-removed page on the website of German retailerTechnomarkt. The listing included pictures, a starting price of 549 euros (roughly $600 / £460 / AU$940), and a fairly detailed specs list.
According to the listing, theGooglePixel 9a will come in Gray, Rose, Black, and Violet shades, will have Gorilla Glass 3 protection, and will have either 128GB or 256GB of storage.
It apparently has a 6.3-inch FHD+OLEDscreen with a 120Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2,700 nits, and it’s said to have a Tensor G4 chipset like the rest of thePixel 9line, 8GB of RAM, a 5,100mAh battery, a 48MP main camera, and a 13MP ultra-wide camera, all of which are details we’ve heard before.
(Image credit: Dubizzle)
The other listing is less revealing, and takes the form ofa classifieds postin the UAE. This then isn’t an official store; rather it’s an individual who’s selling a Pixel 9a for AED 2,350 (around $640 / £490 / AU$1,000), but the listing does include pictures of the box.
The fact that both of these listings exist suggests the Google Pixel 9a will launch very soon. Indeed, the German listing stated that the phone would be delivered in around 10-14 days.
We don’t know for sure when the Pixel 9a will be announced, but leaks suggestwe could see it as soon as tomorrow(March 19), in which case we should know all the official details soon – although with the Pixel 9a having been so extensively leaked, we don’t expect to learn much that we haven’t already heard.
HP wants to make its AI laptop names more informative
(Image credit: HP)
HP has debuted a number of new AI laptops at Amplify 2025
The company has followed Dell’s lead with AI-driven rebranding across its laptop lineup
800 and 600 series become EliteBook 8 and 6, while 400 series is now ProBook 4
HPhas launched a range of new AI laptops at its Amplify 2025 event with a host of new brand names.
The company’s 800 Series is now EliteBook 8, and the 600 Series is now EliteBook 6 (both systems come in 13, 14, and 16-inch sizes).
The 400 Series is now ProBook 4 (in 14 and 16-inch sizes). ZBook Firefly is now the ZBook 8 G1i (Intel) and G1a (AMD), ZBook Power is now the ZBook X G1i, Elite Mini/SFF/Tower is now EliteDesk and Elite AiO is now EliteStudio. Clear?
At the start of the year,Delldecided that the arrival of the AI era meant it was time for a fresh start, and in debuting a new Pro range of laptops, it waved goodbye to the belovedLatitudebrand, which was first introduced back in 1994.
The ax swinging didn’t end there, though. The company also debuted a new Pro Max mobile workstation family, which replaced the 32-year-oldPrecisionbrand. Intel, which finallyhas a new CEO, has also beenplaying the name game recentlyto try to make things clearer for customers.
While HP’s rebranding isn’t anywhere near as major as Dell’s (it’s also worth noting that more people will be familiar with Dell’sLatitudeandPrecisionbrands than any of HP’s brands), it’s still another big change for consumers to get their heads around. At least it’s straightforward enough.
If you want an EliteBook 8 G1 Series laptop, you can differentiate between the models by size (13, 14, 16), processor (G1i for Intel or G1a for AMD), and Next Gen and regular AI models (which offer different TOPS). Once you know what’s what, you can quickly spot the difference between the HP EliteBook 8 G1a 13” Next Gen AI PC and the HP EliteBook 8 G1i 16” AI PC.
Is the rebranding totally necessary? That’s a matter of debate.
“We take a very traditional and pragmatic approach,” Tom Butler, Lenovo’s executive director of commercial portfolio and product management, recently told.
“There is a series name for our ThinkPad products, like T series, L series or E series, with screen sizes in the product name for clarity – T14, T16 and so on. In order to keep it logical and help people keep track, we also put a generational name after. At the moment, we are not making any changes in our direction. Lenovo has solid brand equity, as do our sub-brands like ThinkPad, ThinkBook or Lenovo Yoga for consumers.”
Microsoft’s latest Patch Tuesday update is an important one, patching 57 security vulnerabilities (including seven zero-day flaws). It’s an update I’d encourage all Windows users to install as soon as possible, especially as those zero-day vulnerabilities pose a serious security risk to anyone using a PC.
As it happens, this update comes with an extra patch that Microsoft didn’t initially disclose, or, for that matter, intend:removing Copilot from Windows.
Some users, after installingKB5053598(Windows 11) orKB5053606(Windows 10) on their PCs, will notice the update not only unpinned Copilot from the taskbar, but uninstalled the Copilot app as well. Microsoft hasn’t disclosed why this issue is present in the latest Windows updates, but says it hasn’t seen the bug in theMicrosoft 365 Copilot app, the version of Copilot directly integrated into Microsoft’s office suite.
The company says it is working on a new update to fix the problem, and, presumably, restore Copilot access to affected Windows users. If you’re missing Copilot and want it back before Microsoft issues a new update, you canreinstall the app from the Microsoft Storeand pin it back to your taskbar yourself.
However, it’s possible youdon’twant to reinstall Copilot. After all, there are a number of users out there who aresearching for ways to disable Copilot, and there are eventools out there that help you remove it from Windows. Perhaps Microsoft actually did you a favor here. There is an irony to the situation, that the company pushing its AI tools so hard—whether you want them or not—just removed them on your behalf as part of a softwarepatch.
That’s not to say Copilot is useless: There are a number of potential benefits the AI tool offers Windows users (and, now, even Mac users). But if you haven’t found any benefits to these tools in your work or personal life in the two-and-a-half years since ChatGPT launched this generative AI revolution, you might be content with Microsoft’s inadvertent decision to remove its flagship assistant.
Google’s Find My is nearly a year old, but it has been quickly gaining new features in that short time.
Now, the ability to track friends and family via the Find My app is starting to roll out to Android users, which Googleannouncedin early March for Pixel phones. Other Android devices will get to use it in the future.
google
As with most Google features, it didn’t immediately land on Android devices and instead was rolled out over the last few weeks.
The Find My app now has two categories at the bottom of the screen labeled “Devices” and “People” (still in beta, apparently).
Tap on the people tab to see a map and a button called “+ New Share.” The map will show you the live locations of people who are sharing with you. The New Share button lets you send your location for various times including one hour, today only, a custom duration, or until you turn it off.
You can share your location via a link or select individuals to send your area, including Apple device owners.
This option already works similarly in theGoogle Mapsapp, and from what we can tell, Google isn’t removing that feature from the Maps app.
If you didn’t know this existed in Google Maps, you can find it by clicking your profile icon in Maps. It should be the fourth option down called “Location Sharing.”
Like the new People tab in the Find My app, you can share your location for selected times. The interface looks the same across the two apps once you click on location sharing.
People you share your location with in Google Maps can always find your Name and photo, the device’s recent location even when Google apps aren’t being used, the device’s battery power and if it’s charging and arrival and departure time if they add a Location Sharing notification.
Google
I think the sharing is easier to do in the Find My app and faster than through Google apps. Plus, it’s combined with the device search, which makes sense to be in the same place on your phone.
That said, using the feature asked me to turn off the power-saving mode. It’ll take some testing, but we’ll need to watch how power-hungry the mode is, especially on older devices.
Tracking your Android devices is more manageable if you haven’t used the Find My network. Google offers the Find My Device feature but requires a network connection and a turned-on device.
The newer Find My network accesses a network of Android devices andBluetoothto track phones, tablets or earbuds that may not be connected to a network.
Cloud hosting provides scalability, redundancy, and can be more cost effective
Image credit: Pixabay (Image credit: Pixabay)
Cloud hostingis more than just a marketing term thrown around. It’s a type of hosting that provides scalability, redundancy, and can be more cost effective for the right users. Unfortunately, the phrase cloud has been overly used and misrepresented so understanding what it is and what benefits it has is not the easiest thing to unpack. I’ve written this explainer to help you understand what cloud really is and whether you need it. This can help you pick thebest web hostingfor you.
What is cloud hosting?
To understand cloud hosting, we first need to understand traditional hosting. In traditional web hosting you rent a server that contains resources. Resources are the things your website needs to run. The three main resources are CPU, RAM, and storage.
You either share these resources throughshared hosting. Share them virtually through through VPS hosting or, don’t share them at all with dedicated hosting. The main characteristic here is that this is one physical server with a direct link between the website and the resources in the server.
With cloud hosting the resources don’t belong to individual servers. Instead the resources exist in a pool and websites can use what they need when they need it.
You can think of shared hosting like sitting around a table with a bowl of food in the middle. You don’t have your own plate everyone just grabs from what’s available. If there is a greedy eater at the table. You’re going to get less, and you might end up hungry.
VPS hostingis the same scenario but you have your own plate. At the beginning of the meal everyone takes what they want and puts it on their plate. This is much better because greedy eaters won’t take food from you and you always know how much food you have.
Dedicatedis the same scenario but you’re sitting at the table by yourself. Great if you have a big appetite but can be very wasteful.
Cloud is different. Instead of food being served in the middle of the table and people taking what they want at the beginning or free-for-all style cloud is like having your own waiter. Ask for something on the menu whenever you want it and the waiter will bring it immediately.
The main benefit of cloud hosting is scalability. By this I mean that you can add and remove resources for your site at the click of a button or automatically. The resources in cloud hosting are not attached to one server so you can pull resources from the entire network.
With traditional hosting you would need to physically add or remove a CPU, RAM, or storage when you needed it which takes time, is risky, and can result in downtime.
Redundancy is another word for duplication. In cloud hosting your site and backups can be duplicated and stored in many different locations (called geo-redundancy). So if the storage fails, no problem, it’s already ready to be used in a different location. If a disaster happens that causes the power to be cut off from a datacenter or a datacenter is destroyed entirely. No problem! Your site was never offline because there was another copy in another datacenter.
Cost-effectiveness
It seems counter-intuitive that a type of hosting that has additional features can be more cost effective but it can. At scale, it’s cheaper to use cloud resources for redundancy and scalability because you don’t need to own and maintain additional equipment. The cost effectiveness is only there at scale though. Unless you will benefit from scalability and redundancy, there is no need to pay extra for cloud.
Who needs cloud hosting?
If your website doesn’t need many resources and doesn’t see big fluctuations in traffic like a blog or portfolio, shared hosting is absolutely fine. It’s the cheapest type of hosting if you’re not very technical and you won’t suffer any of the negative aspects of shared hosting.
If you need to guarantee resources for your site and you know the resource requirements are the same every month, then using a VPS is a better choice than shared hosting. So, thebest VPS hostingis a good option for established sites that get frequent regular visitors that don’t need the benefits of redundancy.
Dedicated is for when you need additional security requirements and/or have a website or websites that demand a lot of resources. Dedicated hosting is not that popular anymore and is generally being replaced with cloud hosting because it provides all the benefits of dedicated hosting but cheaper and also has some additional bonusses. Unless you’re dealing with highly sensitive information or your business needs are super high like a web developer managing multiple sites and applications, there isn’t much need to think about dedicated hosting.
You can benefit from cloud hosting in the following scenarios
New businesses
When starting a new business the last thing you want to be dealing with is hosting issues. You also wont know for sure how many resources you need until you start getting site visits and then, what happens if you get more than expected? Opting for cloud hosting at the beginning can save you hassle and money in the long run. Once you have established what the regular visits to your site are and what resources they require you can try a VPS server to save money;
Online stores
Servers for online stores are doing a lot more heavy lifting than servers for blogs and portfolios due to larger databases, unique users, shopping carts, and taking payments. When a site is the main revenue source it’s also a lot more important to make sure it’s online all the time. Online stores also get higher fluctuations in traffic from things like promotions or festivals.
Cloud hosting helps alleviate these pressures on servers to ensure that an online store is always ready to go and always has the best user experience.
There are plenty of studies that show that slow sites lose revenue so spending more on cloud hosting can pay for itself in additional sales and higher ranking in searches.
Types of cloud hosting
You might see cloud hosting packaged in many different forms. Some is just fancy marketing. Some is genuine. To help you navigate the market I’ve broken down some of the key cloud packages.
It seems odd to say shared cloud because it’s technically not shared in the traditional sense and in another sense all cloud is shared. So, what is shared cloud?
Shared cloud is essentially a virtual server with many websites sharing that virtual server. It’s the same as the example I gave earlier of people eating at a table from a central pot in the middle. An amount of cloud resources are allocated to that space and the websites have to share whats there.
Many hosting companies now are based on cloud infrastructure and sell shared hosting this way, Some still call it shared, some call it shared cloud.
If shared servers are managed properly then from a users perspective it’s essentially the same. If a hosting company is charging more because their shared is cloud, check what cloud benefits the plan has. Are there offs-site backups? If not, then it’s not worth the extra price tag.
Cloud VPS
Cloud VPS is the same as above. A virtual environment is created and resources are reserved for it. This is the most common form of cloud hosting and usually comes with all the benefits of cloud like geo-redundancy and scalability. This is the most suitable type of hosting for online stores and growing businesses, or sites that require a custom server environment.
Cloud hosting round up
To summarise, cloud hosting is a type of infrastructure on which hosting plans can be created and managed. Cloud hosting adopts traditional hosting methodology but brings with it scalability and redundancy that traditional hosting cannot provide.
Cloud hosting is excellent for websites that have large fluctuations in site visits, new businesses that don’t know what their baseline requirements are, and for online stores that depend on excellent user experience and being always online.
If you love taking macro photos and are considering the purchase of a Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra or iPhone 16 Pro Max, you’ve come to the right place.
I used both of these phone to take over 200 macro photos and then selected several comparisons for this face-off to determine a winner.
We’ve looked at the Galaxy S25 Ultra and iPhone 16 Pro Max’s camera performance in a number of ways already, but macro photography is a special case. Most phones, including these two, don’t have dedicated macro cameras, instead relying on their ultrawide cameras and some software trickery to deal with the unique needs of this photographic technique.
Samsung and Apple both using similarly-specced ultrawide cameras for their flagship phones. The Galaxy S25 Ultra has a slightly higher resolution (50MP) compared to the iPhone 16 Pro Max (48MP), and a larger aperture (f/1.9 vs. f/2.2), but nonetheless this is a close match-up on paper.
So how about real-life performance? Join me for this Galaxy S25 Ultra vs. iPhone 16 Pro Max macro shootout to see which phone delivers the biggest results when it comes to small details.
Our first pair of photos is of a bench in Hyde Park, featuring some carved letting. At this distance, the Galaxy S25 Ultra shows far more detail of the woodgrain and tiny moss growths within this letter “F.”
The iPhone has produced a warmer-colored picture, which is less accurate but still looks good overall. If it could bring out the darkest parts of the image like the Galaxy, we’d have a draw, but this is Samsung’s round.
Next up is the toppings of a caramel donut, with layers of icing and little honeycomb pieces. Despite the overall color palette of this subject, the iPhone’s photo is still way too yellow here.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy’s shot is clearer and more accurately colored. And to the sharp-eyed among you — yes, I did notice the loose strand of thread and removed it before I ate the donut.
I took this next pair of photos of a yellow flower at two different distances to see how our contenders cope with shifting distances.
Starting out at the farther of our two distances, the iPhone immediately stands out for its brightness, helping more of the details shine through. There’s still good detail and contrast in the Galaxy’s shot, but not as much light to properly view them.
At a closer distance, the two phones have produced shots of a similar brightness. But the Galaxy image is much sharper, with the iPhone struggling to focus this close to its subject.
Moving back indoors, we have this shot of the blade of a cupboard key. The Samsung’s photo is sharper and brighter, with better dynamic range.
But the iPhone has a small advantage of its own in being able to focus at this distance from further away, hence why it doesn’t cast as much of a shadow in the image.
The different focal point that proved the iPhone’s downfall in the last comparison has helped it out in this instance.
As a coffee nerd, I had to try out these cameras with a photo of some great latte art on a cappuccino.
I like how the iPhone version of this shot shows off the light reflecting off the tiny bubbles much more clearly, while still keeping the rest of the shot balanced properly.
The Galaxy image is maybe a tad too bright, spoiling the lovely brown of the milky coffee.
Finally, I took a look at my favorite scarf (likely the source of the loose strand that landed on the donut earlier) through the lens of these two phones.
It’s another round where the iPhone’s color temperature is a little off, but detail-wise both phones have done well, albeit with slightly different focus areas.
Winner:Draw
Verdict
After this close call of close-up photo performance, the Galaxy S25 Ultra has scored a win.
The iPhone 16 Pro Max takes some great looking macro photos, and it won the flower rounds and the latte round.. But the hardware/software combination that the Galaxy S25 Ultra uses makes for more consistent macro shots, especially in terms of color.
PlayStation and Santa Monica Studios are celebrating the 20th anniversary of God of War by releasing a new free DLC for all Ragnarok players.
TL;DR: The God of War franchise celebrates its 20th anniversary with a new DLC for God of War Ragnarok, the Dark Odyssey Collection, releasing on March 20. This free DLC includes new appearances and armor for Kratos, Atreus, and Freya, as well as weapon and shield enhancements. The God of War franchise is about to turn 20-years old and in celebration of one of the most popular PlayStation franchises a new DLC is being released for God of War Ragnarok.
The first God of War game was released in 2005, and since then the franchise has gone through some major changes, with the most prominent being in 2018 when the game was rebooted. Notably, Santa Monica Studio game director Cory Barlog explained during the Raising Kratos behind the scenes that the chopping of the tree at the start of God of War 2018 was symbolic of the old franchise coming to an end and a new one beginning. Boy, was that a good decision, as God of War 2018 went on to win Game of the Year and breathe new life into the franchise.
The follow-up title released in 2022, God of War Ragnarok, while it didn’t win Game of the Year, was still met with praise by fans, and won Best Narrative, Best Action/Adventure, losing Game of the Year to Elden Ring. Now, in celebration of how far the God of War franchise has come, PlayStation has announced a new DLC for Ragnarok – the Dark Odyssey Collection. The new DLC will be released on March 20 and will be free for all players that own a copy of God of War Ragnarok.
Apple’s Audio Sharing feature lets you share with a friend what you’re listening to on your Apple AirPods or select Beats headphones.
Apple has made it so you no longer need to share headphones to share music. With the Audio Sharing feature that debuted in iOS 13.1 and iPadOS 13.1, audio from a single iPhone or iPad can be sent to two separate pairs ofheadphones. While Apple has made the feature easy to use, there are still a few details to note. Most importantly, Audio Sharing does not work with every device or pair of headphones. Here’s what you need to know about wirelessly sharing audio on iPhone and iPad.
How to Get Audio Sharing
Before you can share your audio, you’ll need to meet certain requirements. Your iPhone must be running iOS 13.1 or higher, and your iPad should have iPadOS 13.1 or higher. To check, openSettings > General > Software Update, where you’ll be prompted to update your device or told it’s running the latest version. Even if you’re running the correct OS, the device you own may still be incompatible with Audio Sharing. To take advantage of the feature, both people must own one of these devices:
iPhone 8 or later
iPad Pro 12.9-inch (2nd Gen), 11-inch, or 10.5-inch or later
Not every pair ofwireless headphonesare compatible with Apple’s Audio Sharing feature, either. To share your audio, both parties must be using a pair that contain Apple’s H1, H2, or W1 processor, which gives youa few options:
You can share your audio with another person through their charging case. While their headphones are in use, open their charging case and leave it near your device. Your device should open a Share Audio prompt, then just follow the directions on the screen. This will involve holding down the button on the charging case until their headphones are linked to your device.
(Credit: Apple)
You can also share audio from the Now Playing screen, Lock Screen, orControl Center. Tap theAirPlayicon and select theShare Audiobutton underneath the graphic showing your headphones. Place both devices next to each other and tapShare Audiowhen it appears on your screen. Your friend must then tapJoinon their device to complete the connection.
If your friend is using Beats headphones, the process is slightly different. With their headphones already connected, have them quickly press the power button and keep your device close by. This should cause the Share Audio button to appear on your screen, allowing you to connect.
(Credit: Apple)
Control Audio While Sharing
Audio volume for both sets of headphones can be controlled from theLock Screen, Control Center, or with the volume buttons on the side of the sharing device. By long-pressing the volume slider on the screen, you can control the volume of each set of headphones independently. Volume can also be controlled from the headphones themselves. AirPods that support noise-cancelling can use different noise control modes for each listener.
When you’re ready to stop sharing audio, tap theAirPlayicon in Control Center or on the Lock Screen to view the headphones that are currently connected. Tap the checkmark next to a pair of headphones to stop sharing audio.
