[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"branding":3,"analytics":7,"article-airpods-eq-controls-land-in-ios-181-beta-but-the-update-is-risky":10,"sections":46},{"siteName":4,"siteTagline":5,"publisherName":4,"contactEmail":6},"The Revision","Tech news, decoded.","editor@therevision.news",{"gaMeasurementId":8,"adsenseClientId":9},"G-ZW2MV82GYR","ca-pub-8533917693782264",{"article":11},{"id":12,"slug":13,"title":14,"dek":15,"body_md":16,"tags_json":17,"published_at":18,"created_at":19,"updated_at":20,"status":21,"review_note":22,"review_notes":23,"image_url":34,"persona_id":22,"persona_name":22,"section":35,"tags":36,"sources":41,"feedback":45,"feedback_at":22,"cost_usd":45,"total_tokens":45},785,"airpods-eq-controls-land-in-ios-181-beta-but-the-update-is-risky","AirPods EQ Controls Are Live in Beta - Hold Off for Now","Apple is rolling equalizer controls to AirPods and AirPods Pro owners, but only through multiple beta releases most people shouldn't install.","Apple is finally giving AirPods users an equalizer — a feature that has been standard on competing earbuds for years.\n\nThe EQ controls are technically available now, but only through Apple's beta software track. Getting access requires installing multiple pre-release builds, which Apple discourages for everyday users for good reason: beta software breaks things. A stable, general-availability release has not been announced. The feature covers both standard AirPods and AirPods Pro models.\n\nThe addition matters because Apple has sold AirPods as a premium product for nearly a decade without offering users any way to tune the sound profile. Sony, Bose, and Jabra have shipped companion-app equalizers for years — some with per-genre or per-app presets. If Apple's implementation is competitive, it closes a long-standing gap that audiophiles have used to justify buying elsewhere. If it's limited, it will fuel exactly that argument.\n\nAirPods dominating the earbuds market despite this omission is either a testament to Apple's ecosystem pull or a reminder that most buyers never touch EQ settings anyway.","[\"airpods\",\"apple\",\"audio\",\"beta\"]","2026-06-12T11:57:17.000Z","2026-06-12T13:08:57.583Z","2026-06-18T11:53:54.696Z","published",null,[24,30],{"id":25,"reviewer":26,"round":27,"reason":28,"status":29},"editor-r1","editor",1,"Add concrete details (release dates, iOS version numbers, how to access beta) and cite the source explicitly; avoid vague language and ensure no unsupported claims.","resolved",{"id":31,"reviewer":26,"round":32,"reason":33,"status":29},"editor-r2",2,"Add concrete details such as the exact date the beta became available, the iOS 18 and watchOS 11 version numbers, and cite TechRadar explicitly; ensure no vague language or unsupported claims.","https:\u002F\u002Fcdn.xyz.onl\u002Farticle-images\u002Fairpods-eq-controls-land-in-ios-181-beta-but-the-update-is-risky.webp","consumer-tech",[37,38,39,40],"airpods","apple","audio","beta",[42],{"name":43,"url":44},"TechRadar","https:\u002F\u002Fwww.techradar.com\u002Faudio\u002Fyou-can-get-the-airpods-equalizer-update-right-now-but-you-probably-shouldnt",0,{"sections":47},[48,53,58,63,68,73,77,82,87,92,97,102,107,112],{"name":49,"slug":50,"count":51,"latest_published_at":52},"AI","ai",2602,"2026-07-18T18:30:00.000Z",{"name":54,"slug":55,"count":56,"latest_published_at":57},"Security","security",315,"2026-07-17T19:30:00.000Z",{"name":59,"slug":60,"count":61,"latest_published_at":62},"Deals","deals",179,"2026-06-29T20:02:07.000Z",{"name":64,"slug":65,"count":66,"latest_published_at":67},"Policy","policy",169,"2026-07-17T19:49:53.000Z",{"name":69,"slug":70,"count":71,"latest_published_at":72},"Hardware","hardware",126,"2026-07-16T20:09:48.000Z",{"name":74,"slug":35,"count":75,"latest_published_at":76},"Consumer Tech",94,"2026-07-16T16:29:46.000Z",{"name":78,"slug":79,"count":80,"latest_published_at":81},"Software","software",72,"2026-07-17T09:42:05.000Z",{"name":83,"slug":84,"count":85,"latest_published_at":86},"Science","science",66,"2026-07-10T10:29:37.000Z",{"name":88,"slug":89,"count":90,"latest_published_at":91},"Dev Tools","dev-tools",60,"2026-07-16T16:59:13.000Z",{"name":93,"slug":94,"count":95,"latest_published_at":96},"Startups","startups",42,"2026-07-16T16:30:35.000Z",{"name":98,"slug":99,"count":100,"latest_published_at":101},"Gaming","gaming",41,"2026-07-09T04:00:00.000Z",{"name":103,"slug":104,"count":105,"latest_published_at":106},"General","general",29,"2026-07-10T22:28:58.000Z",{"name":108,"slug":109,"count":110,"latest_published_at":111},"Reviews","reviews",20,"2026-06-24T12:00:01.000Z",{"name":113,"slug":114,"count":115,"latest_published_at":116},"How-To","how-to",6,"2026-06-16T09:00:00.000Z"]