If You Want Lossless Audio on Your AirPods Max, You’re Probably Going to Need Another Dongle

Apple is finally giving some love to the often ignored AirPods Max. Well, the $549 AirPods Max with USB-C anyway—sorry if you've got the older model with the Lightning connector. With the iOS 18.4 update that's coming in April, Apple is enabling lossless audio and ultra-low latency audio for the AirPods Max. In the words of Lifehacker Senior Tech Editor Jake Peterson, this upgrade finally makes the new AirPods Max worth buying.

Oh, but you're probably going to need a new dongle too.

Why another dongle in 2025?

Lossless audio only works when connected to an Apple device using a USB-C cable. With the update, AirPods Max users will be able to enjoy more than 100 million songs on Apple Music that are processed in 24-bit, 48 kHz lossless audio—provided the device they are listening on has a USB-C port.

Here's where that dongle comes in: Apple is now selling a $39.99 USB-C to 3.5mm audio cable that goes both ways (bidirectional). This itself isn't new; Apple also sold an equally expensive Lighting to 3.5 mm audio cable that's no longer available. But that cable did not enable lossless or low latency mode in the older AirPods Max, and the new one does.

The new dongle is designed to work with Beats Studio Pro too, and it enables ultra low-latency audio for any device that's connected. This means that finally, the AirPods Max can work with any media player that has a traditional audio-out, like a hip cassette player, turntable, or even in-flight entertainment systems.

Other uses for the dongle

The bidirectional part is also interesting: Using this cable, you can also use any old speaker as an iPhone or iPad speaker. Let's say you wanted to use your home theater's system as an iPhone output, like the good old days, well, that is now possible. If you've never been a fan of Bluetooth, or you just don't like the latency of wireless audio, Apple has just given you an official way to turn back time, and for just $40.

Speaking of latency, the AirPods Max with the USB-C cable, or the 3.5mm dongle, enable the ultra-low latency audio by default. Apple is positioning this as a win for creators, live streamers, and gamers, as low latency audio can help professionals working in Logic Pro and other professional apps. And AirPods Max can also be helpful in creating and mixing audio in Personalized Spacial Audio with head tracking.