Somewhere over the middle of the country, a very kind United Airlines flight attendant offered me a pair of plastic-wrapped wired earbuds. I smiled as politely I possibly could while waving them off, and reached into my bag for my newest travel gadget: the AirFly Pro 2.
I had packed TwelveSouth's tiny Bluetooth receiver almost as an afterthought, knowing I usually opt to use my iPhone or iPad mini 7 to stream content. But it just so happens that, moments before takeoff, the purser announced WiFi wouldn’t be available on this 5-plus-hour flight.
Groans echoed throughout the cabin, but I knew I would be all set to watch DirecTV while still enjoying the peace provided by my noise-cancelling headphones — the Sonos Ace, in case you’re curious about which of the best headphones I currently prefer.
Now, frequent flyers or travel gift purchasers may have heard of the AirFly before, but the new AirFly Pro 2 packs some important upgrades.
For one, the buttons are streamlined and easier to use, so it took just seconds to get my headphones paired. I just switched the receiver on and held down the pairing button and boom, headphones connected.
From there, I plugged the AirFly Pro 2’s 3.5mm headphone jack input into the seat back entertainment system hookup, which on this 737-900ER could be found on the armrest. And that was the last I thought about it.
The AirFly Pro 2 feels like one of those things you didn’t know you needed until you realize you don’t want to compromise using your noise-cancelling headphones for in-flight movie marathons.
The AirFly Pro 2 feels like one of those things you didn’t know you needed until you realize you don’t want to compromise using your noise-cancelling headphones for in-flight movie marathons.
For $60, you can permanently avoid the subpar sound quality in the air, as well as the annoying tangle of wires and hissy audio struggling to be heard over the engine.
There’s no lag, no weird audio delay, and no digging through menus. It’s simple enough I think my tech-adverse mom could even figure it out.
You can also now toggle the volume with the new physical buttons on the side of the device, which made it easier to adjust without dealing with the fickle seat controls or remembering which side of my headphones has the volume rocker.
It’s worth pointing out that AirFly Pro 2 was originally designed with AirPods in mind, and it’s especially great with my go-to earbuds, the AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation. But you can use any Bluetooth headphones and even two pairs of headphones at once, which is great if you want to sync movies with a travel companion.
On this Wi-Fi-less solo trip in particular, I was incredibly relieved to have AirFly Pro 2 on hand. Sure, the screen quality might’ve been lacking, but honestly I closed my eyes for most of the time and just listened. Needless to say, it has a permanent place among my travel gear going forward.
More from Tom's Guide
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
