Are your AirPods batteries worn out? Podswap will send you refurbs for $70.

AirPods with Wireless Charging Case and iPhone in the background
AirPods with Wireless Charging Case and iPhone in the background (Image credit: Joseph Keller/iMore)

What you need to know

  • Apple's AirPods batteries don't last forever, but one company is offering a cheaper way to fix that than buying new earbuds.
  • Podswap will exchange your old and busted AirPods for a refurbished pair for $70.

Apple's AirPods are pretty great, but it's a well-known issue that their super-small batteries don't last forever. Getting the claimed five hours of listening time out of a pair is fine when they're new — but when they're old? Not so much. But Podswap has the answer.

The reason AirPods batteries need replacing is simple — they're small, and even the best batteries don't last forever. The more you use and then re-charge your AirPods, the more you're killing the batteries. Eventually, they won't be able to charge as fully as they used to and that's when Apple will charge your $49 per earbud to get your battery life back. Note that AirPods can't have their batteries replaced, even by Apple.

Podswap has a better idea. For $70, the company sends you a new pair of refurbished AirPods out. Just the AirPods, that is — you don't need to send your Charging Case. When your near AirPods arrive, you send your old ones back in. And that's it, you're done.

AirPods 2 with charging case

AirPods 2 with charging case (Image credit: iMore)

Podswap gives you a 90-day warranty on your new AirPods and both first and second-generation versions are supported. Pretty sweet, right?

You can learn more, and get the swap-out process started, over on the Podswap website now.

Don't yet have any AirPods to call your own? Check out our list of the best AirPods deals we could find before making any buying decisions.

Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too.

Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.