The modder who gave the iPhone USB-C reveals how he did it to AirPods

After teasing modified AirPods that swap Apple’s Lightning port for a USB-C connection, Ken Pillonel, the robotics engineering scholar behind the USB-C iPhone, has lastly launched the full video that reveals his complete course of. And the most effective half is that Pillonel is making his schematics open supply, which means you, too, can accomplish such a feat (given that you’ve got a 3D printer).

Pillonel begins by sawing open the AirPods case, primarily breaking it, as they’re not designed to be taken aside. He then designs two alternative items to go on both facet of the case, first by utilizing an FDM 3D printer after which switching to SLA for a smoother outcome. The items he constructs snap completely into place in probably the most satisfying method potential, creating an outer shell that appears as if it hasn’t even been touched.

While Pillonel notes that you could change the AirPods’ battery from right here, he takes issues a step additional by ripping out the proprietary Lightning connector for USB-C. Following days of analysis, Pillonel manages to create a customized PCB board that matches contained in the AirPods’ shell. The finish result’s a pair of AirPods you possibly can cost with any previous USB-C cable mendacity round your own home.

Just like his open-source USB-C iPhone challenge, Pillonel has additionally made the schematics for each the AirPods case and the USB-C PCB out there to download from GitHub. He’s additionally freely giving premade kits and will even begin promoting them. You can discover out extra from his website devoted to the challenge.

But when you’re less than modifying your AirPods (or your iPhone), you may not have to attend for much longer to get one straight from Apple. The firm’s reportedly wanting into creating USB-C-compatible iPhones and AirPods by 2023 on the earliest. Plus, new laws within the EU requires Apple to ditch Lightning ports on its iPhones by fall 2024.