The Morning After: You should clean your AirPods

We’re approaching spring-cleaning season, and tech sometimes needs a refresh, too. True wireless earbuds — and most wearable devices — can accumulate a worrying amount of dirt, oils and, well, detritus. So how do you clean them without breaking, damaging or scratching them? We made a guide for that, synthesizing official guidance from Apple, Samsung, Sony and the rest with real-world tips and cleaning tool recommendations.

The good thing is the more often you clean them, the less disgusting they’ll be. And don’t worry — no pictures of ear wax-caked buds. I know it’s early. No one wants to see that.

This week on the site, we’ve , and we’ll be tackling how to recycle your old gadgets, how to clean and care for your displays and how to prep your grills for BBQ season.

— Mat Smith

The biggest stories you might have missed

Small phone, powerful processor.

Apple’s approach to making a more affordable iPhone has been to stuff premium processors into older cases. With the new iPhone SE, the company has stuck to that strategy. With a home button, substantial top and bottom bezels and rounded corners, it’s nearly identical to the 2020 model. And at this point, it’s starting to feel borderline retro. When basically all smartphones have done away with home buttons, this year’s iPhone SE feels anachronistic. However, it has Apple’s latest cutting-edge processor, the A15 Bionic, a surprisingly capable camera, and it’s just $429. Tempted? Read on for our full review.

Continue reading.

The company has also released iPadOS 15.4.

Apple has begun rolling out iOS 15.4. One of the most notable upgrades is the option to unlock your device while wearing a mask without needing to enter a passcode or use an Apple Watch. Once you’ve installed iOS 15.4, you need to activate it manually in the Face ID and Passcode section of the Settings menu.

Continue reading.

“We heard you.”

Just days after introducing a feature that made an algorithmically generated feed the default for iOS users, Twitter is changing things back to the way they were before. “We heard you,” the company said. “Some of you always want to see [the] latest tweets first. We’ve switched the timeline back and removed the tabbed experience for now while we explore other options.”

Continue reading.

The music industry made almost as much from CDs as digital downloads in 2021.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America’s annual sales report, revenue from CDs grew by 21 percent to $584 million in 2021. That marked the first annual increase in CD revenue in the US since 2004. A lot of this may be due to how many record stores reopened and artists sold music at shows again after COVID-19 put everything on hold . However, CD sales were close to the totals for digital music sales. Sales for digital tunes dropped by 12 percent to $587 million — only $3 million more than CD revenue for 2021.

Continue reading.

Scheduled launch: Later this month.

Blue Origin’s next crewed spaceflight is scheduled for March 23rd and, as reports suggested, Saturday Night Live star Pete Davidson will be one of the passengers. It will be New Shepard’s fourth flight with humans on board and its 20th overall. Davidson seems to be the famous face on this launch, following the likes of William Shatner and Good Morning America host Michael Strahan.

Continue reading.

The unified platform will launch sometime after the $43 billion deal closes.

Months after announcing their proposed $43 billion merger, WarnerMedia and Discovery have answered what will happen to HBO Max and Discovery Plus once they form the imaginatively named Warner Bros. Discovery. Discovery Chief Financial Officer Gunnar Wiedenfels said the company plans to combine the two platforms into one unified streaming service. Wiedenfels said he expects it’ll take a few months for Warner Bros. Discovery to “do it in a way that’s actually a great user experience for our subscribers.” In the meantime, HBO Max and Discovery Plus customers should expect at least some form of bundling.

Continue reading.

I won’t be taking questions at this time. Thank you.

Kawasaki

Bex can carry approximately 220 pounds of cargo. Or human.

Continue reading.