iOS 26.3 Brings AirPods-Like Pairing To Third-Party Devices In EU Under DMA

Under pressure from the Digital Markets Act, Apple's iOS 26.3 adds AirPods-style proximity pairing and notification support for third-party accessories in the EU. The changes will roll out to European users in 2026. MacRumors reports: The Digital Markets Act requires Apple to provide third-party accessories with the same capabilities and access to device features that Apple's own products get. In iOS 26.3, EU wearable device makers can now test proximity pairing and improved notifications.

Here are the new capabilities that Apple is adding:
- Proximity pairing - Devices like earbuds will be able to pair with an iOS device in an AirPods-like way by bringing the accessory close to an iPhone or iPad to initiate a simple, one-tap pairing process. Pairing third-party devices will no longer require multiple steps.
- Notifications - Third-party accessories like smart watches will be able to receive notifications from the iPhone. Users will be able to view and react to incoming notifications, which is functionality normally limited to the Apple Watch. Notifications can only be forwarded to one connected device at a time, and turning on notifications for a third-party device disables notifications to an Apple Watch.

EU regulators ...

[Qbertino]

... don't say they can't be (really) useful.

Re:

[drinkypoo]

Why aren't shareholders screaming for this functionality in airPod's country of birth?

Why would shareholders care? They're getting paid.

Tim Cook hates his own customers.

Apple has literally always been the "our way or the highway" computer company. You still can't even get a decent keyboard on iOS.

Re: EU regulators ...

[blastard]

Shareholders donâ(TM)t want this, consumers want it.

Shareholders probably love Appleâ(TM)s unnecessary blocking of non Apple devices.

Re:

[slasher999]

From a stockholder perspective, I think expanding festures to third party systems makes sense, but after it has been an Apple-exclusive feature for some period of time, maybe 3-5 years. This allows Apple to leverage their investment in developing the tech without locking behind their walled garden forever. I don’t like expanding these features by country or region. That’s confusing for the consumer.

Re:

[tlhIngan]

From a stockholder perspective, I think expanding festures to third party systems makes sense, but after it has been an Apple-exclusive feature for some period of time, maybe 3-5 years. This allows Apple to leverage their investment in developing the tech without locking behind their walled garden forever. I donâ(TM)t like expanding these features by country or region. Thatâ(TM)s confusing for the consumer.

Or, Apple simply doesn't support the feature in Europe.

The only reason Europe has it is beca

0-tap is already here

[NotEmmanuelGoldstein]

... one-tap pairing ...

For 2 years, I've seen audio devices provide 0-tap pairing: When the last-connected source is unavailable, they calculate which unpaired Bluetooth source is closest, then connect.

Re:

[tlhIngan]

When the last-connected source is unavailable, they calculate which unpaired Bluetooth source is closest, then connect.

Sounds like a way to irritate people nearby if you can connect to their phones randomly by turning Bluetooth off on your phone and using your headphones to connect to other phones.

Heck, if it pops up a dialog, no big deal because it means to repeat the task every few seconds to make it irritating.

Even better, get a Flipper Zero and program its Bluetooth to rapidly do that to every device i

Great but

[jrnvk]

Have they fixed the Shortcuts app yet?

Re:

[Wheres the kaboom]

Have they fixed the Shortcuts app yet?

What’s broken? This works well for me in the context of audio pairing.

1 - Create a shortcut for a device.
2 - One tap pairs the device.

This is more convenient than “automatic” pairing in my opinion, as it pairs quickly, reliably, and easily, plus only when wanted.

Now enable Send Later for messages to all devices

[blastard]

Very uncool that they block you from using delayed send to other devices. Got my first iPhone this year, and this BS makes me want to go back to Android. If I had known how petty Apple is, I would not have switched.

Glass

[mcswell]

When will they allow you to turn off Liquid Glass *entirely*? (Not just reduce its transparency) I'm still on 18 because of that.