Traveling by plane can be fun if you’re being wine-and-dined in business or first class. But for the rest of us stuck in coach, we’re mostly left to our own devices with the in-flight entertainment. To their credit, most airlines offer a decent selection of movies, TV shows and music programming on their long-haul flights. But having a comfortable listening experience can be a different challenge. Most planes only offer a traditional 3.5mm input for your headphones, and it can get annoying dealing with a wired connection while you’re shifting in your seat or pulling down your tray.
The answer to this conundrum? Twelve South’s AirFly SE, a Bluetooth plug-in that gives you the freedom to connect your Bluetooth headphones (including those all-important noise canceling ones) to airline entertainment systems wirelessly. But that’s not all the AirFly SE is good for — read on to find out what else you can do with it (which is a lot!).
Twelve South AirFly SE, $34.99
The Twelve South AirFly SE is a small dongle that you can connect to any audio source that has an analog output. (This includes stereo receivers, MP3 players or anything else that has a headphone jack.) All you have to do is plug in the AirFly, switch it to TX (transmit) mode and turn on your Bluetooth headphones, and the AirFly will automatically pair with them in under a minute.
For travelers, this means freedom, as you can now lounge around however you like in your seat to watch movies and listen to music without worrying about pulling the cord out of the jack (or getting in a fellow passenger’s way). We’ve even gotten out of our seats and stretched a bit in the aisle while still connected to the AirFly, with no loss in signal. And you can’t beat the comfort and quality of using your own headphones, as opposed to those chintzy pairs that are usually handed out on a flight.
A single charge of the AirFly using the included USB-C cord gives you up to 20 hours of use — enough to cover a flight to the other side of the world. But as we mentioned, you can use it for more just than plane travel. Switch the AirFly to RX (receiver) mode, and you can transmit music from your phone or mobile device to a stereo receiver, standalone speakers, a soundbar or even your car stereo through a standard aux audio input. (We knew those were good for something!) We’ve taken to connecting it to the old stereo in our car so we can listen to our music and playlists without fumbling for old-fashioned CDs while we drive.
Amazon reviewers laud the Twelve South AirFly SE as a game-changer for travelers. And given its pocketable size and weight of less than an ounce, this adapter won’t slow you down or take up any space. Grab an AirFly SE now, and get a taste of luxury the next time you’re on a long flight!
