AirBuddy 3 brings over 150 new features and improvements, including a new design, powerful new ways to keep an eye on your devices, deeper media integration, revamped Magic Handoff, and many new options for automation and customization.
A Brand-New Action HUD
The small status window and AirBuddy’s notification HUD have come together in a completely redesigned Action HUD. It can show nearby AirPods, connection progress, volume and brightness changes, listening and Spatial Audio modes, Now Playing information, Battery Alerts, Magic Handoff transfers, and more using one consistent interface.
- Choose between large and small AirPods layouts, position the Action HUD anywhere along the top of the screen, and preview your current setup right from settings
- On MacBook models with a camera housing, supported events can appear as a compact interface integrated with the notch
- The Action HUD automatically adapts its appearance to the content behind it on recent versions of macOS, with Liquid Glass support on macOS Tahoe and later
- Decide exactly which events may show the Action HUD by configuring them in AirBuddy settings
- Click, swipe, or use the close button to dismiss the HUD; AirPods connection attempts can also be cancelled while they’re in progress
- Battery Alerts can now use the Action HUD, the redesigned circular style, or standard macOS notifications
Widgets, Wherever You Need Them
AirBuddy’s custom Desktop widgets implementation provides powerful interactive widgets that go beyond what’s possible with the standard macOS WidgetKit system. Place Batteries, AirPods, and Now Playing widgets anywhere on the Desktop, create different layouts for each display, and keep the information you care about visible over the screen saver or on the Lock Screen.
- Arrange widgets freely with smart alignment guides and snapping, resize them with a pinch gesture, or hold Option while dragging to make a copy
- Configure separate widget appearances for the Desktop and Lock Screen, or temporarily bring every widget above your other apps with a keyboard shortcut
- Use the Batteries widget to show every device, selected device categories, or a custom set of devices, with optional battery percentages
- Control output volume, listening modes, Spatial Audio, and noise cancellation from the AirPods widget
- Add AirBuddy’s interactive WidgetKit widgets to the Desktop or Notification Center on supported versions of macOS
- Use extra large Batteries widget sizes to fit even more of your devices at a glance on supported versions of macOS
Now Playing, Everywhere
The new Now Playing experience brings artwork, playback information, and controls to the Action HUD, Desktop, Lock Screen, and macOS widgets.
- Choose between large and compact Now Playing HUD layouts, then configure when the HUD appears and how long it stays on screen
- Play or pause, skip tracks or podcast chapters, seek within media, and like songs when the current app supports those actions
- Filter which apps may appear in the HUD and widgets, including media from Apple Music, Spotify, Podcasts, web browsers, and other apps that integrate with macOS Now Playing
- Show a Now Playing widget automatically below the clock on the Lock Screen, with an option to hide artwork and media details while the Mac is locked
- Enjoy layered depth effects and color-matched widget designs, see useful recent-content suggestions when nothing is playing, and use a global keyboard shortcut to bring up Now Playing on demand
A Fresh Design for Modern macOS
AirBuddy’s Dashboard, settings, widgets, alerts, and supporting windows have all received a substantial design refresh. The new Dashboard uses Liquid Glass on supported versions of macOS and feels right at home next to Control Center, while still providing fast access to every nearby or pinned device.
- A new app icon supports light, dark, clear, and tinted appearances
- Device icons use SF Symbols where available for a more consistent look
- The Dashboard and Action HUD automatically respect system accessibility preferences
- The settings window has been reorganized with dedicated areas for Action HUD, Now Playing, Audio, Devices, Widgets, and automation
- The redesigned circular battery alert style offers a prominent notification with pleasant animations so you never forget to charge your devices
Magic Handoff, Reimagined
Magic Handoff has a new transport and connection-management system for faster recovery after interruptions, more responsive peripheral transfers, and substantially improved reliability when moving a Magic Mouse, Magic Keyboard, or Magic Trackpad between Macs.
- Transfer progress and errors now appear in the Action HUD
- Use the picker, a global keyboard shortcut, or new actions in Shortcuts to transfer one or more peripherals in a single operation
- A new Bluetooth Low Energy transport option is available for networks where a VPN, firewall, or security policy blocks direct local network connections between Macs
- Existing pairings are preserved when upgrading, but every participating Mac must be running AirBuddy 3 because the new protocol is not compatible with AirBuddy 2
Audio Input Lock
AirBuddy 3 adds Audio Input Lock, which keeps your Mac using the microphone or other input device you choose instead of switching unexpectedly. Pick up to two preferred audio inputs, and AirBuddy will ensure one of them remains selected while the feature is enabled. Toggle Audio Input Lock from a global keyboard shortcut or Shortcuts action, and optionally receive an Action HUD notification when AirBuddy blocks a change.
Expanded Automation & AppleScript Support
- Use AppleScript to inspect AirBuddy’s full device list, battery details, available actions, listening and Spatial Audio modes, pinned and favorite states, current audio routes, and more
- Connect or disconnect headsets and paired Bluetooth peripherals, toggle microphone input and Audio Input Lock, bring Desktop Widgets forward, open the Dashboard or Magic Handoff picker, and perform other AirBuddy actions from AppleScript
- AppleScript automation is protected by a new opt-in security setting and returns detailed operation results and errors to scripts
- Shortcuts support now includes actions for Audio Input Lock, Magic Handoff transfers, Dark Mode, True Tone, Night Shift, display brightness, Spatial Audio, and paired Bluetooth devices
- Focus Filters can prevent AirPods, Now Playing, and Battery Alert HUDs from appearing while a selected Focus is active
A New Mobile-Device Engine
AirBuddy 3 includes a completely new system for communicating with iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. The new architecture keeps battery and charging information up to date more reliably and more frequently while using fewer resources in the background.
- Once an iPhone or iPad has been connected to and trusted by the Mac, AirBuddy can continue finding it over Wi-Fi without a separate manual pairing process in the app
- Supported iPhones and iPads can also provide battery updates over Bluetooth after they’ve connected to the Mac, helping AirBuddy keep their information current when Wi-Fi communication isn’t available
- Mobile devices that haven’t provided an update for a significant amount of time are automatically removed from the current device list instead of lingering with stale information
- Improved update scheduling and communication reduce background CPU and power usage while delivering more accurate battery levels, charging states, and last-updated times
More Changes and Fixes
- Connection Modes have been removed. The same type of setup can be recreated with a personal automation in Shortcuts that runs when AirPods connect and uses AirBuddy’s actions to configure audio settings
- On macOS 26.3 or later, AirBuddy can still show its own volume and brightness Action HUDs, but it can no longer hide the corresponding macOS indicators; those Action HUD events are disabled by default on affected systems and may be enabled in settings
- Device Stats has received a major under-the-hood update for more reliable battery and usage history on macOS 15 or later
- AirPods connections are significantly faster and more reliable, especially for devices using automatic switching, devices recently paired with the Mac, and AirPods that aren’t paired through iCloud
- AirBuddy’s low-level Bluetooth implementation has been extensively optimized for better responsiveness, lower idle CPU usage, and reduced power consumption
- The Menu Bar icon can now show the current Mac’s battery with optional percentage and Classic or iOS-inspired styles; you can also choose the new AirBuddy 3 icon, keep the AirBuddy 2 icon, or hide the icon completely
- Redesigned the Devices tab and the process for adding headsets, mobile devices, Bluetooth accessories, and other Macs, with clearer troubleshooting
- Redesigned Battery Alert setup and previews; alerts for the same device can now be dismissed across Macs connected through Magic Handoff
- Added low and charged Battery Alert support for compatible AirPods charging cases, including supported cases reporting status without the earbuds inside
- Improved support for recent AirPods charging cases, including AirPods Pro (2nd and 3rd generation), and combined left and right earbuds in the Action HUD and widgets when appropriate while still showing separate batteries when their charging states differ
- AirBuddy now provides clearer handling for Apple accessories connected over USB, including appropriate charging and power-adapter states for Magic Keyboard, Magic Mouse, and Magic Trackpad
- Added a right-click menu to the AirBuddy Menu Bar icon with quick access to the Dashboard, Desktop Widgets, settings, and Quit
- App updates can now be downloaded automatically, and available updates are presented as a gentle reminder in the Dashboard or settings instead of interrupting you with a modal dialog
- Settings synchronization between Macs is faster and more reliable, including changes made repeatedly in quick succession
- The settings window is vertically resizable and works better on smaller displays
- Improved VoiceOver support throughout the Dashboard, Menu Bar item, device lists, settings, widgets, and Action HUD
- Improved AirPods, Beats, iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac, and third-party peripheral identification to reduce generic, incorrect, and duplicated devices or icons
- Improved the accuracy and timeliness of battery information updates for iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, AirPods, and Apple accessories connected over Bluetooth or USB
- Fixed repeated, stale, or incorrectly triggered low and charged Battery Alerts, including alerts shown after waking the Mac
- Fixed several AirPods connection failures, UI hangs, incorrect microphone states, duplicated device entries, and charging-case battery-reporting issues
- Fixed cases where mobile-device information stopped updating or remained visible long after a device became unavailable
- Fixed excessive background CPU usage caused by Bluetooth traffic, Core Audio, Magic Handoff, or waking the Mac from sleep
- Fixed several memory leaks and race conditions in AirBuddyHelper, Magic Handoff, widgets, and artwork caching
- Fixed several crashes related to device discovery, AirPods connections, mobile devices, display changes, and other background operations
- Fixed an issue where AirBuddy could report that Bluetooth was turned off when its Bluetooth permission had actually been disabled in System Settings
- Fixed many smaller layout, animation, accessibility, localization, and interaction issues throughout the app
Known Issues
- AirBuddy 3 is not optimized for macOS Golden Gate. If you’re running the macOS 27 betas, join the AirBuddy 3 beta to get the best experience.
- macOS widgets configured in AirBuddy 2 may not work after installing AirBuddy 3; remove and re-add the affected widgets, restart your Mac if the issue persists