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iFi Up Play and Up Play Max bring LDAC and aptX Lossless to Nintendo Switch 2, iPhones, and laptops

LDAC and aptX Lossless finally come to iPhones, MacBooks, PS5, and Nintendo Switch 2 — via two tiny $59 and $89 USB-C dongles.

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By Battery Life

The Gadgets Desk · (11 Oct 2026)

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iFi Up Play and Up Play Max USB-C Bluetooth transmitters side by side on a white surface
iFi Up Play and Up Play Max USB-C Bluetooth transmitters side by side on a white surfacePhoto via Notebookcheck

IFi Up Play and Up Play Max USB-C Bluetooth transmitters are now available globally — $59 and $89 respectively, to add LDAC and aptX Lossless support to devices that lack it natively: Apple iPhones, MacBooks, Windows laptops, PlayStation 5, and Nintendo Switch 2 consoles. Neither Apple nor Sony’s latest game console ships with built-in LDAC or aptX Lossless decoding.

The Switch 2, in particular, remains locked to SBC and AAC. The lowest-common-denominator Bluetooth codecs, meaning even premium wireless headphones can’t deliver high-resolution audio without external help. Same for iPhones: no LDAC, no aptX Lossless, and Apple Lossless over Bluetooth is restricted to AirPods Max (1st and 2nd gen) and a handful of other Apple-branded earbuds.

MacBooks and most Windows laptops ship with basic Bluetooth stacks that don’t expose those codecs at OS level. Even if the hardware supports them. Android phones running Android 9 or later usually do support LDAC out of the box, but aptX adoption varies by OEM and region. The Up Play uses Bluetooth 5.2 and adds LDAC, aptX HD, aptX Adaptive, AAC, and SBC.

It draws under 10 mA, weighs 3 grams, and fits in a pocket or laptop port. It supports dual SBC headphones simultaneously and includes a low-latency mode for gaming, activated via iFi’s companion app. The Up Play Max steps up to Bluetooth 5.4 and adds aptX Lossless and Auracast broadcast support.

Both units measure 27.6 × 20.8 × 8 mm. Neither requires drivers on macOS or Windows. On Windows, they bypass the OS’s default A2DP stack entirely. No need for third-party tools like Alternative A2DP Driver.

Pricing is fixed: $59 for the Up Play, $89 for the Up Play Max. They’re sold direct from iFi and on Amazon US. No Indian pricing is listed in the source. The Up Play Max’s Auracast support could matter soon: public venues and transit systems in the US and EU are beginning to roll out Auracast-enabled audio broadcasts, though widespread adoption remains months away.

IFi says both units ship immediately.

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iFi store

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Paid links. As an Amazon Associate, Hitechreports earns from qualifying purchases. Prices change; the story gives the price as reported when it was written.

Nintendo Switch 2: everything we knowPrice, specs, release date and deals in one place
Topicsaptx-losslessLDACusb-c-dongleBluetooth AudioifiNintendo Switch 2

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How this story was made

Written by the Hitechreports desk from the reporting credited above, with facts attributed to their original publishers. We do not test devices ourselves; anything about performance, battery life or cameras comes from the outlets that did. Prices are as reported at the time of writing. Editorial policy · Report an error

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