Apple to offer Live Translation feature for AirPods in EU soon

US tech giant Apple has brought its Live Translation function for its AirPod earbuds into line with European digital rules and will be introducing the feature in the European Union soon, Apple announced on Tuesday.

After a delay of several months, the capability will initially be available to software developers. A public Beta version will then follow, Apple added.

The function was introduced in June and launched in the United States in September. However, Apple delayed the launch in the EU with reference to European digital laws.

Above all, the company was concerned about the interoperability requirement, which means that technical capabilities must also be available to other providers.

The software was able to handle languages such as German and French right from the start - the function was just not available to users from the EU.

The live translations work with newer models of Apple's AirPods earbuds and iPhones. Sentences from conversation partners are translated for those wearing the earbuds. If both people are wearing AirPods, a conversation is possible in their own language.

According to Apple, the snag in the EU was the way in which audio signals are sent back and forth between the earbuds and the iPhone.

For example, it is possible for a user to wear the AirPods while the person they are talking to speaks into the connected iPhone and the translations are displayed on the phone screen. To do this, the software has to have simultaneous access to the speakers and microphone of both the iPhone and the earphones.