iFi prices Up Play Bluetooth dongles at $59 and $89

iFi is selling its Up Play USB-C Bluetooth transmitter for $59 and Up Play Max for $89, Notebookcheck reported in an Oct. 11 trade-press article citing iFi product pages and a company news release.

The pitch is straightforward for players and headphone users: consoles typically lack higher-resolution Bluetooth audio codecs, while iPhones and many laptops do not natively support LDAC or aptX. The Max model costs $30 more than the standard Up Play.

The Up Play uses Bluetooth 5.2 and supports LDAC, aptX, aptX Adaptive, aptX HD, AAC and SBC, according to iFi materials cited by Notebookcheck. LDAC is Sony’s higher-resolution Bluetooth codec, while aptX is Qualcomm’s family of Bluetooth audio codecs.

iFi says the device draws under 10 mA of power and can connect two wireless headphones at the same time when using SBC, the baseline Bluetooth audio codec. For gaming, low-latency mode is controlled through the iFi app, though the supplied material did not include a latency figure.

The Up Play Max moves to Bluetooth 5.4 and adds aptX Lossless plus Auracast, a Bluetooth broadcast-audio feature. Both models weigh 3.0 grams and measure 27.6 by 20.8 by 8 millimeters.

The compatibility angle matters because LDAC is already included in Android phones running Android 9 or later and appears in many high-resolution headphones from brands including Audio-Technica, JBL, Sennheiser, Sony and Technics, according to the report. Apple’s lossless wireless support is described as limited to iPhones and a small group of compatible headphones, including AirPods Max 1 and 2.

The main caveat is that codec support does not by itself prove better real-world performance. The article did not provide independent audio measurements, console latency testing or battery-impact data beyond iFi’s power-use figure.

The $59 Up Play and $89 Up Play Max are available directly from iFi and through the company’s Amazon store, according to Notebookcheck.

Source: trade-press article, Notebookcheck, Oct. 11