Apple files patent for new AirPods case that will charge other devices

The Apple AirPods have been criticised for their design, battery life and most of all, availability. But it seems Apple has big plans for their awkward wireless earphones. The company has filed for a patent around the AirPods and its something quite out of the ordinary.According to the patent documents, a special case for the Airpods will offer provision for inductive charging. This means it could provide power to devices such as Apple Watch, iPods, iPhones, iPads and even MacBooks in the future.The schematics of the case show a watch on top of the case, which is probably the most suitable device. The current Apple Watch Series 2 comes with a 273 mAh battery while the current AirPods case has a 398 mAh battery. If Apple were to make a slightly bigger case, it could very well charge the AirPods and the watch.The patent goes on to say, "Such devices can include, for example, portable music players (e.g., MP3 devices and Apple's iPod devices), portable video players (e.g., portable DVD players), cellular telephones (e.g., smart telephones such as Apple's iPhone devices), video cameras, digital still cameras, projection systems (e.g., holographic projection systems), gaming systems, PDAs, as well as tablet (e.g., Apple's iPad devices), laptop (e.g. MacBooks) or other mobile computers. Some of these devices can be configured to provide audio, video or other data or sensory output."But in making a bigger case, Apple could risk the factor of portability. Of course, this is just a patent filing and it doesn't mean that we are going to see an AirPods case with inductive charging anytime soon.