• Qobuz wants you to make a memory-filled playlist, and explain it
• You can win an iFi iDSD GR 2 for your efforts
• World Alzheimer's Month runs through September

Alongside 'Fast songs for the gym' and 'Band 101 for introducing a partner to a band on the eve of going to their gig', remembering moments or periods of your life is one of the most important reasons we make playlists. I still listen to "mix-tapes" (in digital format, mostly) I made while living abroad, road tripping around the outback or preparing for big university parties.

Now, streaming service Qobuz has taken time off its war on AI slop to acknowledge the link between music and memory for World Alzheimer's Month, teaming up with hi-fi tech brand iFi Audio to do so.

World Alzheimer's Month runs through September, and during that time, Qobuz and iFi are running a competition to submit a memory-laden playlist, and perhaps win an iFi iDSD GR 2 for your efforts.

Wait, what's the link? Well, it has been shown that musical memory remains well-preserved in Alzheimer's sufferers, and so a song may help with memory recall.

I'm getting this from a study published in the National Library of Medicine, which suggests that music interventions can "delay and decelerate the neurodegeneration in individuals at risk". But my colleague and Audio Editor tells me she has seen music's profound effect on memory recall in a fellow dancer who (even in advanced stages of this progressive disease) could still perform decades-old choreography, if the music were played.

Many non-profits, including Music & Memory or Playlist for Life, exist to help people by providing training, awareness or music-based care, to aid those suffering with various degenerative illnesses.

What about that competition?

Oh yes, the competition.

During September, Qobuz and iFi want you to make a playlist (on the former's hi-res download and streaming platform, of course) full of songs which bring you back to a certain time or important memory.

Then, you need to head over to iFi Audio's competition landing page, which will give you a few steps to complete and fields to fill in.

This page also lets you provide a 'short story' or description of what the playlist means to you. There's no stated word count, but this whole news story could be pasted into the field with without a problem.

Once you've submitted your playlist, you'll be in with a chance to win the iFi iDSD GR 2 DAC (or digital-analog-converter, to level up your music using, say, the USB-C port on your phone, and on to your wired headphones or earbuds), worth $529 / £529 / AU$849. And that's a great prize. We gave the iFi IDSD GR 2 a perfect, 5-star review, praising its sound quality and easy-to-use touch-screen. So good luck!

There's no indication of how the brands will choose a winner; if it'll be based on the description, or tracks, or at random. It's also not clear what will happen to the rest of the playlists; maybe Qobuz will publish some of its favorites for all to see, but perhaps the submission is just for the purposes of the competition. Either way, delving back into old albums and tracks that really take you back to a specific moment will be a cathartic — and sometimes profound — experience. Music's great, isn't it?

• Evidence points to Beats 360 coming later in September
• That's despite Beats' owner, Apple, having just hosted a big launch event
• We now know a lot about these new headphones too…

While the AirPods 5 upgrades offer you the best features of the AirPods Pro, they were small consolation at an Apple Event in which people were hoping for more sweeping audio upgrades. No AirPods with cameras, no HomePods upgrade despite teases, and no new Beats headphones.

However, that latter point could be addressed later in the month. How come? because according to MacRumors, Apple just released a firmware update for the Beats 360 headphones. Yes, that same pair of Beats 360 headphones we've been hearing rumors about for months, but that have yet to be officially announced.

Why is Apple updating headphones that don't exist? Well, bear in mind we've been seeing them for months, as Apple gave them to multiple soccer World Cup players to show off during the tournament. Celebrity sportspeople need their tech updating too, after all.

There's no indication of what this update does, and it doesn't really matter. It's all about what this update suggests.

A Beats 360 release date just around the corner?

Because of this recent software update, many now think that the Beats 360 are due to be unveiled at some point in September.

While Apple already has just had its big product unveiling event of the year (on September 9, around 14 hours ago at the time of writing), that doesn't rule out new Beats devices. Apple generally lets its Beats sub-brand operate independently.

In fact, it would've been pretty bizarre if we had seen the Beats 360 shown off at the Apple event, for this fact.

We know a lot about how the Beats 360 look, thanks to plenty of leaks (and, of course, the fact that they were literally on the necks, heads and bags of a few soccer players months ago). They sound like a big step up from what we've seen, but as the launch of a new range, it's hard to know how they'll stack up to existing models.

Beats' last product launch was in October 2025, when it showed off the Powerbeats Fit, so maybe we'll see the brand take the same late-September-early-October window for its new device. Or devices? We've only heard about the Beats 360, but that doesn't rule out siblings of other form factors.