Rotel’s luxury Michi brand has expanded its digital lineup with the Michi Prestige Q430 CD Player, a full-function disc player designed for listeners who still take Red Book CD playback seriously. Unlike a transport-only design, the Q430 includes its own internal DAC while also offering a digital output for those who prefer to experiment with an external converter. Rotel already has a long track record in the two-channel component space, and while we’ve covered the brand extensively at eCoustics, the Michi line sits firmly at the company’s high-end tier.

The Prestige Q430 now enters a surprisingly competitive premium CD player category that includes impressive new models from Marantz, Quad, Hegel, TEAC, Shanling, and several other brands determined to prove that the compact disc still has plenty of life left in it.

In recent years, we’ve also covered several other Michi products including the Q5 CD Transport DAC (2024), the Series 2 Amplifiers and Preamplifiers (2023), and our full review of the Michi X3 Integrated Amplifier (2022); all of which reinforced the brand’s focus on premium construction, refined industrial design, and performance aimed squarely at the higher end of the hi-fi market.

Michi Prestige Line Adds the Q430 CD Player

The Michi Prestige line is designed to give listeners a clear entry point into ultra-high-performance components built with the same design discipline, power supply priorities, and craftsmanship expected of reference-level audio.

Drawing on more than 60 years of Rotel amplifier and circuit development, Prestige models aim to deliver effortless dynamics, exceptional clarity, and the kind of long-term reliability that serious two-channel systems demand.

For 2026, Michi has introduced two new additions to the series: the Prestige Q430 CD Player and the X430 Integrated Amplifier. We covered the X430 in a companion article, but here the focus shifts to the Q430 CD Player, a premium disc player designed for listeners who still value dedicated CD playback in a high-end system.

Building on Michi’s heritage of precision engineering and industrial design, the Q430 combines a high-quality floating CD mechanism capable of playing Red Book CD, CD-R, and CD-RW discs with a meticulously designed proprietary power supply built in-house. Multiple stages of isolated voltage regulation reduce noise at the source, helping deliver exceptionally low distortion and a very quiet acoustic background where subtle details and ambient cues can emerge clearly from the mix.

At the heart of the digital stage is an ESS SABRE ES9028PRO 8-channel DAC, configured and optimized for stereo playback. The DAC is intended to deliver precise, neutral sound with wide soundstage presentation and strong resolution through both single-ended RCA and balanced XLR analog outputs, providing flexibility when integrating the player into a wide range of high-end systems.

Measured performance is equally ambitious. The Q430 is rated for ultra-low distortion (THD below 0.0006%) and a signal-to-noise ratio exceeding 120 dB, helping preserve transient impact and low-level detail even in complex musical passages. Channel separation greater than 105 dB at 10 kHz further supports precise stereo imaging and spatial detail, contributing to a convincingly three-dimensional soundstage.

Connectivity is straightforward but purposeful. In addition to its analog outputs, the Q430 includes a coaxial digital output, allowing the player to function as a dedicated CD transport when paired with an external DAC for listeners who prefer to experiment with different digital conversion stages.

However, there are a few notable omissions for a player positioned at this level. The Q430 does not support SACD playback, which some listeners may expect given its price category and the capabilities offered by competing models. In addition, the internal DAC cannot be used with external digital sources or streamers, a feature that has become increasingly common in 2026 as manufacturers try to broaden the utility of standalone disc players within modern streaming-focused systems.

For ease of operation, the Michi Prestige Q430 CD Player includes a wireless remote control that allows listeners to navigate album artwork, settings, and disc information displayed on the front panel’s full-color TFT display. The interface is designed to make browsing and playback straightforward while providing clear visual feedback during use.

All of the internal components are housed inside a precision-milled aluminum chassis that reflects Michi’s design philosophy of durability, performance, and long-term reliability. The solid enclosure also helps minimize vibration and electrical interference, supporting stable disc playback and consistent sonic performance.

The Q430 measures 431 x 148 x 385 mm (17 x 6 x 15-1/4 inches) with a front panel height of 131 mm (approximately 5-1/6 inches). The unit weighs 8.8 kg (19.5 lbs), reflecting the robust chassis construction and internal power supply design typical of Michi components.

Comparison

The Bottom Line 

The Michi Prestige Q430 CD Player is aimed at listeners who still value dedicated Red Book CD playback and want a component that matches the build quality and aesthetic of a high-end two-channel system. With its floating transport mechanism, ESS SABRE ES9028PRO DAC optimized for stereo use, balanced and single-ended outputs, and robust aluminum chassis, the Q430 is clearly designed to deliver refined CD performance rather than serve as a digital hub for multiple sources.

However, its focus is also its limitation. At $4,000, the Q430 lacks several features that competing players in this price category increasingly offer, including SACD playback and digital inputs that would allow the internal DAC to be used with external streamers or transports. For some buyers, those omissions will be difficult to ignore.

Ultimately, the Q430 is best suited for high-end two-channel listeners who still maintain a substantial CD collection and want a dedicated player that prioritizes build quality and straightforward disc playback rather than broad digital flexibility. For everyone else, especially those looking for SACD support or a more versatile DAC—the competition from brands like Marantz, Esoteric, TEAC, and Shanling may offer a more compelling case.

Price & Availability

Priced at $3,999, the Michi Q430 CD Player will initially be available in North America beginning March 2026, with global availability to follow early in the second quarter of 2026 through Rotel’s Dealer Network at €3,999 or £3,599.

For more information: rotel.com/product/q430

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Rumors are swirling that a DJI Pocket 4 is on its way, but don’t let the promise of a shiny new action cam distract you from what’s available right now — the DJI Osmo Pocket 3 is currently cheaper than ever. Although it’s nearly three years old now, the Pocket 3 is still an extremely capable camera. With features like a portrait filming mode and a 2-inch screen that’s ideal for viewing a live camera feed, the Pocket 3 has proven hugely popular with vloggers and content creators in particular.

In our DJI Osmo Pocket 3 review, our tester called it “class-leading”, and highlighted the “amazing video quality and beautiful slow-motion scenes”. It was awarded a near-perfect 4.5 stars. TechRadar’s camera editor Tim Coleman thinks it’s well worth considering, even with the Pocket 4 on the horizon, commenting: “For many solo vloggers it will serve their needs perfectly, and for a much lower price than the latest models.”

Today’s best DJI Osmo action cam deals

Protex AI, Altra, Barespace, Tines, Nory and CleverCards also made it to this year’s list.

Despite the usual London dominance in Sifted’s annual list of the 100 fastest-growing Irish and UK start-ups, Dublin’s Kota has managed to place in the top 10 this year.

The Irish insurance and employee benefits platform has made it to the ninth spot on the 2026 list, with a two year revenue CAGR (compound annual growth rate) of more than 640pc. The four-year-old start-up last raised $14.5m in May 2025, taking its total raise to date to nearly $23m.

“This ranking is a reflection of the work we’ve done over the last three years building out our infrastructure and network of insurance and pension providers, and the value that lets us deliver to customers,” Kota celebrated in a post on LinkedIn.

The company’s employee health insurance and benefits platform aims to empower start-ups and scaling organisations to automate and manage team benefits.

Others in this year’s list include the Dublin-based Limerick-founded workplace safety start-up Protex AI, which secured $36m early last year to expand across the US. The 2021-founded company ranked 21 on the Sifted list with a CAGR of 313pc.

Protex’s AI-powered platform plugs into CCTV devices and uses computer vision to capture unsafe events autonomously. The start-up already has around 80 employees.

Meanwhile, Care-tech Altra placed number 41 with a CAGR of just above 200pc. Founded in 2019, the start-up has reached profitability. “This recognition reflects a real shift in the care sector,” the company said.

Dublin’s Barespace, on the other hand, which bills itself as the “operating system” for the hair and beauty industry, has made it to the 56th spot – and the highest ranking seed start-up on the list.

Founded in 2022, the company has around 32 employees. Last September, it announced a €2.9m round to accelerate its UK and European expansion.

Irish automation unicorn Tines has climbed 12 positions on the list since last year, reaching the 70th spot with a CAGR of 136pc. The company, which has around 400 workers, recently announced 100 new jobs in Boston as demand for its AI tools rise in the US.

Founded in 2018, Tines reached unicorn status in February 2025 after a $125m Series C round. The company has raised $272m to date from investors including Goldman Sachs, SoftBank, Felicis, Addition, Accel, Blossom Capital and Lux Capital.

Food sector-focused AI start-up Nory has dropped seven spots since last year, reaching the 44th rank in this year’s list. The dual-headquartered start-up in Dublin and London raised $37m last September, also to drive expansion in the US. Nory has a two-year revenue CAGR of around 182pc.

While insurtech CleverCards dropped 27 spots to the 54th rank on the 2026 list. Founded it 2019, CleverCards’s payments technology allows businesses and public sector organisations to create prepaid digital Mastercards and send them to anyone. The service was launched to market in 2023.

Previous year’s entrants, that did not rank this year include e-SIM provider Holafly, VR simulation training provider VRAI, data company CitySwift, e-commerce financier Wayflyer, and AI copyright protection provider Ceartas.

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The San Francisco startup emerges from stealth with Mayfield backing and a pitch that treats ad creative as a continuous learning loop, not a quarterly deliverable.

Every B2B marketing team knows the problem. A campaign launches, the creative is fresh, the targeting feels right, and then, slowly, it starts dying. Audiences tune out. Click rates fall.

The agency comes back for a creative refresh and the cycle begins again. Matt Jayson calls this “decaying ads,” and it is, by his account, a structural failure of how digital advertising is built: campaigns that start losing effectiveness the moment they go live, because the feedback loop between what customers actually say and what the ads actually say is too slow.

On Wednesday,  the startup Multiply emerged from stealth with $9.5 million in funding to tackle that problem. The round was led by Mayfield, with participation from Sorenson Capital, Instacart co-founder Max Mullen, and Josh Woodward, Google’s VP of Labs and Gemini, the executive credited with building NotebookLM and overseeing Google’s flagship AI app.

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Executives from HubSpot, Braze, Brex, Sierra, and Common Room also joined the round.

Multiply’s pitch is that modern B2B companies are already sitting on the data they need to run far better advertising, they just aren’t using it. Sales call recordings, CRM pipelines, and closed-won deal data contain precise information about why customers actually buy.

Multiply’s system plugs directly into those sources and uses a suite of AI agents to translate them into continuously improving ad campaigns on Google Search and LinkedIn.

Hundreds of structured experiments run in parallel each week, testing messaging, audiences, and creative, with winners scaled and losers cut automatically.

The agent architecture breaks down into five components. A Customer Insights Agent extracts language from sales calls to personalise ad copy. An ICP Agent analyses closed-won deals to tighten audience targeting.

A Quality Score Agent tunes keyword alignment and copy for Google’s ranking signals. A Creative Design Agent refreshes imagery on a weekly cycle. An A/B Testing Agent runs the experiments and identifies what’s working.

Human media buyers sit above all of it, providing brand oversight and compliance review, the “hybrid” in what Multiply describes as a hybrid AI-plus-human agency model.

Jayson, who previously worked at Google in user acquisition and then at Brex as Head of Product for core experiences, describes the gap the company is trying to close: the insights that land deals, the specific objections, the competitor comparisons, the language that actually resonates, rarely make their way back into ad campaigns quickly enough.

His co-founder and CTO, Ashish Warty, spent five years as SVP of Product and Engineering at HackerOne and held senior engineering roles at Airship and Dropbox.

“Modern companies already have all the data needed to create radically better ads,” Jayson said in a statement. “Sales conversations, CRM systems, and pipeline outcomes reveal exactly why customers buy, yet those insights rarely make their way into ad campaigns fast enough.”

The timing is deliberate in another sense. Multiply’s infrastructure is, the company says, already being positioned for ChatGPT advertising, a format that OpenAI has signalled it intends to launch but has not yet released at scale.

The argument is that the same campaign learning systems built for search and social can extend into conversational and AI-driven ad formats as they emerge. That is a forward-looking claim that will depend entirely on how those platforms eventually structure their ad products.

“There is a major shift happening in the $50 billion B2B advertising market,” said Patrick Salyer, Partner at Mayfield and a Multiply board member, in a statement. “Service-as-Software is redefining how companies grow, and Multiply has built the first AI model for B2B advertising.”

The $50 billion market figure comes from Mayfield’s own framing and has not been cross-referenced against independent market data.

Multiply is, in essence, making a structural argument about where the ad agency model breaks down: not in creative execution, but in the speed of the feedback loop.

Whether a $9.5 million AI stack can fix that faster than incumbents adapt is the question its pipeline metrics are presumably meant to answer.

Dell is doubling down on AI-powered computing with a new lineup of Pro Precision workstations designed to bring serious AI performance directly to desks.

At the centre of the announcement is a refreshed Dell Pro Precision range. It includes both tower and mobile workstations built specifically for AI-heavy workloads like model training, simulations, and creative production.

The idea is straightforward: instead of relying on cloud infrastructure, Dell wants AI development to happen locally. This way, teams can experiment faster and keep control over their data.

from the we-are-incapable-of-subtlety dept

We’ve noted repeatedly how the U.S. authoritarian right is buying up all of our new and old media companies because they’re trying to mimic what Viktor Orban created in Hungary. Namely, a media where all the major outlets are owned by rich autocratic allies, who spew propaganda 24/7 while the government strangles real, independent journalism just out of frame.

Of course, you’re supposed to try and have some subtlety in this so the public isn’t fully aware of the con. But the Trump administration doesn’t do subtlety.

Last week Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth apparently got upset by the fact Trump’s war in Iran isn’t going very well. Poor Donald clearly didn’t understand the evolving nature of modern and inexpensive drone warfare (despite all the brutal evidence in Ukraine), and has gotten the country bogged down in precisely the sort of clusterfuck the fake populist pretended he opposed last election season.

Even our soggy corporate press has occasionally been making this clear to the public, something that upsets Pete Hegseth very much. Hegseth apparently got particularly upset with CNN recently insisting that the Iran War had “intensified.” It made him so upset that he openly pined for the moment when Larry Ellison (and his nepobaby son) control CNN, so they can cheerlead for war:

One of the funniest parts about this is that claims the war had “intensified” was made by his own agency in a press release!

It’s very clear that the U.S. right wing won’t be satisfied until the entirety of U.S. media is owned by a handful of rich right wingers like Larry Ellison and Elon Musk, allowing them to create a North Korea bullhorn of daily, uniform propaganda that does nothing but lavish praise upon them. To build something like that here in the States requires a level of subtlety they’re simply not capable of:

Democrats historically suck on media policy and reform (even the progressive wing of the party is fairly incompetent on the subject), so you can’t expect much help there.

But there are several things working in our favor, including America’s sheer size (it’s very difficult to maintain the kind of control they’re looking for), our diversity, the decentralized nature of the modern internet, and the fact that most of the nepobabies (David Ellison) and brunchlords (Bari Weiss) integral to their plans appear to have absolutely no Earthly idea what they’re actually doing.

For example, all the debt Ellison has adopted from the purchase of CBS and Warner Brothers is going to force them to engage in massive, unprecedented cost cuttings and layoffs, making it hard to maintain informational control and build an effective, ratings-grabbing propaganda operation (even if Bari Weiss knew what she was doing, which she assuredly does not).

And the public still has agency. Larry Ellison can buy TikTok and Elon Musk can buy Twitter, but they can’t control the flow of the public as they flee to other, less white supremacist, right wing friendly alternatives. It’s sheer hubris to think they can maintain information control in a country this massive and diverse, and there will be some useful entertainment value in watching them set money on fire trying.

Filed Under: 1st amendment, agitprop, consolidation, free speech, iran war, journalism, larry ellison, media, pete hegseth, propaganda

Companies: cbs, cnn, paramount

The Samsung Galaxy Z TriFold is already on its way out. A new report suggests that the company is killing sales for the triple foldable phone just three months after its debut, putting an end to its $2,899 experimental showcase.

But while the Galaxy Z TriFold sales are being halted, it’s apparently not the end of the road for such an ambitious smartphone.

What’s left to unfold?

Amid the TriFold’s reported phase-out, fresh rumors hint that Samsung doesn’t plan on abandoning the concept entirely. It would appear that the brand is doubling down with a better successor, which is slimmer and more refined than the original Z TriFold.

Samsung took feedback on the first-generation TriFold, and the thickness seems to be one of its biggest drawbacks. Early tri-folding designs being bulky isn’t a surprise, considering their multi-hinge structure. But Samsung could make the next version even thinner, and refine the overall form factor to make it more practical for everyday use.

Why thickness matters for tri-fold devices

One of the biggest challenges of any foldable phone is its overall width when folded, which is especially true for a triple-folding design. The multiple folding sections can make the device a lot thicker than standard foldables when folded, which can affect everything from portability to in-hand comfort.

In comparison, the notebook-style and clamshell folding flip phones are more mature in their designs. Even the first-gen Galaxy Fold had its fair share of issues, which were ironed out with each passing generation. So Samsung seems to be making a quicker move to improve the TriFold concept before pushing it further.

The chair starts at $8,995, but that doesn’t include the side table or ottoman. Add those and it costs $10,995. The model pictured above uses Alpaca wool fabric and brings the cost up to $14,995. (There are more than 300 fabrics and colors to choose from, and the swiveling table comes in various woodgrains.) The Herman Miller Eames, of which the Diffrient Lounge also takes inspiration, costs roughly $8,500 today, depending on which leather you choose.

“The Eames is obviously an iconic design—it’s timeless, it’s beautiful—but it’s not something you can work comfortably in for a long time,” Silva says.

Levers on the edges of the armrest let you mechanically adjust the recline of the backrest and headrest.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Don’t let the Lounge in the name fool you. Silva assures me that every chair the company designs is built with ergonomic comfort in mind, with the adjustable work surface and headrest allowing for different postures. While traditional lounge chairs focus on style, Silva says the Lounge prioritizes comfort. In my brief time on the chair, it indeed felt enveloping and cushy yet supportive. And the mechanical levers made it easy to shift the chair into a more active sitting position or a more relaxing posture, without disrupting the ergonomics with a laptop on the table.

Diffrient had been tinkering with the idea of a lounge chair that could double as a workstation for a long time, Silva says, and believed that technology allowed people to work in different ways.

“The chair acknowledges the fact that creativity and productivity don’t necessarily happen when you’re tied to your desk,” he says. “They happen in different postures; more relaxed or moving around the office, and this chair supports those transitions.”

King recites a famous quote from Diffrient: “The best chair is a bed.” When you sit upright, your weight compresses your spine, but when you lean back, a large portion of that weight goes into the backrest, so when you’re lying down, there’s significantly less pressure on your spine. “Reclining is really healthy,” King says. “He always thought it would be a good way to work.”

Luxe Seat

How does a chair come to cost $15,000? Silva highlights Humanscale’s long-standing approach to simplicity. After all, it’s a hallmark of the original Freedom chair. While the Diffrient Lounge may not look very complex, that’s by design, cleverly masking the engineered mechanical system with clean lines and curves. There’s even some automation in the headrest. If you’re fully reclined and the headrest is in a forward position to support your head, as you come back up, the headrest will automatically go into a neutral position.

There are two USB-C ports on the chair to power your devices, which means the Diffrient Lounge needs to be connected to an outlet.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Other Folding Phones to Consider

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 for $1,056: Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip7 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is a close second to Motorola’s Razr Ultra. I liked the camera quality from Motorola’s latest flip more than Samsung’s, a big win for the Razr, but the Flip7 captures nice photos and offers better video quality, if that’s your thing. Samsung’s latest Flip has a larger front screen, though you still have to jump through a few hoops to make it useful. For example, you need to install an app called Multistar to add any app of your choosing to the cover screen. The phone also has a lackluster battery life, struggling to last a full day; the Razr Ultra still only lasts a day, but I didn’t feel like I had to plug in as much. And it also gets a little too warm for my tastes when it’s under load. It’s a good flip phone, but I prefer Motorola’s 2025 flagship.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold for $1,250: The only reason to consider the Pixel 9 Pro Fold right now is if you see it on sale. Google’s Pixel 10 Pro Fold is the newer, better handset. The 9 Pro Fold isn’t as slim or as lightweight as the Galaxy Z Fold7, but it’s still a svelte device with a large front screen that feels like a normal phone. The 8-inch inner screen is excellent, and the triple-camera system delivers great results, though not as great as the Pixel 9 Pro series. Read our Best Pixel Phones guide for more.

Razr 2025 series

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Motorola Razr+ (2025) for $700: There is technically a third phone in Motorola’s latest Razr lineup: the Razr+ 2025. However, it’s nearly identical to the Razr+ 2024, with fresh colors and the improved IP48 rating and titanium-reinforced hinge. It sits in an awkward middle ground, though. It’s not as affordable as the standard Razr, which offers a pretty nice experience for the money. But it’s also not as flagship as the Razr Ultra. It is also the only one of the lineup without the ultrawide camera. I usually love telephoto zoom lenses, but ultrawides are so handy on flip phones for group selfies. If you’re considering this model, it’s also worth considering the Razr+ from 2024, as you’ll see some nice discounts on it throughout the year; it just lacks the reinforced hinge and IP48 rating.

Galaxy Z Flip6

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip6 for $899: Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip6 (7/10, WIRED Recommends) from 2024 might be a better buy than Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip7 FE—the new “budget” folding flip phone the company introduced alongside the flagship Flip7 and Fold7. That’s because the Flip7 FE is a reskinned Flip6 with a Samsung Exynos processor instead of a Qualcomm chip. We haven’t tested the FE yet, but you can probably find a decent deal on the Flip6 that might make it a better value than the Flip7 FE. Performance could even be a smidge better.

Xiaomi Mix Flip for $899: Xiaomi’s first flip phone has a lovely design with excellent displays inside and out, long battery life with fast charging, and flagship-level performance, which makes a nice change, as flip phones often have middling specs. It also boasts a solid dual-lens camera, opting for telephoto instead of ultrawide alongside the capable main shooter, which is more useful for most folks. The software lets the party down a little; there’s no IP rating, and it is pricey, but I had fun with this flip phone. —Simon Hill

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When I searched online to see if it’s possible to pop popcorn in an air fryer, I ran into a dead end. Some websites say that you can and even encourage air-fried popcorn, while others caution against it. Unable to find a clear answer, I felt it was my duty as a devoted popcorn lover to go straight to the source for us all, which is why I reached out to an actual air fryer manufacturer and professional chefs to get a final answer.

Experts weigh in on air fryer popcorn

I reached out to Ninja, makers of the Ninja Crispi, CNET’s pick for the best air fryer overall. While the air fryer is a versatile appliance that can even roast a whole chicken, it can’t pop popcorn — yet. 

Well, technically it can, but that doesn’t mean it should.

“At Ninja, we’re always testing the boundaries of what our technology can do, and popcorn in an air fryer is something our culinary and product development teams have explored. However, we advise against trying to make popcorn in an air fryer,” a Ninja Kitchen representative tells CNET. “Air fryers circulate heat differently than traditional popcorn makers, which means kernels don’t reach the sustained heat needed in the required time.”

Because popcorn is lightweight, Sharniquia White, chef and registered dietitian, explains that if you try to make it in an air fryer, it can fly up into the device’s heating element, get stuck near the fan, burn from uneven airflow and leave you with a frustrating amount of unpopped kernels. All cons, no pros. 

Given the safety hazards and unsatisfying results, you’ll want to avoid using an air fryer for popcorn. At least until the technology catches up. 

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The best way to make popcorn, according to pro chefs

Since the air fryer is out for popcorn, I asked my chef sources for their recommendations on making the best popcorn. 

White says that the stovetop wins every time if you want a fluffy texture, rich flavor and full expansion of your kernels. She provides these handy instructions for getting the best results:

1. Heat 2-3 tablespoons of oil in a large, heavy-bottom pot over medium heat.
2. Add 2-3 kernels to test if the oil is hot enough. When they pop, add ½ cup kernels.
3. Cover and gently shake the pot occasionally.
4. Remove from heat when popping slows.
5. You control the oil, the salt and the outcome.

However, if you make popcorn all the time, plant-based chef Shauna McQueen, MS, RD, founder of Food School, recommends purchasing a low-cost pan with a lid you can crank to move the popcorn kernels around. 

“The other option is automatic and will self-stir the kernels,” McQueen adds. “I’ve used both and have had to replace both within a few years of use, but find the automatic one most convenient.”

As for the healthiest way to make popcorn…

“If you’re reaching for the air fryer because you want to use less oil, you’re thinking in the right direction,” White says. “However, an inexpensive air popper or a measured stovetop method is more reliable and safer. Popcorn is already a whole-grain, fiber-rich snack. The goal isn’t to eliminate oil entirely; it’s to be intentional about how much you use and what you add.”

Whether you pop it on the stove or buy a device that air-pops your popcorn, it’s best to avoid microwave popcorn. According to McQueen, it may contain additives like TBHQ, which is used to extend the shelf life of processed foods. While the FDA considers it safe in appropriate amounts, it has been linked to potential health issues.

The healthiest popcorn toppings

If extra flavor is what you’re after, McQueen suggests the following anti-inflammatory toppings: curry powder, cayenne, garlic powder or chili powder. For a cheesy flavor plus B-vitamins, opt for nutritional yeast. Her favorites include a curry-style popcorn made with curry powder, garlic powder and a small amount of nutritional yeast; chili powder with lime and za’atar; or everything bagel seasoning. 

As for White, she likes adding smoked paprika, cinnamon with a pinch of salt, fresh lime zest and sea salt or dried dill, “for an unexpected herb twist.”

The bottom line

Though it’s tempting, you shouldn’t make popcorn in your air fryer. Instead, use what you already have on hand and prepare it on the stovetop. 

If you can’t get enough of the stuff and make it all the time, consider these options that are under $50: a stovetop popcorn maker or an oil-free air popper.

Either way, to keep your popcorn as healthy as possible, go light on the oil, butter and salt. Personally, I’ll be topping mine with chili powder, lime and za’atar next time my popcorn craving strikes, which will likely be in a few minutes after writing this tasty piece.