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CardArt

Apply with AirCard for Windows

Connect your iPhone to a Windows PC, scan a Wallet card, pick the image and apply it.

  • About 10 min
  • 10 steps
  • For AirCard-Windows v1.2.4
  • Updated October 6, 2026

Before you start

iPhone
iOS 18 or laterMinimum
Windows
Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit)Minimum
Apple drivers
64-bit iTunes from Apple’s website (not the Microsoft Store version)
Cable
A USB cable that carries data (not charge-only)

ImportantApple patched the iOS flaw AirCard relies on in iOS 27.2, so AirCard doesn’t work on iOS 27.2 or later. To keep the card art you’ve already changed, or to keep changing it, stay on the version you have now (such as iOS 27.0.1, or iOS 27.1 on iPhone Duo), don’t update to iOS 27.2, and turn off Settings › General › Software Update › Automatic Updates.

ImportantWritten for v1.2.4. The interface is in English, and Simplified Chinese is available from the menu showing English at the bottom right, next to Logs.

To check: on iPhone, open Settings › General › About. On Windows, press Win + R, type winver and press Enter.

Steps

  1. Step 1: Download AirCard-Windows

    Open AirCard-Windows’ GitHub Releases page⁠(opens in a new tab) and download aircard.exe from the Assets of the latest release (currently v1.2.4). It’s a single program file — there’s nothing to install.

    TipAirCard-Windows is Lumid-Off⁠(opens in a new tab)’s open-source (MIT) Windows port of Mak5er’s AirCard⁠(opens in a new tab). Only download from the official repository — avoid modified builds from elsewhere.

  2. Step 2: Install 64-bit iTunes

    AirCard talks to the iPhone through Apple’s drivers. On Apple’s iTunes page⁠(opens in a new tab), download iTunes for Windows (64-bit) and install it. You don’t need to open it afterwards.

    ImportantDon’t use iTunes from the Microsoft Store. In the project’s issues, several people found that the Store version, Apple Mobile Device Support on its own, or drivers installed by helpers such as 3uTools or i4Tools could leave flashing stuck — for most, switching to 64-bit iTunes from Apple’s website fixed it (the project README also lists Apple Mobile Device Support alone and a 3uTools driver repair, but some people in the issues were still stuck after those). If you already have the Store version, uninstall it first.

  3. Step 3: First launch

    Double-click aircard.exe to run it. If Windows shows a security prompt, first make sure the file came from the official Releases page in the previous step.

    TipIf it says VCRUNTIME140.dll is missing, install Microsoft’s Visual C++ Redistributable⁠(opens in a new tab) (X64), then open it again.

  4. Step 4: Connect your iPhone

    Connect the iPhone with a USB cable and keep it unlocked. If it asks “Trust This Computer?”, tap Trust and enter your passcode. When AirCard shows your iPhone’s name with a green dot at the top right, you’re connected; if it says No device, click Refresh.

    TipSeeing “Apple Mobile Device Support was not found” means Apple’s drivers weren’t found: go back a step and install 64-bit iTunes from Apple’s website.

  5. Step 5: (Optional) Connect over Wi-Fi

    Since v1.2.4 you can work without the cable once it’s set up. With the cable still connected, open the iPhone’s Summary page in iTunes, tick “Sync with this iPhone over Wi-Fi” and click Apply, and keep the PC and iPhone on the same local network. Back in AirCard, click Refresh; once the device shows WiFi, unplug the cable, click Refresh again and choose WiFi only under Transport mode.

    TipThe default, Auto (USB preferred), uses USB first and falls back to Wi-Fi when there’s no cable. If applying over Wi-Fi is unreliable, plug the cable back in and switch back to Auto.

  6. Step 6: Scan the card

    On the Wallet tab, click Scan. Then open Wallet on the iPhone (or double-click the side button to bring up Apple Pay) and tap the card you want to change. Once the Target Card Hash field fills in with a string of characters, click Stop.

    ImportantIf Target Card Hash never fills in, it’s a known bug in v1.2.4: some cards are never detected (issue #33⁠(opens in a new tab)). Wait for an update, or if you have a Mac, use AirCard for Mac.

    TipScanned cards are kept in the Saved cards list, so next time you can pick the same card there without scanning. To change several cards, scan and apply them one at a time.

  7. Step 7: Choose the image

    Click Choose Image... and pick the PNG you downloaded from CardArt. The Wallet Preview on the right shows how it will look.

    TipCardArt images are exactly 1536×969, so nothing gets cropped. Other sizes (PNG, JPG or WebP) are cropped to that ratio — since v1.2.4 you can drag inside the preview to choose which part to keep.

  8. Step 8: Apply

    Click Apply Card Skin and wait for the progress to finish. Keep the iPhone unlocked with the screen on, and don’t unplug the cable. AirCard tries to back up the card’s original face on the PC first, but this usually fails — “continuing without an original backup” in the log means there’s no backup.

  9. Step 9: See the result

    Force-close the Wallet app from the App Switcher, then open Wallet again to see your new card.

    TipTo go back to the original art, make sure Target Card Hash points at the card (pick it from Saved cards). If Restore Original is clickable, click it, then swipe Wallet away and reopen it. If it’s greyed out, there’s no backup — other ways are in “Restore the original art”.

  10. Step 10: If applying gets stuck

    If progress stops at [1/3] and after a minute or two you see “AirTraffic sync timed out”: keep the iPhone unlocked with the screen on, open the Books app on the iPhone once, quit iTunes on the PC, then click Apply Card Skin again.

    TipStill stuck? The drivers are a common cause: uninstall the Microsoft Store version of iTunes and any Apple drivers installed by helpers like 3uTools or i4Tools, reinstall 64-bit iTunes from Apple’s website, restart the PC and reconnect the iPhone. See the project’s issue #8⁠(opens in a new tab).

  11. Done

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