When AirPods came out, I frankly found the product silly. I've been a long time user of over-ear noise canceling headphones and never really appreciated the idea of fully free earphones. For the last couple of years, I've been using Sony's top of the line 1000x's and although they have build issues, they sound very good. However, I bought the AirPods about a month ago mostly because I needed a headphone for the sweaty summer months that basically make using over-ears a living hell. Despite the weather getting colder, I'm still mainly using them. Here's why...
The first thing I love about the AirPods is the convenience. Size is a huge part of this because unlike my big bulky Sony's which I always had to wear around my neck, Apple's offering easily fit in the pocket of my jeans. Just to get this out of the way, unless your insane the battery life is fine. I've never run out of power on them and the case provides a decent amount of extra charge. They also tend to be significantly easy to pair, but this will only be true if you use solely apple products. They connect almost instantly to my phone and will switch almost instantly between my devices(1).
They're also comfortable, at least they are for me. AirPods have the same issues all apple earbuds have had for the longest time which is that they don't fit the same in everybody's ear (2). In my case, they fit wonderfully and I can workout and go about my day without them ever falling out. In some of my friends cases, they have to buy third party ear hooks just to use them without going insane. This fit issue also relates to the next point, sound.
I'm going to say it rn, I like how the AirPods sound. I've used the HD 650's which are an industry standard in audiophile headphones for about 5 years now so I know what great sound is like and the AirPods have shocked me over the past month. They present a surprisingly balanced sound for their size and they sound decent for most music. I know there's an idea out there that these thing's don't sound good and I think that's coming from two places. As I mentioned earlier, they fit me exceedingly well and studies have shown that fit with earbuds is a huge part of perceived sound quality. Many of my friends who report fit issues also are the same ones saying they don't sound great (2). There may also be those wanting a better seal who are disappointed and while I get that, AirPods aren't the product for them (3). Another reason is definitely bass. They sound far more comparable to audiophile bass than to beats bass and I think there are some consumers out there who wanted that and are disappointed.
Okay, I've said some good and some bad but I think I need to clarify a bit of the bad. First, let's talk about switching between devices (1). I already mentioned they do this quickly once initiated but I didn't mention that initiating a switch between devices is needlessly complicated. You have to go through menus on all apple products if you want to natively switch your AirPods from device to device. This feels weird considering the fact that apple has a prompt come up on iPhone that they could easily make into a touch to pair option and they could easily program this to also come up on Mac. It doesn't make sense, but I'm not going to take off a star because it's software and it could be fixed. Apple has a vested interest in making these apple chip based products better and I wouldn't be shocked if this is to change with AirPods 3. Also, tip for Mac users, get an app called battery stats for AirPods that will not only allow you to see your AirPods battery life on Mac but will also allow you to more easily pair them.
Second thing I want to mention is the fit (2). I said they're like normal apple EarPods in that they don't stay in everybody's ears the same and while that's true, it's not exactly the same. I'm pretty sure that the AirPods are definitely a bit better at staying in peoples ears than the normal pods and I'm certain that they're sporting different internals to make for this better audio experience I mentioned. Also, the lack of isolation (3). I don't know why cancelation came up in my review thing as one of the features but AirPods do not have this. One of the things special about the AirPods is the technology where you can take out an AirPod and they stop the music instantly (a bit clunky but fun). This really is only possible though with a less isolating design because they have to be removable from ones ears almost instantly and that's not really possible with modern tech. Also, I know AirPods 3 is getting rumored up the wazzoo rn so if you really need this feature and you only want one pair of headphones, wait for that I guess. They're supposedly more expensive but that makes sense if they're going to be your only pair of headphones. For me, I have my big boys for that still so I don't really need to worry about that but I understand that as a reason to not buy AirPods.
For me, AirPods do everything I need and more. Some things are a bit clunky and others aren't. I can't recommend them if you either live in a noisy environment and want something noise canceling but they are a great addition if you already have that. Overall, great product and sorry if the review as in anyway confusing. I wanted to get all of my thoughts out there on this product because I actually genuinely enjoy it despite a few small issues.
PS. The case is kind of fragile, but it works. Don't fidget with the top because the hinge is kinda trash and I personally would see it breaking.
Compare Apple AirPods
| Price | From: - | From: $79.99 | From: - | From: $449.99 |
| Ratings | (86,774) | (614,573) | (300,575) | (13,329) |
| Fit | Universal | Universal | Customizable | Customizable |
| Active Noise Cancellation | - | - |
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| H1 chip |
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| Hey Siri | Always on | Always on | Always on | Always on |
| Sweat and water resistant | - | - |
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| Battery life (listening time on one charge) | Up to 5 hours of listening time | Up to 5 hours of listening time | Up to 4.5 hours of listening time | Up to 20 hours of listening time |
| Battery life (listening time with charging case) | More than 24-hours | More than 24-hours | More than 24-hours | - |
| Bluetooth |
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| LED Charging Light Location | Front of case | Top of case | Front of case | - |
| Qi Compatible |
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| Adaptive EQ | - | - |
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Reviews with images
airpods ftw
i've tested out the 2nd gen airpods before, and it was what prompted me to buy this model while they were on sale for black friday. every now and then there is a random pause or glitch with the audio, but i mostly blame this on my device (currently have the iphone 7 plus) because the audio has been doing this before i got these airpods.the volume is much louder than the earpods you get with a new phone, and much more comfortable than the wires. there isn't exactly "noise cancellation" with these headphones if that's what you're looking for. i recommend getting the later generations for that.i also recommend getting airpods with the wireless charging case if you're someone who can't always be near an outlet or you don't have a portable charger. the battery life is pretty long-- especially the case. 5 hours of listening only lasts for so long though...was also happy to learn you can connect airpods to other devices that aren't apple products like a windows PC.tl;dr: great sound quality. comfortable fit. no noise cancellation. good battery life (especially the case). able to connect to devices that aren't apple products.in conclusion, definitely satisfied with my purchase.
