The big additions: 50% more talk time, hands free Siri, and a new optional wireless charging case.
Just curious, anyone using Siri regularly these days? If so, how/for what? I keep trying Siri every once in a while but it doesn’t seem to stick. Only use I find is setting an alarm now and then, but I still often just open the app to do it manually.
I would preferentially use Siri over Alexa for controlling/setting my lights/thermostat/alarms/timers, but alas, the 12" MacBook still doesn't have hands-free Siri, so instead I use Alexa on one of my Sonos speakers.
OK I'm really impressed that they stay in while running. Do normal apple earbuds fit your ears really well as well (for me they are the worst earbuds shape-wise of all time), or is it just the design of the airpods that is helping here?
For me, they fit better than wired buds. I think that as the other commenter suggests, the weight is a factor.
I've always had issues with nearly every wired form factor earbuds. Sweat and movement was always an issue. I ended up giving Yurbuds a try and they are very snug and the same pair has lasted even through a couple marathon training programs.
> Put them in your ears and they connect immediately, immersing you in rich, high-quality sound. Just like magic. I completely disagree with this. It isn’t magic at all. Mine hardly ever work this smooth. Especially transitioning from my iPhone to MacBook Pro. I constantly have to go into bluetooth, manually select them, and even that usually takes a few tries. I like my Earpods from a sound quality perspective but t…
> I completely disagree with this. It isn’t magic at all. Mine hardly ever work this smooth. Mine always work perfectly. Now, if you were on the iPhone, and you want to use them on the Mac, with the iPhone still nearby connected to them, I'm not sure what you'd expect. For them to magically guess your intention?
My Bose QC35s do this very well. They connect to both my iPhone and MacBook via Bluetooth, and if I am listening to a podcast on my iPhone, and get a WebEx/Slack/Etc call on my MacBook, I pause the podcast and answer the call, and it switches between the two seamlessly -- I don't need to do anything.
I really believe the AirPods are an amazing New platform.. I think people are far more on the go lately and so the AirPods are a perfect way to consume content, that isn’t just music. It started as a silly joke that everyone made fun of but now, at least where I live in NYC, seemingly everyone on every train has them on. I am a little disappointed in Apple for not adding storage to these though, it wouldn’t be very h…
I'm surprised with how people enjoy AirPods in the city, seeing as they don't block any noise and are functionally useless in any noisy environment (trains, streets, etc). I liked the form factor, but couldn't hear anything out of them unless I was on max volume.
If Apple made IEM-like AirPods, I'd definitely jump back in.
My iPhone came with one of those adapters. I just leave it attached to my headphones. Not a big deal.
I have an iPhone X, and a new iPad. Each has a separate port type, and the iPad didn't come with an adapter. My wife's newest gen iPhone didn't come with an adapter, it had to be purchased separately.
Your wife’s phone came with headphones that didn’t work with her phone?
Behold, the airpods internals. A marvel of incredibly small scale engineering and manufacturing. It's simply stunning, and to think that this is a consumer device that you can buy and pop into your ear.... And lose just as easily :)
What do you see as being the ideal UX for switching between devices?
Not OP, but... Start by listening to something on my iPhone. Sit down and turn off music on my iPhone. Open up my laptop. It unlocks with my Apple Watch. I pop open iTunes or Spotify, hit play with my Air Pods still in. This could also work with my iPad as well. I open my iPad, stop playing stuff on my iPhone, and start playing something on my iPad. I shouldn't have to swap. Apple knows it's me and knows which device…
Why swap between devices AT ALL? What's with the "concern" that your music is playing from a single device?
I don't quite understand, is there some mental gymnastics being done to figure out the device you're using isn't the device playing music? Shouldn't matter anyway, since you have completely playback control either from your Apple Watch or the AirPods themselves.
For me, they fit better than wired buds. I think that as the other commenter suggests, the weight is a factor.
I've always had issues with nearly every wired form factor earbuds. Sweat and movement was always an issue. I ended up giving Yurbuds a try and they are very snug and the same pair has lasted even through a couple marathon training programs.
I will never run with anything wired. It is too dangerous for someone as clumsy as me. I will keep using the AirPods and replace them annually if necessary.
There's a case to be made for their shortcomings, but this is more of a "No wireless, less space than a Nomad. Lame" style critique, not seeing anything about their unique proposition, and criticizing them for what they are not even supposed to be (e.g. high-end or noise cancelling). Some of those things are not faults with the Airpods, but personal taste which can be satisfied with another headphone/brand. > These a…
I disagree on the best in class. Apples insistence on hard plastic means they give up the proven best choice for sound isolation (silicone or foam buds). Claiming it is a feature to save lives is a stretch. There’s plenty of better sounding fully wireless headphones in that price range - Jabra elite 65t are meant to be good, I have the beoplay e8 and they are quite nice, Sennheiser momentum are in that same price cla…
Best in class not for the sound quality (which is just a little better than Apple's wired earbuds).
For the "lightweight, minimum BT-connectivity fuss, no wires, BT earbuds" category, which they basically kick-started and dominate.