Live data from Hacker News

AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

apple.com

191–200 of 509 posts

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#191

It's wild how much money Apple has made from Bluetooth headphones that don't suck. That's literally it. They're portable, pair easily and (somewhat) work with multiple devices. I have top of the line Bose Bluetooth headphones that still, in 2022, have issues with multiple devices. I can't count how many times I've started playing music on my iPhone only to realize that the headphones think my laptop is playing, so th…

It’s upsetting how (non-AirPods) device switching — even Bluetooth 5 multipoint — is still just meh.

Some devices accept connect requests and gracefully disconnect from the current device (good but manual), some just ignore them, some don’t gracefully disconnect causing the original device to ping-pong reconnect, etc. And “real” BT5 multipoint can also break if an app happens to use “phone call” audio priority, and you get yanked off the second device.

The only device I have that does it well (and with non-Apple platforms) is an Xbox Wireless Headset, and that’s only because it literally has 2 wireless audio chipsets connected at the same time: Xbox Audio and Bluetooth. Sadly that means it’s also 2x the power and 0.5x the battery life.

But yeah, switching from iPhone to iPad with AirPods is really nice. I wish I had that on Windows (without MagicPods).

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#192
post #15

Adaptive Transparency is such a promising feature. I would love if transparency mode could eliminate the sound of noises like air conditioners, road noise, and construction while still being "transparent". It seems that, as of now, it's limited to loud noises only. I hope it at least eliminates the hear-loss-causing pops that occur when you have loud, brief clicking noises like that of a bug zapper. For older models,…

The fact that setting a maximum loudness level is not the first step of configuration when you pair new AirPods is still beyond me.

That doesn't work. I set my iPhone to cap sounds at 85db but I guess it doesn't cap the passthrough noise from transparency. In the case of the bug zapper, it actually amplifies it.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#193
post #190

I'm still not convinced that Bluetooth earbuds are safe, and yes, I'm aware they don't produce ionizing radiation. No one here is concerned about having them in your ear canal for hours every day for years is essentially no worse than wearing a hat that keeps your head equally warm? What is the most convincing, clear evidence of a lack of long term health issues?

Plenty of RF signals are going through your body right now -- what makes bluetooth here particularly dangerous in your opinion?

Concerns come after some form of adverse reaction. I personally only have them in for 2-3 hours per day, and don't think of the bluetooth much.

We won't have long term data for years, and that's just the reality. Even with long-term data, trying to hone in specific health problems to Airpods or similar devices will be incredibly difficult.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#194

It's wild how much money Apple has made from Bluetooth headphones that don't suck. That's literally it. They're portable, pair easily and (somewhat) work with multiple devices. I have top of the line Bose Bluetooth headphones that still, in 2022, have issues with multiple devices. I can't count how many times I've started playing music on my iPhone only to realize that the headphones think my laptop is playing, so th…

Uninstall the Bose app? I never installed it, and my Bose QC35ii headphones work better than my airpod pros. With the airpods, they will almost always bind to the wrong device until I go into settings and force a connection. The Bose connects to both, and actually works..

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#195

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah. I remember my reason for switching to AirPods Max. My Sony xm3 kept connecting to the laptop in my backpack - which was asleep - when I was getting on my bike. I had to unpair my phone and re-pair it to force it to "own" the headphones. It was such a pita. That really was the biggest value add of the Apple headphones, and it works absolutely great. It almost (a 99.5%+ kind of almost) always connects to the devi…

I have an XM3 also. Only occasionally does it try to pair with the wrong device. That might have a lot to do with me turning bluetooth off on unused devices though. However, in the rare instances where it does connect to the wrong device, I hold the power button down which forces it to enter pairing mode and disconnect. And almost always, the device I want to use will then connect. It hasn't happened often enough to…

>That might have a lot to do with me turning bluetooth off on unused devices though

Well, duh!

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#196
post #190

I'm still not convinced that Bluetooth earbuds are safe, and yes, I'm aware they don't produce ionizing radiation. No one here is concerned about having them in your ear canal for hours every day for years is essentially no worse than wearing a hat that keeps your head equally warm? What is the most convincing, clear evidence of a lack of long term health issues?

If your concern isn't radiation, then is there a specific bluetooth issue or is it in-ear headphones in general? Certainly anything that can cause a build-up of earwax can result in other issues. So if you're wearing them for long stretches daily, there's a potential issue if these devices go deep enough (I don't know if they do).

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#197

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Why the hell can't you just tell the headphones to play from the phone and keep the laptop connected? This is something that baffled me on Windows and MacOS, but I don't seem to experience on Linux/Android/iOS. Windows was particularly "greedy"; whenever you'd turn on your headphones it would attempt to steal the connection away (even booting other multipoint connections off). MacOS is slightly more graceful, but s…

The Windows Bluetooth stack is terrible. Ludicrously bad. Last time I looked, it had four times the latency of iOS with the exact same headphones.

It’s complicated, but basically, when audio is playing (I.e. new audio session) that’s when the BT headphones wake up. So you can get horrible initial delay (and missed audio in some configurations), unless you just broadcast a null signal to keep the connection alive.

I’m assuming that’s why all the popular USB “Bluetooth audio with aptX” all identify as an audio device and handle pairing etc. on their own. (Despite Windows’ stack having aptX support)

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#198

I adore the OG airpods, but the pro model disappointed me bigtime. They are always falling out of my ears, specifically my left ear which seems to be a little bit smaller. I tried aftermarket tips to no avail.

I had the same experience, loved my AirPods but the Pros never fit well and the left side would fall out, returned within the 14-day return period.

The 2nd gen AirPods have a better UI, too: wearing mittens, with a hat over the AirPods, I could tap them to play/pause or skip tracks. This is impossible on newer AirPods. Siri is good, but isn’t as quick or convenient as a physical interface.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#199
post #150

Quoted post unavailable.

I've been using the same airpods v2 since some time in 2019 and whenever I end up replacing them, I won't really feel much regret at the small amount of e-waste they produce. I mean, I probably come across 2 or 3 e-cigarette things each time I take my dog for a walk.

I don't mean to engage in whataboutism but I've used those airpods for hundreds of hours. Seems like a pretty reasonable lifespan to me.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#200
post #4

How do “computational algorithms” differ from other kinds of algorithms employed in headphones?

Not to say that this would be a good idea, or that anyone does headphones this way, but you could implement PID control with analog circuits. Capacitors, resistors, and Op-amps.
Post reply on HN