AirPods Pro (2nd Generation) • Hacker News Board

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#371

Post by specialist » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 12:53 AM UTC

joshstrange wrote: post #29

kapsel wrote: post #12

I love my AirPod Pros, but I hate how unreliable charging in the case is. The AirPods will often think they are out of the case, when they are, and discharge themselves, while connected to my phone/laptop. Then they will re-charge, emptying the battery in the case, so I will end up with a dead pair of AirPods after a couple of days in the pocket, not using them. I guess their tolerances are too tight, hopefully somet…

They said there will now be (I assume, optional) audio cues when you put your AirPods in the case to let you know they are charging, not sure if that will help or not. I agree with you though. It seems like it would be a really easy thing for Apple to check if 1 headphone was in the case (that it knew of) and the other wasn't but also that you weren't playing music/audio so it could warn you. I added a battery widget…

+1 to audio cues.

Also, I want a "cry baby" mode. If a device is left idle, eventually it'll start "crying" to be placed onto the charger.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#372

Post by jeremy_wiebe » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:04 AM UTC

ballenf wrote: post #231

cafed00d wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All of this has a super simple explanation: the shitty products always have org structures that treat software dev as shitty cost centers. It took a long time to realize that the most compelling devices have good, well maintained software. I don’t mean to say that software devs are geniuses or that these orgs have to hire the best of the best. No, they just need to create an org that prioritizes software dev. Low att…

I'd prefer a hardware switch over pure software anyway. A toggle on the headphones -- a slide switch for Device A or B. (Auto software switching would be better if it worked 99%+ of the time.)

A cord used to plug into whichever device you want to listen to would also work and be correct 100% of the time… barring user error.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#373

Post by adave » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:06 AM UTC

cafed00d wrote: post #152

hardwaregeek wrote: post #26

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…

All of this has a super simple explanation: the shitty products always have org structures that treat software dev as shitty cost centers. It took a long time to realize that the most compelling devices have good, well maintained software. I don’t mean to say that software devs are geniuses or that these orgs have to hire the best of the best. No, they just need to create an org that prioritizes software dev. Low att…

It's not just the software but how all of it comes together and leadership priorities. https://www.fastcompany.com/90748492/apple-airpods-pro-creat...

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#374

Post by dev_tty01 » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:07 AM UTC

epolanski wrote: post #277

s3r3nity wrote: post #179

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think you're 85-90% right - but I wouldn't undersell the impact of Apple's proprietary W1 / H1 / H2 chips in their headphones either.

Nobody cares about those, not to the point of paying such premiums.

I don't agree, but even if someone thinks they don't care they actually do since the custom silicon is no small part of why the multi-device stuff works so well. Not to mention the noise cancellation, transparency mode, etc. Sure, you buy because of the characteristics, but the characteristics are due to the custom silicon.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#375

Post by dev_tty01 » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:09 AM UTC

tshaddox wrote: post #284

theshrike79 wrote: post #251

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My Airpods Max connect to 5 different devices daily. What kind of switch would you suggest they use?

A 3-bit DIP switch would do the job.

I assume this is sarcasm. If not, there is much to learn about making consumers happy.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#376

Post by mbreese » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:09 AM UTC

jolux wrote: post #356

tinus_hn wrote: post #339

Earlier quoted context omitted.

For some reason on Windows AirPods show up as two different types of devices (not left and right) one of which sounds very bad with a lot of noise. And of course if you connect AirPods with your iPhone and your Windows laptop they’ll start fighting over who gets to connect.

I believe the different Bluetooth codecs show up as different devices under Windows, so I assume the noisy one is the one for calls. Not sure exactly why it’s like this.

Windows and Bluetooth headphones just don’t work well together, regardless of manufacturer. And good luck of the headphones also have a mic and support the headset profile.

I recently went through this with a new Windows laptop. It was quite a shock after being in the Mac world for years how bad an experience Windows and headphones is.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#377

Post by vlovich123 » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:10 AM UTC

cafed00d wrote: post #152

hardwaregeek wrote: post #26

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…

All of this has a super simple explanation: the shitty products always have org structures that treat software dev as shitty cost centers. It took a long time to realize that the most compelling devices have good, well maintained software. I don’t mean to say that software devs are geniuses or that these orgs have to hire the best of the best. No, they just need to create an org that prioritizes software dev. Low att…

It's also possible that their Bluetooth stack for the AirPods is likely sharing a lot of code with their battle-tested iOS stack which puts even Android's to shame (I worked at both places and even Googler's acknowledged Android has some serious problems and Apple kicked there ass here).

A sibling noted the H1 chip and whatnot. I don't know how much the specific chip matters for that piece (certainly key for battery life & having both buds appear as a single device). After all, their Bluetooth stack was better than the competition even back when they were using off the shelf chips. Still, it's possible off the shelf chips for acting as the master are somehow simpler than the chips for acting as a slave (or maybe you notice it more).

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#378

Post by leetbulb » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:14 AM UTC

aqme28 wrote: post #232

8ytecoder wrote: post #122

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’ve seen people minimize the usability of the AirPods. My dad who’s quite technology-averse, figured it out in 2 minutes while I helped him over FaceTime. The only reason he agreed to even try it was because the wired EarPods broke. Since then he just loves his AirPods.

This is Apple’s strength in general. Much easier for older folks to use.

Not even older folks. The technologically exhausted, too. I write code for a living and hack on hardware as a hobby. When I go on a walk or just want to chill out, I absolutely love when this kind of stuff just works. I will (and do) pay a massive premium for that. Major respect to the developers, it's obviously a feat. The haters can go recompile gentoo :)

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#379

Post by CDSlice » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:17 AM UTC

tinus_hn wrote: post #339

MBCook wrote: post #320

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. You put them in the case, hold the one button (basically the “pair” button) for a sec, and connect from your device. Bam. Work perfectly after that.

For some reason on Windows AirPods show up as two different types of devices (not left and right) one of which sounds very bad with a lot of noise. And of course if you connect AirPods with your iPhone and your Windows laptop they’ll start fighting over who gets to connect.

This isn’t an AirPods specific issue, it’s a Windows issue. My laptop does the same thing with my galaxy buds where it shows two devices when I connect them. One of them uses the Bluetooth profile for headphones which sounds decent and the other uses the profile for headsets which sounds like garbage but that is needed in order to have the bandwidth to use the built in mic.

Re: AirPods Pro (2nd Generation)

#380

Post by rhexs » Thu, Sep 08, 2022, 1:19 AM UTC

speedylight wrote: post #359

I really want to buy a pair of AirPods, but I’ve been hesitant to because hearing in my left ear is seemingly slowly fading away and I think it was partly because I use to wear EarBuds at max volume all of the time when I was a teen. I know Apple has a headphone safety feature which limits the maximum dB they’re outputting; Even then I always feel super guilty that I might be damaging my hearing further whenever I us…

See an audiologist and ask what they think about the volume limit.