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AirPods don't “just work”

philip.design

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Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#361

Post by acomjean »

Wowfunhappy wrote: post #100
dt2m wrote: post #63

All valid annoyances, but I really think OP should try using another brand of Bluetooth headphones for a week just to get some perspective of how well AirPods "just work" compared to the competition. Manually having to re-pair once in every blue moon, one earbud playing while the other isn't, no automatic device switching without having to go through the Settings app everytime, A/V desync, dodgy mic quality, earbuds…

Y’know what headphones really did “just work” though? Wired headphones, circa 2017. Their battery life was infinite. You could “pair” them in seconds to any device with a headphone jack, aka any device, because we’re in 2017. Oh, and they were cheaper and better for the environment. Courage, indeed. And this is why I’m currently typing my comment on an iPhone 6S...

I upgraded my 6s finally.. and the lack of headphone jack is frankly painful. I can’t just plug into my car, home office, and office headphones.. I lost the little dongle..

I think I’m going to buy 3 of those adapters and leave them where I use my headphones. What a waste.

Wireless changing helps the charge while listening though, so that’s a plus.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#362

Post by smoovb »

Back to my $15 Xiaomi Mi earbuds after trying the Airpod pros. While not great for calls, battery life after a year of use is 10x better than the Airpods. Plus a better fit for my ears and 0 fear of loss.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#363

Post by klmr »

TurningCanadian wrote: post #187
klmr wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m a huge fan of the Sony high-end line, and am currently using the WH-1000XM4 myself. They’re excellent, but they do share quite a few of the annoyances listed in the OP article (in particular the delay when going from call to audio and vice versa, and the audio quality degradation; though, truth be told, I believe that’s a macOS issue), and they have their own annoyances. Most prominently, the utterly useless “sec…

I believe the audio quality degradation when using the mic is a limitation of Bluetooth bandwidth. It switches to a different profile capable of sending and receiving audio instead of only receiving.

Yes, it switches to a different audio codec, that’s unavoidable due to bandwidth limitations. However, macOS insists on using a worse codec than necessary (SCO instead of SBC) and, at least with my MX4 headphones, this badly scrambles audio, at least intermittently. I’ve stopped using the headphone microphone because it was unbearable. I’ve tried playing with the bluetooth settings but nothing seems to fix this.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#364

Post by becurious »

break_the_bank wrote: post #299

If there are other runners here, with enough ear sweat the AirPods starts beeping, the noise makes you want to pull the AirPods away immediately. After some cool down they start working again, though my right AirPod now starts "hissing" sooner than it beeps. This is when I run at 100+ Fahrenheit. Still a great product though.

My original AirPods started to not charge reliably. It was corrosion from the sweat from running. I now have a pair of AirPods Pro which are supposed to be sweat resistant but I’m skeptical. If I do a long run in the summer there’s a lot of sweat.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#365

Post by yepthatsreality »

Wowfunhappy wrote: post #100
dt2m wrote: post #63

All valid annoyances, but I really think OP should try using another brand of Bluetooth headphones for a week just to get some perspective of how well AirPods "just work" compared to the competition. Manually having to re-pair once in every blue moon, one earbud playing while the other isn't, no automatic device switching without having to go through the Settings app everytime, A/V desync, dodgy mic quality, earbuds…

Y’know what headphones really did “just work” though? Wired headphones, circa 2017. Their battery life was infinite. You could “pair” them in seconds to any device with a headphone jack, aka any device, because we’re in 2017. Oh, and they were cheaper and better for the environment. Courage, indeed. And this is why I’m currently typing my comment on an iPhone 6S...

You may be interested in the Senheisser Momentum 3’s which have excellent connectivity and a fallback audio cable.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#366

Post by jhaile »

Annoyance 5 is the worst for me: the 5-7 second delay when switching from Mac to phone.

I'm usually on my Mac during the day, Zoom calls, Spotify, etc. Then I get a phone call. If I just answer, it doesn't auto-switch fast enough. And if I manually switch, it regularly doesn't switch at all on the first try. And even when it does switch, there's a 5 second delay while the other person is going "hello? are you there?"

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#367

Post by Beltalowda »

toxik wrote: post #298
Traubenfuchs wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What's the big deal here, Apple? People have been complaining about BEING CAUSED PAIN BY AIRPODS for YEARS and they are not doing anything about it! This being the top rated comment here further proves it's a major issue for airpod users. What the fuck, apple? I am absolutely terrified of that painful sound and will regularly check battery to ensure it won't hit me.

Every. Body. I. Know. that has a pair of AirPods commiserate. I can only assume they know but can't fix it. In fact, why isn't there "adjust volume to surroundings" like there is for brightness? They should KNOW how loud is appropriate based on mic input. Maybe it's for people who drop their earbuds? So it can be heard from a distance? That would certainly explain it... A hack would be to put some foam or so inside t…

Clearly the problem is just with how your ears are constructed, or how you are using your ears. Apple only makes perfect products, after all.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#368

Post by dvtrn »

openknot wrote: post #340
jmacd wrote: post #254

There is something weird about the AirPods Pro product line. I think a lot of us who are very technology focused can appreciate the marvel of engineering that they are. Long battery life, excellent noise cancellation, the right weight, water resistant, etc. By many of my friends and my wife, all of who work in non tech fields but otherwise are 100% apple device people, all seem pretty much not impressed by them. For…

The price of the AirPods Pro ($329 USD, though they go on sale for a significant discount quite a bit) might be a reason. I purchased no-name Bluetooth wireless earphones for ~$55 USD before the AirPods Pro, and they were shockingly good for the price (super small, lightweight, long battery; similar observations that your wife reported about the Nothing headphones). I got the AirPods Pro after that, expecting a massi…

Very similar story with cheaper no-name bluetooth wireless earbuds. Honestly..despite the other complaints in the thread here about regular bluetooth earbuds…I’ve had a MUCH better experience with them than the airpods at doing one thing: being wireless earbuds.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#370

Post by pessimizer »

pohl wrote: post #253
Wowfunhappy wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Y’know what headphones really did “just work” though? Wired headphones, circa 2017. Their battery life was infinite. You could “pair” them in seconds to any device with a headphone jack, aka any device, because we’re in 2017. Oh, and they were cheaper and better for the environment. Courage, indeed. And this is why I’m currently typing my comment on an iPhone 6S...

I prefer not being at the end of a leash. To each, their own.

A hook is so much better than a leash?
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