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AirPods don't “just work”

philip.design

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Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#911

Post by hoistbypetard »

The_Colonel wrote: post #431
hoistbypetard wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Some of the complaints OP lists are related to using the Airpods with multiple devices. While the complaints are correct, the Airpods are miles better than any bluetooth earphones I've ever used when it comes to switching sources. The dance to get my old earphones to move from my phone to my tablet was annoying and brittle by comparison.

> the Airpods are miles better than any bluetooth earphones I've ever used when it comes to switching sources I think this just depends on Bluetooth version. My current FreeBuds 4 switch between devices seamlessly, no manual switching needed. With my old headphones I head to switch manually, but it wasn't that much of a bother with a switching widget on the main screen (instead going deep into the settings).

Nice. What bluetooth version gets you the easy switching?

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#912

Post by anothernewdude »

PragmaticPulp wrote: post #47

I generally enjoy my AirPods. They are occasionally quirky, but most of the time they really do “just work” for me. The annoyances are annoying when they happen, though. The strangest part is that the annoyances aren’t getting any better over time. At first I assumed that they were growing pains of an early product launch. Yet now we’re years into the AirPods experience and they continue to be just as quirky as when…

I enjoy my wired headphones. The annoyances I face are one laptop without a headphone port. That's it.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#913

Post by The_Colonel »

hoistbypetard wrote: post #911
The_Colonel wrote: post #431

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> the Airpods are miles better than any bluetooth earphones I've ever used when it comes to switching sources I think this just depends on Bluetooth version. My current FreeBuds 4 switch between devices seamlessly, no manual switching needed. With my old headphones I head to switch manually, but it wasn't that much of a bother with a switching widget on the main screen (instead going deep into the settings).

Nice. What bluetooth version gets you the easy switching?

Found some info here: https://soundguys.com/bluetooth-multipoint-explained-28601/

Apparently it's in Bluetooth 4.0 which is more than 10 years old. But various devices support this to various degrees.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#914

Post by wruza »

frosted-flakes wrote: post #734
wruza wrote: post #566

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Looking at my SE2 right now. What you mean lower quality? (Btw it has no minijack)

Not flagship. Non-OLED screen, single rear camera, no face recognition, smaller battery, etc. GP's requirements were either a fingerprint sensor or headphone jack before switching.

That is called less features, not less quality.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#915

Post by gligorot »

orhmeh09 wrote: post #791
pjerem wrote: post #738

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have to reassure you, the Windows BT stack is actually a pile of garbage. And I’m talking about things like the whole audio system crashing when trying to use my XM4 on any videoconférence software, my Xbox controller randomly disconnecting for several seconds while in game (I play at a At this point I’m starting to believe that even Linux has a better Bluetooth stack than windows and OS X. iOS is okayish but I hav…

I have found for years that Linux offers the best Bluetooth experience. Does Android use their BT stack or do they have their own?

IIRC it’s a custom one. And it was rewritten quite recently, like 4-5 years ago.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#916

Post by richrichardsson »

squeaky-clean wrote: post #545
richrichardsson wrote: post #375

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seems so obvious, how could anyone not realise this after one time of snagging the cord when it's outside of clothing?

This works but then all my music has a muffled rubbing sound from the cable that reaches my ears while I walk around. This is what I used to do, but wireless is still better IMO for headphones on the go.

Admittedly that is an annoying problem, but it's quite simple to arrange the cable as it exits around your neck to stop it happening. I guess it's just a personal preference thing in the end of the day. I personally find wireless annoying on the go, I only use them at my shared office space because they have noise cancelling, so I can keep music at a sensible level and blot out all the background noise; with wired I need the volume at a frankly stupid level to keep me from hearing the office noise.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#917

Post by ho_schi »

Daneel_ wrote: post #850
Gigachad wrote: post #787

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It had some issues where in unplugging and plugging the cable would cause voltage spikes because the pins would get dragged across the wrong connectors and not all be disconnected at once. Which is why you hear that pop when using loudspeakers and (un)plugging the cable. This apparently lead to damage of the speaker over time as well.

Which many devices solved by not sending output to the connector until after it sensed resistance on the pins, then enabled the audio output. So, another problem solved by 3.5mm jacks! God I miss having a real connector on my phone :(

iPhone SE 1st Gen here ^^

Handy in sense of being small enough for a pocket, I can keep it with me during sport and don't feel the need for a Smartwatch. WiFi, Bluetooth, Jack, Accelerometer and GPS. The new iPhones use the same case again, their just bigger, with breakable glas on the back and more expensive. I will not buy a new one - their degraded in all terms.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#918

Post by npteljes »

nsxwolf wrote: post #733
PragmaticPulp wrote: post #47

I generally enjoy my AirPods. They are occasionally quirky, but most of the time they really do “just work” for me. The annoyances are annoying when they happen, though. The strangest part is that the annoyances aren’t getting any better over time. At first I assumed that they were growing pains of an early product launch. Yet now we’re years into the AirPods experience and they continue to be just as quirky as when…

I like "workarounds become a reflex". This is a very succinct way of describing one of the causes of why people often claim to have no issues using something that universally has issues. A great example is the gaming PC vs gaming console war. PC gamers often seem to refuse to admit there's untold little quirks you have to deal with when using a general-purpose operating system and modular hardware to play games. They…

I found the same about moving to GIMP from Photoshop. Granted, Photoshop has more conveniences and fancy features. But a good deal of the frustration is not GIMP's so-called confusing interface, just the habits I formed while using Photoshop. Now that I'm a GIMP user for a time, every time I go back to Photoshop, I find myself annoyed in the same way. I think this just boils down to people's natural resistance to change.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#919

Post by IshKebab »

anderber wrote: post #252
IshKebab wrote: post #188

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have Google's Pixel Bud A series and they have none of these issues to be honest. By far the biggest issue is that they don't let you connect to more than one device simultaneously. Fine if you only use them with your phone, but a pain if you want to use them with a computer too.

Same here. I love my Pixel Buds. However, they are setup on all my devices, I just have to go and pick to connect depending on which device I want to use it with. Not sure if there's a way around that, for any Bluetooth device.

I don't see why it couldn't just maintain connections to two devices simultaneously and mix the audio. I'm pretty sure there are Bluetooth headphones that do do that. Battery life is the only reason I can think of but they should still give the option.

Re: AirPods don't “just work”

#920

Post by piaste »

iso1210 wrote: post #427
piaste wrote: post #256

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That just means your phone's or PC's DAC is crappy compared to the internal one, and any other headphones would sound just as bad. I have an older pair of JBL E55, which are about 50% cheaper than yours, and on a modern phone they sound slightly better on wire than on wireless, presumably because their internal DAC is mediocre.

In theory they could use an ADC to convert the analog input to digital then run through the same DAC as bluetooth goes

If the original device's DAC has produced a shitty analog signal, the best ADC in the world will only be able to turn it into a shitty digital signal.

The strength of a chain is that of its weakest link.

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