Apple AirPods with Wireless Charging Case

When AirPods came out, I frankly found the product silly. I've been a long time user of over-ear noise canceling headphones and never really appreciated the idea of fully free earphones. For the last couple of years, I've been using Sony's top of the line 1000x's and although they have build issues, they sound very good. However, I bought the AirPods about a month ago mostly because I needed a headphone for the sweaty summer months that basically make using over-ears a living hell. Despite the weather getting colder, I'm still mainly using them. Here's why... The first thing I love about the AirPods is the convenience. Size is a huge part of this because unlike my big bulky Sony's which I always had to wear around my neck, Apple's offering easily fit in the pocket of my jeans. Just to get this out of the way, unless your insane the battery life is fine. I've never run out of power on them and the case provides a decent amount of extra charge. They also tend to be significantly easy to pair, but this will only be true if you use solely apple products. They connect almost instantly to my phone and will switch almost instantly between my devices(1). They're also comfortable, at least they are for me. AirPods have the same issues all apple earbuds have had for the longest time which is that they don't fit the same in everybody's ear (2). In my case, they fit wonderfully and I can workout and go about my day without them ever falling out. In some of my friends cases, they have to buy third party ear hooks just to use them without going insane. This fit issue also relates to the next point, sound. I'm going to say it rn, I like how the AirPods sound. I've used the HD 650's which are an industry standard in audiophile headphones for about 5 years now so I know what great sound is like and the AirPods have shocked me over the past month. They present a surprisingly balanced sound for their size and they sound decent for most music. I know there's an idea out there that these thing's don't sound good and I think that's coming from two places. As I mentioned earlier, they fit me exceedingly well and studies have shown that fit with earbuds is a huge part of perceived sound quality. Many of my friends who report fit issues also are the same ones saying they don't sound great (2). There may also be those wanting a better seal who are disappointed and while I get that, AirPods aren't the product for them (3). Another reason is definitely bass. They sound far more comparable to audiophile bass than to beats bass and I think there are some consumers out there who wanted that and are disappointed. Okay, I've said some good and some bad but I think I need to clarify a bit of the bad. First, let's talk about switching between devices (1). I already mentioned they do this quickly once initiated but I didn't mention that initiating a switch between devices is needlessly complicated. You have to go through menus on all apple products if you want to natively switch your AirPods from device to device. This feels weird considering the fact that apple has a prompt come up on iPhone that they could easily make into a touch to pair option and they could easily program this to also come up on Mac. It doesn't make sense, but I'm not going to take off a star because it's software and it could be fixed. Apple has a vested interest in making these apple chip based products better and I wouldn't be shocked if this is to change with AirPods 3. Also, tip for Mac users, get an app called battery stats for AirPods that will not only allow you to see your AirPods battery life on Mac but will also allow you to more easily pair them. Second thing I want to mention is the fit (2). I said they're like normal apple EarPods in that they don't stay in everybody's ears the same and while that's true, it's not exactly the same. I'm pretty sure that the AirPods are definitely a bit better at staying in peoples ears than the normal pods and I'm certain that they're sporting different internals to make for this better audio experience I mentioned. Also, the lack of isolation (3). I don't know why cancelation came up in my review thing as one of the features but AirPods do not have this. One of the things special about the AirPods is the technology where you can take out an AirPod and they stop the music instantly (a bit clunky but fun). This really is only possible though with a less isolating design because they have to be removable from ones ears almost instantly and that's not really possible with modern tech. Also, I know AirPods 3 is getting rumored up the wazzoo rn so if you really need this feature and you only want one pair of headphones, wait for that I guess. They're supposedly more expensive but that makes sense if they're going to be your only pair of headphones. For me, I have my big boys for that still so I don't really need to worry about that but I understand that as a reason to not buy AirPods. For me, AirPods do everything I need and more. Some things are a bit clunky and others aren't. I can't recommend them if you either live in a noisy environment and want something noise canceling but they are a great addition if you already have that. Overall, great product and sorry if the review as in anyway confusing. I wanted to get all of my thoughts out there on this product because I actually genuinely enjoy it despite a few small issues. PS. The case is kind of fragile, but it works. Don't fidget with the top because the hinge is kinda trash and I personally would see it breaking.

Some folks think that if you're sporting Apple's wireless earbuds, you are just trying to "look cool". While you WILL look awesome with these bad boys, that's not the reason to buy them! They are the high-quality type of product you'd expect from Apple. Even though they're very lightweight and feel like they could fly out of your ears at any second, they are surprisingly sturdy and have yet to come out uninvited (unless you forget to take them out whilst taking off a shirt). They last a good little bit but never fear those long uses. After a pile of minutes in the handy case/charger, you'll be back in business. Here's a quick battery warning: if you do not return the buds to the charger, they will die. The case, however, can recharge them for several different uses. I probably use them at least 3-4 hours a day and can get through almost the entire week without recharging the case. This model has the wireless charging capability as well, so if you're down with that tech, you're set. The sound is really good for what these are. You don't have some big cups a la Beats, so it's tough to get the nice heavy bass sound and some of the depth of the mid-range. That being said, they try their best and you do get some pretty sweet quality. The mics seem fine. I've had complaints of echoes (couldn't figure out other than disconnect/reconnect) on very rare occasion. Most of the time, folks can hear my AC blasting in the heat of summer, but it apparently does not diminish the quality of the voice. The only complaint I have is that you sometimes have BlueTooth connectivity issues if you're rolling with an Apple Watch as well. A couple of rules that seem to make things more consistent: Always connect them while on the home screen, wait until you see the AirPods screen before taking a pod out, listen for the chime that lets you know it detected being in your ear, and then you're good to go. There is a slight learning curve with these, but once you get the system down, you have some amazing sound from a really convenient device.

I have wanted AirPods for a while now. I LOVE THESE! Please allow me to compare to AirPod Pros though... My husband bought me the AirPod Pros for Christmas this year. I was so quickly let down by the functionality, but pushed myself to keep them and use them because I felt awful as they were a gift. Info you should know before I continue: I currently have the apple XS Max for a phone, and the series 5 Apple Watch. It took me 2 weeks to learn that if my watch was connected to my phone via Bluetooth, the Pros would freeze my phone apps when they were connected. So, I had to turn off Bluetooth on my watch, then connect my Pros, and then reconnect my watch because it drained the battery otherwise. Once connected, they worked “ok-ish”. They never read my texts to me as they should have. They always ended my calls at the slightest movement of my head. And I could never switch from one to the other without having to go through the entire connection process again. On top of that mess, they were TOO noise cancelling. I couldn’t hear anything going on around me when I used them. Which I’m sure some people would love, but not me. Lastly, NO ONE could hear me on the phone when I used them. I felt like I had to yell all the time. So - I sucked it up and bought myself these. THEY ARE AMAZING!!! They connected to my watch AND my phone as soon as I took them out of the box! They read my texts to me when I’m driving and allow me to voice text back without even touching my phone. Everyone can hear me perfectly now, and can’t even tell when I’m using them. They sit so much nicer in my ears, and I can hear everything seamlessly. I can switch from one to the other without any issues at all! I used to be the type to always go with the latest version of tech. I have learned that is not always the best choice! My opinion - stick to the basics! Don’t waste the extra money on the “newest and coolest” LOL

Are use mine with an Apple iPhone. These are exceptionally good. I bought some Aha silicon ear hooks. These AirPods 2 using the Aha ear hooks keep them in position & are great. Other reviewers have mentioned improvement of sound, I think the Aha ear hooks do not reduce these AirPods sounds, but I don’t notice any enhancements either. The Aha hooks do not interfere with functions such as stopping the sounds when removed from your ear. These AHA’s must be removed for charging. The removal/replacement takes about 5 minutes. These AirPods 2 pair with Siri such that they pause, resume play skip tracks & change volume. When listening to streaming music, currently using Amazon Unlimited, free for 3 months with purchase, I do not need to adjust any of the features referred other than saying 1) “Alexis” to have features supported by Amazon Music or 2) “Hey Siri”. Uncertain as to selecting playlists, Artists or stations. Some luck so far but these requests have been hit or miss. Perhaps Apple streaming will be more compatible. The battery seems to last 4+ hours. The batteries fully recharge by placing them in their charging case for 15 minutes. These Apple products also allows for making phone calls from your contacts by verbal commands. I am composing this review after just returning from an hour bike ride. I had no need to touch my iPhone during the entire ride. These AIRPODS 2 when paired with my iPhone 6 Plus put & keep aa smile on my face.

Update: So I still love these earbuds but they have a place. Since I started using these I’ve bought the AirPods Pro too and because of that and the use of Jabra Elite 65T Active I’ve decided these have their own place. So I live in an area with all 4 seasons. So I run outside in the cold along with when it is warm. Despite the fact that these are not rated as water or sweet resistant at all I decided to go ahead and try them. For me these stay put really good in my ear (for running and normal use). They will not work well for functional training and will probably fall out. Their sound quality compared to the Jabra and even better the AirPods Pro are much more flat. Not much base at all in these. So the place I’ve decided to place these in my life. If I’m in an atmosphere where I want to hear what is going on around me I still prefer these over the AirPods Pro which have the “transparency mode”. Also as I’m running outside I love the transparency mode on the AirPods Pro (AirPods Pro put their “hear through” feature on the Jabra Elite 65 T to shame). But that being said if I’m wearing a winter hat you can hear the hat rubbing on the mics on the AirPods Pro. You don’t get that with these. So I’ll wear these while wearing a hat when running during colder weather and I’m still able to hear my surroundings without any distortion. So for pairing, once paired these things are amazing. I can walk around my entire house and not have any drops. Now, Apple’s claim to fame is Airplay and the ability for you AirPods to switch seamlessly between Apple devices. Well it doesn’t really work as seamless as they would like or we would like. There are many times where I will switch to my Apple Watch to stream music to my AirPods and only one of the AirPods connect. And something that has happened maybe twice they were not even recognizable. The fix always seems to be just putting them back in the case, closing the lid, waiting a second or two and then it works. It is just weird because there seems to be no reason to this problem. It is completely random to even which single AirPod it connects to. I haven’t removed a star for this fact because although annoying at times it still is a simple fix and a solid connection once they connect. I hope this update helps. I have had way to many wireless earbuds during my time on this Earth. These have become my all-time favorite all-day buds. Great sound quality and by far the most comfortable. I've worn them almost all day for the last 2 days to put them through their paces. No ear fatigue and great battery life. Also charges quickly in the case. The only thing I wish was they were at least "water resistant". Because of that these will not be my running we arbuds. In that case my go to will still be the Jabra 65t Elite Active. They have slightly better sound quality because of the adjustable EQ and awesome water resitance. Their drawback is because of their snug fit they really aren't comfortable for all day wear. Either way these buds and the Jabra are the best I've ever used. I hope this helps.

They just work. Just like everything else Apple, as soon as you open them they pair up with all your devices within minutes and it’s just smooth sailing from there. So easy to use, so wonderfully convenient, I can’t believe it took me so long to get a pair. And they’re so light and comfortable I find I just leave them in my ears even when I’m not using them. -Sound quality is clear, crisp and balanced. Much like the EarPods, just very good useable sound. -Phone calls are super clear, no issues from the other end either. -Connectivity is fantastic, love how quickly they can switch between all your Apple devices. Connection is strong from anywhere in my house. -Case is super light and small, easy to carry around everywhere CONS -No volume control. Bummer. I really do like quickly reaching up to tweak the volume on my buds. -Battery life could be longer. A full 8 hour work day would be great - tons of cheap buds have 10-15 hour battery life, feels like they could do better than 5. But in the end, it’s not a huge deal since every time you’re not using them they’re charging up in the case. -A bit of noise cancelling would be nice. But I guess you’ve got to go Pros for that. Almost perfect. But hey, I still love and use them all the tine. 👌

I'm impressed by these headphones, but at that price, I would have to be. I normally like wired headphones because they are just more reliable - no charge level to worry about, if they fall out, they're still connected, etc., but there are some things that wires become a problem for. So I thought I'd try the wireless ear buds. 1. Comfort 5/5. These are as good a fit as the wired Apple ear buds. I *hate* those little silicon inserts that the pro earbuds use and nearly all Android earbuds use as well. These are shaped hard plastic that fit snugly in the outside of my ear without making me feel like I have ear wax clogging my ear canal. 2. Sound 4/5. I generally listen to audiobooks and phone calls, not music. (For music, I prefer full room sounds, not something so close to my ear.) These earbuds are adequate for that. 3. Microphone 3/5. I wouldn't think the mic is a problem - phone calls are always fine with it, but for some reason I can't get the mic to work with Duolingo (a foreign language app that has some spoken tests) 4. Technology 4/5. Cool things about these earbuds: * they detect when they're in your ear. You can set them to resume playing when you put them in and they can pause when you take them out. 5/5 * double-tap the earbud for different actions. I like using it to pause and resume. I wish I could configure the skip back to be 15 seconds rather than the whole song/chapter 4/5 * the case is also the charging device. You can charge the case itself up, but whenever you put the earbuds away, they charge back up from the battery stored in their case. It's very convenient! 5/5 5 Improvements. I wish these were a bit more configurable, and not so focused on music listening, but also supporting audiobook listening. * I would like to configure the skip ahead/skip back to be a number of seconds (this could also be handled by Audible if it would introduce an auto-skip back of 5 seconds whenever you are interrupted, but that's a different complaint). * I wish I could control the volume using the earbuds. I'm not sure how, but since they're touch-sensitive, maybe they would be able to track my finger sliding up and down along the earbud? Anyway, the only way to control volume is using your phone. Overall, I'm happy with these. I got them new with a discount on Amazon, which means no free custom engraving from Apple, but I don't really care about that, so the $50 savings was better. These are very expensive and I don't think I would recommend them unless you have some money saved up for an extravagant purchase, but if you do get them, I think they're satisfactory.

These things are great for the average music listener. As a college student, these are a good investment, and will greatly help you out. I do not listen to music through headphones very often. But when I do, say after a class on the way to my car, they are great little headphones. I rarely have to charge them, maybe once or twice a week. Speaking of charging, the wireless charging feature with this model is awesome. Just set it down in the pad and it starts to charge! However, the one con with these headphones is the glossy white plastic they used. If you are OCD as I am, you are going to be annoyed at how easily the plastic scratches and scuffs. A cheap rubber case with a carabiner is a good investment to help protect the case, while also covering the already present scratches. The best thing about these headphones is the W1 chip also preset in the Beats X wireless headphones. For iPhone users, this makes pairing and connecting effortless.