In mid-March I finally caved. After seeing Apple AirPods literally everywhere I finally decided to buy a set of the truly wireless headphones.
Prior to making the purchase I avoided buying AirPods for one simple reason. The standard apple wired headphones fall out of my ears; constantly. I figured since AirPods are the same shape that they would also fall out of my ears. What good is a pair of headphones which fall out and get lost. For that reason I couldn’t justify spending $159 on something that I would most likely lose.
Instead of AirPods I decided to buy the Bose SoundSport Free headphones instead. The SoundSport Free headphones are also truly wireless and were great for working out, but I had several issues with them. For that reason I decided to return the headphones and Bose graciously sent me my money back.
While I was happy to have my money returned, I still didn’t have a pair of wireless headphones. So, finally, after a few weeks of resisting I finally bought Apple AirPods. I figured that I’d try them and return them within 14 days of purchase. However, I haven’t returned them, in fact, I quite like them.
Pairing My Apple AirPods
Setting up the Apple AirPods couldn’t have been easier. I pulled the little white case out of the box and opened the lid near my phone.
Upon opening the lid near my phone the following pop-up appeared on my iPhone.
At that moment I simply hit the connect button and my AirPods were paired… to all of my Apple devices. Setup couldn’t have been easier.
If you don’t have Apple products there is good news. You can pair your AirPods to most other devices via bluetooth. To pair to non-Apple products just hold the little button down on the back of the case to put the AirPods into pairing mode. From then pair the AirPods as you would any other bluetooth device.
Apple AirPod Fit
Surprisingly, the Apple AirPods fit and stay in my ears. The wired headphones constantly fell out, but these do not.
I’ve had the headphones for about 3 weeks and only the left AirPods has fallen out once. The left AirPod fell out as I jumped from a city bus to the curb. It was not a graceful landing and the impact forced the AirPod from my ear. Yes, it was embarrassing trying to pick it up off the ground, but it only happened once and I’ll avoid doing that again in the future.
Beyond that these AirPods fit in my ear just fine. I can’t believe how well they rest in my ear. I also can’t believe that I’ve been able to run in these considering how the traditional headphones fell out if I tried to walk too fast.
Bottom line, if you’re worried about these falling out of your ear, give them a try. Apple will let you return them within 14 days of purchase in case they fall out. Just don’t walk over any sewer grates when testing this.
Apple AirPod Sound Quality
It wasn’t easy to transition from Bose SoundSport wired headphones. Those headphones have incredible sound quality. When I moved to AirPods I felt as though I was missing some of my music, especially in louder settings. That being said, for the compact size the sound quality of AirPods is quite good. In quite rooms the headphones sound as good as almost every other in-ear headphone I’ve ever listed to.
The only issue with AirPods which is the same issue found in most non-noise isolating headphones is in loud settings. AirPods work great in the city or on a bus, but on an airplane it’s difficult to hear. The noise of the airplane overwhelms podcasts or audiobooks. You can use AirPods to listen to music on a flight, but I prefer my Bose QuietComfort 35 headphones.
Essentially, I wear my AirPods everywhere but the airplane. In fact, I’m wearing them right now as I write this review.
Overall Apple AirPod Impressions
After three weeks with the AirPods I absolutely love them. They do what all good products do, they work exactly as you want them to. Well, that is if you have an iPhone.
When you want to listen to music you just open the case, pull out each earbud, and begin listening. If you need to pause your music for any reason you just take one out and the music stops. When you put the AirPods back in the music starts again.
They work the same with calls as well. They have little microphones in them that let you take calls with them in. You just have to answer the phone and talk. I haven’t run into any issues with people hearing me when using AirPods, even in louder environments.
Lastly, I love the charging case. Each AirPod battery lasts for at least 5 hours. When the battery gets low you just put them in the case and they charge. It only takes about 15 minutes to charge each AirPod to a reasonable level. Likewise the Charging case only takes about 30 minutes to fully charge and provides about 2 extra charges. As I said earlier, these things just work.
Final Thoughts
I can’t believe I haven’t returned the Apple AirPods. I bought them with the sole intention of returning them. However I was pleasantly surprised by how well they fit and worked after buying them. After a few days I started using them constantly. Since they case is so small you can bring them with you everywhere. Then whenever you want to listen to something you just pop them in. They are fantastic. No more trying to untangle cords as I pull headphones out of my pocket and no more getting my headphone wire stuck on someones backpack on the train.
Bottom line, I’ve been very satisfied with the Apple AirPods and definitely recommend them to anyone with an iPhone. While the $159 is a bit high I think it’s well justified. I can’t think of another pair of headphones in that price range that I like more.
