Apple AirPods

These sparked my interest when they were first release as to the technology packed into such a compact space, however the concept of needing to remove the wire from my Apple headphones no matter how annoying it was to untie them every now and then wasn’t one that warranted such a high price tag. I received my AirPods on Christmas day from my wife and thus the initial hurdle was demolished.

Everyday Use

I use these every night with my iPad but I can also pair them to the TV and watch programs / movies without disturbing Jo.

They fit my and Williams ears perfectly (William also has a set now) and they are really comfortable considering they are solid plastic. However James can’t use them, they just don’t stay in so I expect this will be the same for most smaller children (James is 8).

While I am no audio aficionado they sound clear and crisp and I cant tell any difference to the standard wired leads.

Its the lack of the leads that really is the big deal, this came as a real surprise to me. Having these leads and fiddling around whilst slightly annoying wasn’t something that really bothered me until you get rid of them totally. They really are a pleasure to use, open the case and slide the two pods out, snapping the case lid shut you are ready to go. Once paired they automatically connect to your device when out of their case and the battery status flashes up on the screen for each of the pods and the storage case.

Charging

To charge the pods you just slide them back into the case, the charging indicator tuns orange and close the lid and they are ready the next time you need to use them. Once charged the charging indicator turns green.

What is surprising is the battery life of the AirPods and the charging case, as a system, they last a whole week without having to be charged. When they do, you just plug the case into a lightning cable to charge them, which is done in a very short period of time. Newer version also have a wireless charging option.

Travel

The compact size and longevity of the batteries really do make these an ideal travel headphone. However the lack of proper sealing into the ear and no active noise cancellation don’t help when in noisy environments or on a plane – they are still loads better than using the planes headphones.

On planes I use a little Mpow Bluetooth audio transmitter/receiver and this plugs into the planes infotainment unit, transmitting the signal to my AirPods.

Overview

The lack of noise cancelling is my only issue with my AirPods, but these are the first generation and Apple have since brought out the pro versions with active noise cancelling.

I rate these as one of my favorite tech devices, which is surprising since really all they do is remove the leads from a set of apple headphones.

When the next generation comes out I will be tempted to buy them and I will never go back to a leaded pair of headphones.