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I think the comment that they can't build top-notch hardware isn't entirely true. Airpods really made an impression. We also need to count the fact that the ent

by amrrs 8y ago

I think the comment that they can't build top-notch hardware isn't entirely true. Airpods really made an impression. We also need to count the fact that the entire PC laptop market is in some kind of limbo. Few tried touch and then hybrid then detachable. At least Apple is still kicking in the game I'd say.

williamdclt 8y ago
I might miss something, but what's so great about the airpods? Mediocre sound quality (literally my 8 bucks earpods have a better sound) and leaking so much sound it's obnoxious (if you're disturbed by music in the subway, look around: it's probably someone with Apple earplugs). I don't think they were the first to make bluetooth earplugs? Is it the miniaturisation? The touch-sensitive thing?
- aksss 8y ago
  They look incredibly stupid as well. Style fail.
  - raverbashing 8y ago
    To me that's the biggest factor. Makes people look a lot more pretentious, in my opinion
- rusk 8y ago
  The fact that they make you look like an ignoramous?
- philjohn 8y ago
  Yeah, your 8 buck earpods in no way sound better, quit with the hyperbole. Maybe they sound better to you. Yep, they may not have been the first, but once again, they come in and have a bunch of refinements that just make them stand out. I've had bluetooth headphones before, and from pairing to loss of sync when moving more than a couple of metres away, AirPods beat them hands down.
  - rusk 8y ago
    > your 8 buck earpods in no way sound better Of course they do! Any wired solution will outperform even the best Bluetooth one.
    - empthought 8y ago
      In the common case for Apple users (listening to iTunes), the AirPods will have the same quality as wired headphones, since they play back with the same codec/bitrate either way (256kbps AAC). Now if they're wired headphones with gold-plated connectors, that's a whole different ballgame.
      - 394549 8y ago
        > In the common case for Apple users (listening to iTunes), the AirPods will have the same quality as wired headphones, since they play back with the same codec/bitrate either way (256kbps AAC). Are they literally piping the AAC-encoded bitstream as it appears in the iTune files straight to the AirPods with no manipulation? Because if they're decoding then re-encoding (e.g. decoding the file to raw to pass to the OS, then re-encoding to sent to the AirPods), there will be quality loss even if both codecs are exactly the same, since you'll have generation loss.
        rusk 8y ago
        > they're decoding then re-encoding That’s what’s happening. It’s not like Bluetooth uses the AAC codec, it must be decoded and reencoded. I’ve done a direct comparison and the deifference is clearly audible.
        empthought 8y ago
        This is inaccurate when applied to AirPods or other good Bluetooth audio products manufactured in the last couple years. It is accurate for products that only support SBC, though. Bluetooth A2DP supports AAC and AirPods support AAC. Apple would never have released them if this were not the case, because they would sound awful.
- et2o 8y ago
  They just... work really well. Sound quality is good enough, mic quality is pretty good, the battery lasts forever and then they also recharge extremely quickly in the carrying case, they pair without any trouble to my phone and mac, etc. At least in my past experience you have to mess around with bluetooth headphones constantly to get them to work. With AirPods, you hardly need to.
gergles 8y ago
AirPods were actually completely rushed to market and were hand-soldered according to teardowns. There were tons of supply chain constraints and bugs. I don't feel like this is the best example for your argument.

by amrrs 8y ago

williamdclt 8y ago

I might miss something, but what's so great about the airpods? Mediocre sound quality (literally my 8 bucks earpods have a better sound) and leaking so much sound it's obnoxious (if you're disturbed by music in the subway, look around: it's probably someone with Apple earplugs). I don't think they were the first to make bluetooth earplugs? Is it the miniaturisation? The touch-sensitive thing?

aksss 8y ago
They look incredibly stupid as well. Style fail.
- raverbashing 8y ago
  To me that's the biggest factor. Makes people look a lot more pretentious, in my opinion
rusk 8y ago
The fact that they make you look like an ignoramous?
philjohn 8y ago
Yeah, your 8 buck earpods in no way sound better, quit with the hyperbole. Maybe they sound better to you. Yep, they may not have been the first, but once again, they come in and have a bunch of refinements that just make them stand out. I've had bluetooth headphones before, and from pairing to loss of sync when moving more than a couple of metres away, AirPods beat them hands down.
- rusk 8y ago
  > your 8 buck earpods in no way sound better Of course they do! Any wired solution will outperform even the best Bluetooth one.
  - empthought 8y ago
    In the common case for Apple users (listening to iTunes), the AirPods will have the same quality as wired headphones, since they play back with the same codec/bitrate either way (256kbps AAC). Now if they're wired headphones with gold-plated connectors, that's a whole different ballgame.
    - 394549 8y ago
      > In the common case for Apple users (listening to iTunes), the AirPods will have the same quality as wired headphones, since they play back with the same codec/bitrate either way (256kbps AAC). Are they literally piping the AAC-encoded bitstream as it appears in the iTune files straight to the AirPods with no manipulation? Because if they're decoding then re-encoding (e.g. decoding the file to raw to pass to the OS, then re-encoding to sent to the AirPods), there will be quality loss even if both codecs are exactly the same, since you'll have generation loss.
      - rusk 8y ago
        > they're decoding then re-encoding That’s what’s happening. It’s not like Bluetooth uses the AAC codec, it must be decoded and reencoded. I’ve done a direct comparison and the deifference is clearly audible.
        empthought 8y ago
        This is inaccurate when applied to AirPods or other good Bluetooth audio products manufactured in the last couple years. It is accurate for products that only support SBC, though. Bluetooth A2DP supports AAC and AirPods support AAC. Apple would never have released them if this were not the case, because they would sound awful.
et2o 8y ago
They just... work really well. Sound quality is good enough, mic quality is pretty good, the battery lasts forever and then they also recharge extremely quickly in the carrying case, they pair without any trouble to my phone and mac, etc. At least in my past experience you have to mess around with bluetooth headphones constantly to get them to work. With AirPods, you hardly need to.

gergles 8y ago

AirPods were actually completely rushed to market and were hand-soldered according to teardowns. There were tons of supply chain constraints and bugs. I don't feel like this is the best example for your argument.