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And you can’t talk about the Apple Watch without talking about the other half of its wearables: Airpods, which are near-universally lauded and undoubtedly innov

And you can’t talk about the Apple Watch without talking about the other half of its wearables: Airpods, which are near-universally lauded and undoubtedly innovative. And who was talking about wearables before Apple entered the game? Only nerds, pretty much. There is something to be said about Apple repeatedly setting trends in our society. Many will chalk it up to “Apple worship” or whatever, but I think the real answer is that Apple is one of the only tech companies who can innovate in the cultural space.

wutbrodo 5y ago
> Airpods, which are near-universally lauded and undoubtedly innovative. Are airpods innovative? I thought wireless Bluetooth headphones have been around for ages, including ones with better (subjective) aesthetics and sound quality than airpods. This is a sincere question. I'm not familiar enough with airpods to know if they have some novel feature, or pulled off a magic combination of marketing+quality+features that predecessors had not, like the iPhone did.
- bigyikes 5y ago
  Maybe my Apple fanboyism is showing but I think the Airpods had exactly that magic combination you described. The case with a battery, seamless pairing, great battery life, reasonable EQ, and iconic style made them a smash hit.
  - wutbrodo 5y ago
    Ha I get you, I tend to have a low opinion of Apple products so I try to temper my assumptions and ask questions about the products with an open mind. Hm, my understanding is that this combination of positives wasn't especially novel in the wireless headphone market. Was it? As far as the design, I tend to think Apple has historically excelled at design, to the point that my favorite phones aesthetically have been shameless Samsung rip-offs of iPhone designs. But I don't see this reputation lived up to in their last few products: eg, the square Apple Watch is a lot uglier than the contemporary (at launch) round Motorola offering. And I personally find Airpods to look like hearing aids; I was recently in the market for high-quality Bluetooth headphones and the Airpods' hideousness is part of what knocked them out of the running.
    - jessaustin 5y ago
      Some hearing aids, like the Phonak Virto Marvel Black, are marketed by their similar appearance to wireless ear buds.
  - ksaj 5y ago
    Also, the size is key. Hearing aids keep getting smaller and less visible while continually improving at varying performance metrics, and airpods represent that technology starting to impact the consumer market.

wutbrodo 5y ago

> Airpods, which are near-universally lauded and undoubtedly innovative. Are airpods innovative? I thought wireless Bluetooth headphones have been around for ages, including ones with better (subjective) aesthetics and sound quality than airpods. This is a sincere question. I'm not familiar enough with airpods to know if they have some novel feature, or pulled off a magic combination of marketing+quality+features that predecessors had not, like the iPhone did.

bigyikes 5y ago
Maybe my Apple fanboyism is showing but I think the Airpods had exactly that magic combination you described. The case with a battery, seamless pairing, great battery life, reasonable EQ, and iconic style made them a smash hit.
- wutbrodo 5y ago
  Ha I get you, I tend to have a low opinion of Apple products so I try to temper my assumptions and ask questions about the products with an open mind. Hm, my understanding is that this combination of positives wasn't especially novel in the wireless headphone market. Was it? As far as the design, I tend to think Apple has historically excelled at design, to the point that my favorite phones aesthetically have been shameless Samsung rip-offs of iPhone designs. But I don't see this reputation lived up to in their last few products: eg, the square Apple Watch is a lot uglier than the contemporary (at launch) round Motorola offering. And I personally find Airpods to look like hearing aids; I was recently in the market for high-quality Bluetooth headphones and the Airpods' hideousness is part of what knocked them out of the running.
  - jessaustin 5y ago
    Some hearing aids, like the Phonak Virto Marvel Black, are marketed by their similar appearance to wireless ear buds.
- ksaj 5y ago
  Also, the size is key. Hearing aids keep getting smaller and less visible while continually improving at varying performance metrics, and airpods represent that technology starting to impact the consumer market.