AirPods Pro Launching on October 30 for $249

[Feek]

If they make a wired version, I'm all in.

You'll never be in.
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Mine arrived, they didn't have a huge amount of charge in them but it was enough for a walk so I plugged them into my ears and did the tip fit test.

Then I swapped the inserts to the large ones and tried again. It took a couple of attempts but finally I got a seal.

Went for a walk.

When I got into town, I did another tip fit check. Both were saying they weren't fitted properly. I sat on a bench for about ten minutes trying to get them both seated correctly and finally managed it but as soon as I squeezed one to start the music playing, I could feel it had unsealed. Tapping was far easier to work with, this squeezing is a bit odd.

I've tried all three different size tips.

When they're in and sealed, they're perfectly good. Getting them in the right place is proving to be less than easy. I've just been sitting at my desk for 45 minutes listening to an album so I haven't really moved. It's ended, I've done another ear tip fit test and it says the left one isn't seated properly.

Anyone else having this issue? I'm already seriously thinking about returning them.

 

[daveporter2005]

What exactly makes them "iconic"? They are not very good looking and sound quality is average at best. Apple fans like to think they are "iconic" probably to justify the price they pay for them. Nobody else think they are iconic.

What makes them 'iconic' is that they are instantly recognisable as Apple Airpods, what better advertising for Apple could there be that millions of people openly wearing their product(s) in public.

 

[techiegirl]

I’ve had trouble with AirPod 1 and AirPod 2 fitting in my ear. Will the pro fit better? I hate to buy it just to return it if it didn’t fit.

 

[whsbuss]

I see Apple does not afford the military discount for the pros

 

[Unregistered 4U]

I see Apple does not afford the military discount for the pros

I have noticed that they don’t offer discounts when certain products are brand new, like the iPhone, but later, you can get the standard discount. So, you may just have to wait?

 

[whsbuss]

I have noticed that they don’t offer discounts when certain products are brand new, like the iPhone, but later, you can get the standard discount. So, you may just have to wait?

Hope so. My gen.1 AirPods still working with reduced battery time so I can wait a bit.

 

[StumpyBloke]

Par for the course Apple pays no mind to the social implications of the products they’re putting out there. The number of deaths and vehicular accidents caused by folks wearing these will be astonishing in its scope.

A truly ridiculous statement.

 

[jmpage2]

I see Apple does not afford the military discount for the pros

They don't offer corporate discounts right out of the gate on new products either. Wish they offered a military discount even on the latest/greatest but they don't. More than likely these will be $200 for Black Friday so if you're not in a rush then just wait a few weeks.
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A truly ridiculous statement.

I know, right? I mean, it's against the law in most places to drive around with headphones on anyway but it isn't Apple's job to try to prevent what people illegally do.

There's this thing I've heard of called personal accountability. I seem to remember some smart guys kind of basing an entire country's judicial system on it.

 

[ignatius345]

OMFG.

So much drama.
Headphones don’t turn into garbage after 18 months any more than phones do.

the battery will get weaker over time. Instead of getting three hours of life you will get two hours. Eventually the batteries might swell and destroy the pods. I had this happen on an iPhone once, after it was nearly FIVE YEARS OLD.

Oh come on. You know that’s not true. When a tiny tiny lithium battery like that reaches the maximum number of cycles, it’s done. Yeah, maybe a ride. Maybe at some point those AirPods would be good for 30 minutes of charge. A lot of people are going to find that really really useful I’m sure.

Your AirPods Will Die Soon

The surprisingly short life of new electronic devices

www.theatlantic.com

 

[Baldrake]

I’ve had trouble with AirPod 1 and AirPod 2 fitting in my ear. Will the pro fit better? I hate to buy it just to return it if it didn’t fit.

Very likely. The silicon inserts have some give, unlike the hard plastic of earlier models. And there are different sizes. I’m with you, I hated the fit of AirPods in the past.

 

[JBGoode]

Oh come on. You know that’s not true. When a tiny tiny lithium battery like that reaches the maximum number of cycles, it’s done. Yeah, maybe a ride. Maybe at some point those AirPods would be good for 30 minutes of charge. A lot of people are going to find that really really useful I’m sure.

Your AirPods Will Die Soon

The surprisingly short life of new electronic devices

www.theatlantic.com

Sure, but is that going to happen in 18 months? That was his point.

I’ve had mine for about that long and they’ve lost maybe an hour or slightly more so I’m still getting about 3.5 hours per charge after being used hours daily for almost a year and a half.

 

[jmpage2]

Oh come on. You know that’s not true. When a tiny tiny lithium battery like that reaches the maximum number of cycles, it’s done. Yeah, maybe a ride. Maybe at some point those AirPods would be good for 30 minutes of charge. A lot of people are going to find that really really useful I’m sure.

Your AirPods Will Die Soon

The surprisingly short life of new electronic devices

www.theatlantic.com

No, it's totally true. Modern lithium ion batteries are good for over 500 full duty cycles before they have started to substantially degrade. That's 18 months of use if you run a full duty cycle on them 365 days a year. Even then "substantially degraded" means that they might return 50% of their original life. Does that mean they are "worthless"? Perhaps they are to someone who listens to them for hours and hours a day and can't tolerate putting them in the charging case for 10 mins to top the battery off or switch between ears.

I have a set of Jaybird wireless earbuds that I bought for work and mountain biking about 3 years ago. While I don't use this set of headphones "frequently" they are sealed (no replaceable battery) and still offer several hours of playback on a full charge.

There might be other competitive products out there that offer user replaceable batteries but I am not aware of any.... so maybe you can compare evil Apple to another company who you think is doing a better job?

Offering user replaceable batteries seems like a wonderful idea until you look at how it compromises the usability of the product. Inevitably redesigning the product so that the battery was moved to a user accessible place as well as changing the product packaging so that the battery was compartmentalized away from other key electronics would add bulk, weight and cost to the product.... and, AFAIK Apple does not offer user replaceable batteries on ANY products in 2019 that it manufactures.

Perhaps Apple should offer a battery replacement program for the AirPods but think about what that entails. It involves offering a service to remove and replace the soldered in batteries at a price the consumer will stomach.... would many consumers eat a $50-$100 battery replacement cost when a brand new set of presumably improved headphones can be purchased for twice that amount?

And again, for most consumers this is something they aren't going to run into until the product is several years old. Some countries have very strict consumer laws and automatic longer warranty periods so unless the AirPods won't last for 2-3 years at a minimum Apple is going to run into problems in countries like Norway, Denmark, etc.

 

[turbineseaplane]

Oh come on. You know that’s not true.

I was going to say - I have like 15 pairs of headphones around my house, all of which are older than 5 years and work as perfectly as when brand new...

(save for my AirPods v1 - which now last about 35-40min)

 

[The Game 161]

These are so much more comfortable and sound is better and noise cancellation? Works great

 

[jmpage2]

Very likely. The silicon inserts have some give, unlike the hard plastic of earlier models. And there are different sizes. I’m with you, I hated the fit of AirPods in the past.

It's actually rather remarkable that Apple have finally caved on this offering of silicone ear-tips for improved fitment. They have literally been providing the same crap fitting hard as a rock headphone shape since the original iPod shipped over 18 years... with maybe some very minor tweaking.

I guess maybe Jonny Ive leaving was a good thing?

 

[daveporter2005]

I’ve had trouble with AirPod 1 and AirPod 2 fitting in my ear. Will the pro fit better? I hate to buy it just to return it if it didn’t fit.

If you buy from an Apple Store, they let you try them on first - they wipe them down with alcohol wipes after each person tries them. So I think you can try the different sizes if you want, I didn't have to do that the medium size tips were on the AirPods and that was good enough for me. I have put the large ones on my AirPods Pro now and they are an even better fit. The Ear Tip Fit Test works quite well too.

 

[StumpyBloke]

WoW....

Now I know why I left these forums.....I read most of this thread, so much negativity and BS passed around.
I'll move on and enjoy my new AirPod Pros without the drama, just like I did for 3-years with my Gen 1 Airpods.

For those they got them, please enjoy and forget all this drama.....

Couldn’t have said it better myself. We all know that Macrumors can be one of the most trolling and loathsome sites on the Internet but this thread has taken it to new levels. People can be so repugnant it is beyond my comprehension. This website is getting a very, very bad reputation on other sites. And it’s deserved.

Back OT. Received mine today and I’m extremely impressed with the sound quality. Certainly a marked improvement over my AirPods one and two. Not too convinced about the efficacy of the noise cancellation, as it doesn’t cancel out much of the music in my living room if it’s playing in the background. I haven’t tried them outside yet though.

 

[Kendo]

If you buy from an Apple Store, they let you try them on first - they wipe them down with alcohol wipes after each person tries them. So I think you can try the different sizes if you want, I didn't have to do that the medium size tips were on the AirPods and that was good enough for me. I have put the large ones on my AirPods Pro now and they are an even better fit. The Ear Tip Fit Test works quite well too.

Did both M and L give you a good fit according to the test?

 

[jmpage2]

Okay mine showed up and I'm completely geeking out.

Taking them straight out of the case they fit quite well with the medium tips which surprised me as I normally need to go to a larger tip size to get a good seal (I had to use the largest size tips with the PowerBeats Pro Wireless). Medium sized tip also passed the sound check with no problems.

Because of the shape of the pods it is a little harder to get them out of the case and a little slower to rotate them into your ear. This is a tiny bit disappointing but is expected due to the increased size and slightly different shape of the pod itself. You have to turn them just a bit as you put them in. Similar to the Beats but not nearly as bad (it sometimes seems like putting those in is the most time consuming thing in the world).

I demoed audio with Scary Love (The Neighborhood), Simple Romance (COIN), Radioactive (Imagine Dragons), Empire (Of Monsters and Men), Mr. Blue Sky (ELO), Sunflower (Post Malone & Swae Lee), You Worry Me (Nathaniel Rateliff).... yeah I'm kind of a sucker for pop/alternative.

Sound quality is a step up from the AirPods, a big part of the reason for this in my opinion is that with the AirPods to get the best sound you had to wiggle them around and get them to seal perfectly... there is no reason to do that with the new AirPods pros.... with the silicone tip they fit and don't seem to wiggle or move about so the sound is consistently good all the time. Are they as good as higher end wired earbuds from Shure or Sennheiser (I have many high end sets of headphones including some that are obnoxiously expensive)? No.... but they are pretty good and the added functionality makes them a great option especially for mobility.... it's hard to say if they will meet the needs of those who need crystal clear mid-range or super deep exaggerated bass... these headphones won't quite deliver either although are better than average at both.

The ANC works well, almost spookily well. I can still hear myself type with no music playing and ANC active but it is quite muted. When listening to music it is very highly engaging.

Transparency mode works but need more time to test it. I used it when my young son was speaking to me and he speaks pretty softly so it was still difficult to hear him with music playing and transparency mode engaged.

The vents in the AirPods might be their best unsung feature in initial reviews. The venting allows you to wear these without that weird feeling of pressure in your ears especially when you swallow. It's pretty cool but hard to describe.

Controls work fine, no big deal. Not sure how well they will work with gloves in the wintertime but I will find out soon enough.

All in all they get a big thumbs up from me, these are pretty close to the AirPods I always wanted and now Apple have finally delivered.

 

[darkslide29]

It's actually rather remarkable that Apple have finally caved on this offering of silicone ear-tips for improved fitment. They have literally been providing the same crap fitting hard as a rock headphone shape since the original iPod shipped over 18 years... with maybe some very minor tweaking.

I guess maybe Jonny Ive leaving was a good thing?

As a matter of fact, they have sold Apple branded silicone earbuds before. I used to own them and they also came with 3 sizes. I loved them. I washed and killed them once, and bought them a 2nd time. However, this was a good 10-12 years ago, I think.

Apple In-Ear Headphones with Remote and Mic

Apple In-Ear Headphones with Remote and Mic let you adjust volume and playback of music & video, and answer calls.

www.apple.com

That's the only link I could quickly find. It's an AU store link but I'm in California.
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Back OT. Received mine today and I’m extremely impressed with the sound quality. Certainly a marked improvement over my AirPods one and two. Not too convinced about the efficacy of the noise cancellation, as it doesn’t cancel out much of the music in my living room if it’s playing in the background. I haven’t tried them outside yet though.

You may already know this, but in general noise cancellation from any headphones is much more effective for the low frequency sounds - traffic noise, jet engine noise, that sort of stuff. When you get into people talking, or your music in the background example, it still works some, but just not as effective. Still better than not having it, I love having a pair of noise canceling headphones.

I am still waiting for mine to arrive today, but if it's anything like a previous noise canceling set I owned, when you go on your walk in a city, it can be a little jarring and eery at first. Like I never focused on how constant there is just background noise all of the time, and it gets silenced.

 

[StumpyBloke]

You may already know this, but in general noise cancellation from any headphones is much more effective for the low frequency sounds - traffic noise, jet engine noise, that sort of stuff. When you get into people talking, or your music in the background example, it still works some, but just not as effective. Still better than not having it, I love having a pair of noise canceling headphones.

Thanks. No, I didn’t know that. I’ve never had any noise cancellation headphones before so it’s all new to me. I think naïvely, I assumed they would block out virtually all, if not all, background noises no matter what they were. But with no music playing I can still hear *everything* it’s just quieter. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[rjjacobson]

You'll never be in.
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Mine arrived, they didn't have a huge amount of charge in them but it was enough for a walk so I plugged them into my ears and did the tip fit test.

Then I swapped the inserts to the large ones and tried again. It took a couple of attempts but finally I got a seal.

Went for a walk.

When I got into town, I did another tip fit check. Both were saying they weren't fitted properly. I sat on a bench for about ten minutes trying to get them both seated correctly and finally managed it but as soon as I squeezed one to start the music playing, I could feel it had unsealed. Tapping was far easier to work with, this squeezing is a bit odd.

I've tried all three different size tips.

When they're in and sealed, they're perfectly good. Getting them in the right place is proving to be less than easy. I've just been sitting at my desk for 45 minutes listening to an album so I haven't really moved. It's ended, I've done another ear tip fit test and it says the left one isn't seated properly.

Anyone else having this issue? I'm already seriously thinking about returning them.

I have not had the problems you have. The already fitted mid size silicone tips worked fine and seated the first time. And I tested several times no fit problems. Later I used with iPad (had been testing with my 11 Pro Max and again the test said they were sealed properly each time. I am impressed with the sound quality and the good noise cancelation. Glad I got mine.
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These are so much more comfortable and sound is better and noise cancellation? Works great

I agree I hated most tips in various headphones of past like the beats series. But these are very comforable and the attached midsize tips worked perfectly for my ears and I got a good seal and test every time I used. sound and noise cancelation very good for my tastes
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If you buy from an Apple Store, they let you try them on first - they wipe them down with alcohol wipes after each person tries them. So I think you can try the different sizes if you want, I didn't have to do that the medium size tips were on the AirPods and that was good enough for me. I have put the large ones on my AirPods Pro now and they are an even better fit. The Ear Tip Fit Test works quite well too.

Yes for me the medium worked just fine and tests showed they did. So why did you go to large ones when medium worked just to see what that did?
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Back OT. Received mine today and I’m extremely impressed with the sound quality. Certainly a marked improvement over my AirPods one and two. Not too convinced about the efficacy of the noise cancellation, as it doesn’t cancel out much of the music in my living room if it’s playing in the background. I haven’t tried them outside yet though.

I agree sound quality on mine was very good, but then I was happy as a non audiophile expert with my airpods but these are noticeably better. I found my indoor tests of the noice cancellation very good, could almost not hear voices — my wife was not sure about that said now she will have to stand in front of me to get my attention LOL—things like microwave next to me going and such were totally silent in cancelation mode. About the only thing I could not totally cancel was a high picked scream from grandson being a big crazy, but even that was so faint as to not disturb.

 

[rjjacobson]

Okay mine showed up and I'm completely geeking out.

Taking them straight out of the case they fit quite well with the medium tips which surprised me as I normally need to go to a larger tip size to get a good seal (I had to use the largest size tips with the PowerBeats Pro Wireless). Medium sized tip also passed the sound check with no problems.

Because of the shape of the pods it is a little harder to get them out of the case and a little slower to rotate them into your ear. This is a tiny bit disappointing but is expected due to the increased size and slightly different shape of the pod itself. You have to turn them just a bit as you put them in. Similar to the Beats but not nearly as bad (it sometimes seems like putting those in is the most time consuming thing in the world)..................Sound quality is a step up from the AirPods, a big part of the reason for this in my opinion is that with the AirPods to get the best sound you had to wiggle them around and get them to seal perfectly... there is no reason to do that with the new AirPods pros.... with the silicone tip they fit and don't seem to wiggle or move about so the sound is consistently good all the time. Are they as good as higher end wired earbuds .......? No.... but they are pretty good and the added functionality makes them a great option especially for mobility.... it's hard to say if they will meet the needs of those who need crystal clear mid-range or super deep exaggerated bass... these headphones won't quite deliver either although are better than average at both.

The ANC works well, almost spookily well. I can still hear myself type with no music playing and ANC active but it is quite muted. When listening to music it is very highly engaging.

Transparency mode works but need more time to test it. I used it when my young son was speaking to me and he speaks pretty softly so it was still difficult to hear him with music playing and transparency mode engaged.

The vents in the AirPods might be their best unsung feature in initial reviews. The venting allows you to wear these without that weird feeling of pressure in your ears especially when you swallow. It's pretty cool but hard to describe.

Controls work fine, no big deal. Not sure how well they will work with gloves in the wintertime but I will find out soon enough.

All in all they get a big thumbs up from me....

I agree you have pretty much described my experience (I don’t own any more expensive headphones however, just gen 1 and airpods and beats 3 over ear ones)

Yeah getting of case harder than classic airpods for sure. Medium fit perfectly for me. Very comfortable for a person who did not like most noise cancelation headphones with some kind of soft tips. Airpods worked just fine for me not easily falling out so may they used my ear for model LOL. But these are a major step forward and I love mine.

 

[Greenmeenie]

Simple answer - iconic....

View attachment 873180

True. But there are so many knock off brands out there with white ear pods now. I think it would benefit Apple to make them in more than one color at this point. Or at least please their loyal customers.

 

[movieator]

Give it time.

One a side note, UPS lost my delivery.

Cool.