How long do headphones last?

[The-Real-Deal82]

The advantages of having wireless headphones that also have a 3.5mm port on to use as wired are invaluable.

 

[Apple fanboy]

1.) Lithium ion technology is pretty consistent (And has matured a lot) , and if it’s managed properly through frequent charging and not allows to deplete consistently, you’d be surprised how long it lasts. Heck, I still have phones that will power on from 10 years ago, simply just because I managed the battery efficiently and it was stored in ambient temperatures.

2.) Cords fail on wired? Never had that happen. Again, I think it really depends how you treat your device. I remember when people were saying that the wire on the standard 3.5 mm EarPods (Included with older iPhone models) were prone to fail, and I still have three pair that have no issues with the wire whatsoever. Seriously, I think people don’t take ownership for their actions on how they treat their devices, therefore they emphasize the blame on the manufacturer. Kind of all too common in this world.

Point one is valid. But the batteries will fail at some point. Also cheaper headphones won't have as good batteries as more expensive models.
In four years (I just checked and I ordered them 01/01/17), I've not noticed any drop off in battery life on my Bose QC35's.

Point two I kind of agree with. I can't recall any of my Apple ones dying. But the ones I had 25 years ago never lasted that well. I think the design has evolved.

 

[Apple fanboy]

The advantages of having wireless headphones that also have a 3.5mm port on to use as wired are invaluable.

I don't think I've seen a pair that don't.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I don't think I've seen a pair that don't.

I don’t think the AirPods Max have a 3.5mm port. They don’t even have USB-C and still use lightning from what I gather and they are 550 quid!!

Mine have a 3.5mm port and USB-C and were a ninth of the price.

 

[Apple fanboy]

I don’t think the AirPods Max have a 3.5mm port. They don’t even have USB-C and still use lightning from what I gather and they are 550 quid!!

Mine have a 3.5mm port and USB-C and were a ninth of the price.

To be fair, despite the user name, I'll not be ordering any. For that price I'd want it to be able to make calls independent of the phone and take pictures!

 

[44267547]

Point one is valid. But the batteries will fail at some point. Also cheaper headphones won't have as good batteries as more expensive kodwpa

Well, right, all lithium batteries fail. I think anyone has an idea that’s how rechargeable batteries work. But the majority of lithium ion technology is generally the same, it really is all about management with charging frequency.

If you’ve ever seen a breakdown of the Apple Watch, it uses a ‘cheap’ lithium ion battery, and in the first generation of the Apple Watch, they had issues with bloated batteries. My point is, the majority of lithium technology is manufactured in China with same technology primarily use across-the-board.

 

[makinao]

Most of my headphones have user replaceable pads and cables. My Sennheiser HD414 Anniversary Editions are 25 years old and still working. I've replaced the cable once, and change pads every three or so years. My HD280Pro is about 15 years old and I change the pads every couple of years. My HD598cs, HD58x, HD25sp, and ATH-M70x are less than 3 years old, so nothing has been replaced yet. My recent headphones that died were a 10-year old HD380pro which blew a driver, and a 15 year old HD201 with which the cables disintegrated.

 

[Bubble99]

Batteries fail on wireless.
Cords fail on wired.

True I never had battery last on me no more than 6 years before it needs to be replaced.

Well other than Apple battery they put in the iPad and macbook pro seems to last 10 years.

Any battery I own other than Apple seem to only last 6 years.

 

[thefourthpope]

My Bose QC2 are over a decade now.

But I’m on my third pair of AirPods...the first pair suffered a slow and painful battery death after a year + of constant daily use beyond anything I subjected my Bose to. The second pair were chewed by puppies and run through the wash (bad week).

 

[Apple fanboy]

My Bose QC2 are over a decade now.

But I’m on my third pair of AirPods...the first pair suffered a slow and painful battery death after a year + of constant daily use beyond anything I subjected my Bose to. The second pair were chewed by puppies and run through the wash (bad week).

I don’t think we can blame Apple for the wash or dog bites! I think this would be beyond mist manufactures normal use.

 

[MartyvH]

My wired Sennheiser HD 570 'Symphony' bought in January 2003 for US$267 ($350 Australian) is on its third set of ear and top head pads and third cord, which are all now ageing again after five years, but it sounds fine. New pads make it look and feel like a new one - luxurious. It's the great thing about the HD 570.

The pads and cord are all still available to order online directly from Sennheiser, which is phenomenal after 18 years.

I have noticed after listening to other headphones now that I would need to spend somewhere over $500 to get the same sound. But that would be fine.

 

[cwerdna]

+1 with it depends.

Years ago, I had a pair of Able Planet noise cancelling headphones snap as I either removed them from my head or put them on. I finally got a hold or their support people and they said they'd replace it. I recall they were super slow in responding and then they reneged on that (longer story behind) and they said they didn't make them any more. I was pretty annoyed.

Never buy products from them... err.. it seems they've gone under anyway.

I've had a pair of ancient Kensington el-cheapo noise canceling headphones but the pads became worn out and the rest of it was really beat up. It's ok. I paid little for it anyway, probably under $30.

I had a pair of Monoprice wired noise cancelling headphones (10010, looks discontinued now) which I wore most days at work to cancel out office noise. I bought them in late 2014 and cost me almost $119 tax and shipping. They broke sometime in early or mid-2019. I was ok with that since it lasted long enough so I ordered another pair and they were under $65 at that point.

I also have a free el-cheapo pair of noise canceling headphones that was given away as swag at work. And, I bought some cheap Anker Q20 noise canceling headphones for under $45. I kinda cycle thru them to spread out the wear and tear and depending on the ambient noise at the time.

Now that I'm having to WFH due to COVID-19, none of this matters. I only wear them if there's too much noise from leaf blowers in the neighborhood or my "portable" AC unit that I have to run on very hot days.

Some of the above headphones are wired only while some supported/had Bluetooth. I usually didn't even plug in the cord into the headphones if it was removable as I wasn't listening to anything, usually. Two of the headphones head permanent li-ion batteries inside (Anker and el-cheapo swag) while the others took AAA's, for which I used rechargeable NiMH batteries.

2.) Cords fail on wired? Never had that happen. Again, I think it really depends how you treat your device. I remember when people were saying that the wire on the standard 3.5 mm EarPods (Included with older iPhone models) were prone to fail, and I still have three pair that have no issues with the wire whatsoever. Seriously, I think people don’t take ownership for their actions on how they treat their devices, therefore they emphasize the blame on the manufacturer. Kind of all too common in this world.

Yeah. Some people pull on wires (don't do that!) instead of on the plug. And, others put a lot of stress on cords or flex them sharply in certain directions.

 

[thefourthpope]

I don’t think we can blame Apple for the wash or dog bites! I think this would be beyond mist manufactures normal use.

Oh of course. I give them loads of credit, actually. One of the EarPods still mostly works. Really impressive considering the dogs put cracks in the casing before it went through a full cycle.