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Quick Takes: Audiophile Calls AirPods Best Truly Wireless Earbuds He's Ever Heard in Year-Later Review

I love my AirPods - they are a return to the core Apple values of "it just works" and they have brilliant battery life and are actually very good value for money. However, I have to say they don't sound as good to me as my B&O E8's with the included comply foam tips fitted (which admittedly cost £100 more than the AirPods). That's not to say they're bad because they're not but for me the E8's are truly exceptional (particularly when listening to a lossless source).
I didn't buy my AirPods expecting "audiophile" quality and was very pleasantly surprised by how good they sound (I expected similar to the wired buds but they're much better), but to declare them as the best available is a bit of hyperbole IMO
 
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Baymowe335 said:
Airpods are great for for what they are, but I'm guessing this guy is no "Audiophile."
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That to me is more a compliment than an insult.
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Haven’t touched my other headphones ever since I got my Airpods.
 
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78Bandit said:
I can see the AirPods being good for college students walking to class (even though I see a whole lot of huge Beats in use), for commuters on the train, or for use in the workplace where you need to hear outside activities.

The problem for any serious audiophile is the lack of sealing in the ears. You simply can't get adequate bass out of a set of AirPods. Even when I'm working out I have to use a set of relatively cheap ($25) V-Moda earbuds that have silicone tips to seal out outside noise and keep the bass in. Anything less sounds extremely tinny once you get used to the full range sound of noise isolating earbuds. In full disclosure I haven't tried AirPods, but I have used EarPods and ultimately just threw them away because the overall sound quality was so poor.
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Can't live without them Bass aye? :)

So a real audiophile has to have extreme great sound at all times or none at all? must be a bummer.....
 
Abazigal said:
That to me is more a compliment than an insult.
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Haven’t touched my other headphones ever since I got my Airpods.
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To be fair, I'm not sure those other headphones are all they may be cracked up to be.

I ended up with a pair of Sony WH1000XM2 that have been great. They could be a bit more comfortable, but the audio quality is very good and the noise cancellation is excellent. Of course, much larger than earbud style, which are still the best for use while being active.
 
Chenhan said:
But they sound like trash. I don’t expect audio quality from wireless earbuds, but AirPods are way below acceptable bar.
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One of the very few to hate on the AirPods. I love them. They replaced £200 Atomic Floyd Super Dart earphones which were trash in comparison - little bass and kevlar cable which broke near to the headphone jack - along with no existent customer service! The AirPods are true gems!
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ipponrg said:
Airpods are good for what they are, but the author (Vlad) is infamous for reviewing many audio devices as a casual listener which is worthless to audiophiles. He rarely if ever however analyzes meticulously the soundstage and frequency responses. He is the epitome of an audiophile poser.
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The Verge is a true worthless online site - the equivalent of Murdoch's gutter press. Why do people read or believe this site???
 
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Airpods are one of the best pieces of tech I've gotten in the last couple of years. They're a great compliment to the Audio Technica M50X and Klipsch r6i's headphones I have.
 
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fcphantom said:
I played HQ trivia last night, and the live game declared no winner because nobody got the last question right, not because of cheating. We knew right away the pot would roll over to next Sunday.
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There were 2 people who answered the penultimate question correctly. When it showed the results of the last question, it only showed that one person answered incorrectly. I would assume that the missing person is the cheater.
 
marmiteturkey said:
There’s almost zero latency on my AirPods at all. Try repairing?
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Did you try watching videos and look closely in the persons lips? Also check the songs you play for example if the song is at 15 Sec it is still playing what was at 13 Sec.
 
TheVerge? They wrote about diets the last time I checked. You shouldn’t read tech stuff from a tabloid.
 
keysofanxiety said:
Audiophiles will frequently scoff that no headphone could possibly meet their insurmountable standards — unless of course it’s their own custom 3 grand hand-crafted over-ear stereo experience with an external analogue pre-amp — and therefore anything released by anybody sounds like trash.

However most people wouldn’t cart around all that equipment. A lot of audiophiles don’t have the pride to admit that for convenience and for the additional functionality, the sound of Airpods aren’t bad.

It’s like these insufferable pro photographers, gloating that an iPhone’s picture could never match up to their DLSR which boasts a lens the size of a fold-up bed. They can’t accept that you get the convenience and a damned lot of quality with a phone you carry in your pocket.

These people want to be better than everybody else and refuse to let themselves appreciate that people are able to enjoy music in their own way, or enjoy photography in their own way, without going through all the money and effort that they did.
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Best post I’ve read on here in a long time.
 
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Ordered a pair of chinese knock-offs from Amazon for $20. Charged one but the other didn't/couldn't charge. Tested the charged one to check that it connected to my phone's BT and came on with the music I selected. It worked, so I shut down the earpiece. The next morning it was dead and required charging. I returned the pair.
Perhaps I'll try the AirPods if they will function as is being promoted, although the price IS a lot higher than my wired earphones.
 
I was happy with my AirPods until they went through the washing machine :-(.

The AirPods themselves somehow managed to survive unscathed but the battery pod is DOA.

If there’s one feature I wish Apple would have included it would be water resistance for both the AirPods and battery pack itself.
 
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Audiophiles are snobs, after a certain cost level there is no descernable difference other than the size of your ego/wallet. It’s like wine, I have given some friends of mine who can “locate the exact region in Europe from any bottle” only to be given a $3 bottle from Aldi and belived me when I said I spent $50. Audiophiles are in the same basket.
 
I really wish the Airpods would fit my ears. It is really frustrating that Apple designed them for ears the way they did. In my opinion, they should develop Airpods that are soft on the end and expand when placed in the ear, thus securing a comfortable fit.
 
I may have had bionic ears at one time, but not at this age. AirPods sound great, fit great, stay in when I'm exercising, and I never get the wire tangled in the spokes. (Which precipitated a sudden meeting with the bricks a few years ago.)
 
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Recognition said:
If something sounds good to an ‘audiophile’ does that mean it will sound good to me too?
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No. I heard an audiophiles system once (was considering buying the speakers). Within one minute I knew they weren't for me.
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Recognition said:
Just asking a question, If I like the sound of some headphones, but an audiophile says they sound terrible, who is correct?
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Your 'listening' may not be there, yet. You could give me a bottle of $200 wine and it would taste like a $20 bottle. My wine palate isn't there. See what I'm saying?
 
Relentless Power said:
Disagree. Compared to the competition, the AirPods are actually price comparably lower. When you factor in the battery life where 15 minutes of charging is equivalent to three hours of usage, simplicity of features, there’s a reason AirPods are a success and its been apparent for quite some time.
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LOL. The guy you responded to stated that he thought they were priced reasonably and you whaled on him even though you both feel the same.
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TheFluffyDuck said:
Audiophiles are snobs, after a certain cost level there is no descernable difference other than the size of your ego/wallet. It’s like wine, I have given some friends of mine who can “locate the exact region in Europe from any bottle” only to be given a $3 bottle from Aldi and belived me when I said I spent $50. Audiophiles are in the same basket.
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There are $20 AirPod knock offs on Amazon...so you're welcome, because given your preference I just saved you more than a hundred dollars :p
 
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