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Which is the case for zero percent of iPhone owners. I have like 10 lightning cables, and you have a bunch as well. No need to invent problems here.
Well on the flip side is more true. Imagine getting a USB -C cable just for your phone when I have 10 lightning cables ready to be used. This resulting in duplicate cables instead of everything sharing.
 
I really loved everything about these headphones except for the weight (and that stupid case) so I gave them to my brother. I hope the 2nd gen features a lighter design and an a real carrying case.
 
Honestly not too surprising, since they have to have USB-C by spring of 2024, because of the mandate…
 
Well on the flip side is more true. Imagine getting a USB -C cable just for your phone when I have 10 lightning cables ready to be used. This resulting in duplicate cables instead of everything sharing.
At the end of the day, I think the status quo will continue. I travel with two or three cables now: Lightning for my iPhone, AirPods; USB-C for my MacBook... and even a freaking micro USB 🤮 for my e-reader and my wife's Jabra earbuds. I'm not throwing out well-functioning gear because it uses any particular connector. The inconvenience is honestly trivial.

I like to imagine that in a few years as things die they'll all get replaced with USB-C and I can reach this promised land of "one cable" but honestly? I bet some new connector will come out by then.
 
I just got Airpods Pro 2 so I'm a bit annoyed of course but oh well.

With that said... I've been carrying a magsafe duo charger when I travel (I know its overpriced..but the fold up works well for my use case) and I charge my watch and airpods on there too so I haven't actually plugged in a lightning cable to my airpods yet, and it uses a lightning cable anyway so I'll have one lol.

Annoying but I guess going through full propietary USB connectors (on one end), to Mini USB, to Micro USB and finally to USB C, I am used to different devices having different connectors. And truthfully, I don't carry more than 1 USB C cable for my USB-C devices anyway heh.

For those that are more minimal though: finally!

And overall, of course its good news, hated that Apple stood their ground just for the sake of standing their ground.

I'm really hoping they don't limit the rate of USB C coming out of their phones though for transfer reasons but thats another topic.
 
Better yet, Apple should have a massive accessory trade-up program. AppleTV removes, AirPods charging cases, Magic keyboards and trackpads and mice, and all sorts of Lightning a/v adapters. They should offer users a chance to turn these old accessories in for a trade-up discount on the new equivalent.

For example, a standalone USB-C AppleTV costs remote costs $60. If I buy it, my current remote becomes ewaste. Why? Apple could take my remote and swap it out for a USB-C one for $20, and then refurbish/recycle my remote into a new USB-C remote for someone else. This way, only the lightning connector itself becomes ewaste, and the rest of the remote is recycled or reused.
This would be useful. People can get rid of their old/extra stuff, and then Apple could recycle the parts to use in future products. Not sure what the cost is to recycle stuff, but hopefully less than source all new components.

As for the Pro & Max themselves, I'd love to see them get wifi or some kind of better wireless so they can actually play lossless media. I find it ridiculous that none of Apple's headphones support that. And worse, none of their products (headphones, phones, iPads, computers) support the full hi-def 24-bit/192khz lossless without a 3rd party dac.
 
As for the Pro & Max themselves, I'd love to see them get wifi or some kind of better wireless so they can actually play lossless media. I find it ridiculous that none of Apple's headphones support that. And worse, none of their products (headphones, phones, iPads, computers) support the full hi-def 24-bit/192khz lossless without a 3rd party dac.
Full lossless 24-bit/192khz is nearly 10Mbps. That's certainly feasible for high-power wireless like wifi, but why? Other than a very small minority of enthusiasts, nobody needs this much bandwidth for audio.

Setting aside the debate of whether anyone can even discern this difference, how often are people in a situation where it matters? Jogging or walking outside, commuting to work, shopping at a store, sitting on a plane/bus/train, and the dozens of other common activities people do with earphones are not conducive to super hi-def listening anyway. And if you're at home or in an office with a quiet and comfortable environment, then why do you need wireless?

Personally, I see no urgent need to merge portable and hi-def. I have my hi-def speaker setup at home and at work, and I have my AirPods for everything else.
 
I have to make a mental note to keep one lightning cable for a long time to keep charging my AppleTV remotes. I can just imagine thinking I could throw them all out and then a week later one of my remotes needs recharging. They go low so infrequently that I could see that happening.
 
Every time I see a picture of those headphones I can’t get over how ugly they are

Never actually seen anyone wearing them in the wild
 
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The AirPods Max come with a cable.

The AirPods don’t, but unless you have never owned anything with a Lightning port, just use one of your many different cables.

Or just get one from one of your friends who are upgrading their iPhone.
All the AirPods come with a cable, but I agree that most people probably own one already
 
As painful as this transition is going to be, it's made a lot easier if you purchase a bulk supply of USB-C to Lightning, and Lightning to USB-C adaptors with tethers and stick them on every cable. I've been doing this to manage my current mix of Lightning and USB cables when traveling so that I never screw myself by grabbing the wrong cable. Data is a different issue, but these generally work well for charging.

They are pretty cheap on Amazon and instantly pay for themselves when you don't have to buy a new cable when traveling in a foreign country. Ask me how I know...


iScreen Shoter - Safari - 230908091250.jpg
 
Full lossless 24-bit/192khz is nearly 10Mbps. That's certainly feasible for high-power wireless like wifi, but why? Other than a very small minority of enthusiasts, nobody needs this much bandwidth for audio.

Setting aside the debate of whether anyone can even discern this difference, how often are people in a situation where it matters? Jogging or walking outside, commuting to work, shopping at a store, sitting on a plane/bus/train, and the dozens of other common activities people do with earphones are not conducive to super hi-def listening anyway. And if you're at home or in an office with a quiet and comfortable environment, then why do you need wireless?

Personally, I see no urgent need to merge portable and hi-def. I have my hi-def speaker setup at home and at work, and I have my AirPods for everything else.
I own and very much enjoy the AirPods Max myself. I don't consider myself in the target for listening to lossless, but I am a bit surprised it doesn't support it through a wired connection.

I understand that wireless lossless streaming is a fool's errand on a battery powered device, but there should be a way to do it with a cable -- especially considering that Apple has made a huge deal about lossless music, and that the Max are their flagship headphones.

Not a dealbreaker for me, but I could see it being a selling point to some people.
 
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$10 says the refresh happens on Tues and has some sort of lossless capability
Hasn’t there been a long standing rumor about Apple utilizing the U1 chip or a next gen U chip for lossless audio? It’s interesting how all of this lines up. The U2 will surely be more power efficient and allow for longer listen times. Hopefully they come out with new ones soon because I wouldn’t mind grabbing a pair soon.
 
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Open back headphones… this is the way.
In a quiet room, absolutely. But outdoors or in any kind of vehicle, all but useless. I know this because I've tried with my Grados. Love the sound indoors, but not prepared to blast the sound loud enough to play over the top of all the environmental sounds they let in.
 
No brainer that all electronics products that need charging will move to USB-C port until totally convinient wireless charging becomes widespread.
 
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