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Wild Rumor of Apple EarPods with Biometric Sensors Has Roots in Apple's Research
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Who's spending $70 on the "in-ear headphones" when you can get the "ear pods" for free (or $20)?
EarPods are actually really great IMO. Looking to plunk down the cash for a set of in-ear Bose noise cancelling ones as I travel a lot, but as generic headphones go, EarPods are the best.
AND they come with the phone....win-win.
A big hole in this rumor is sleep tracking. Do you think people will want to wear headphones while they sleep? I realize some people wear earplugs, but I would think I'm not alone in feeling that earplugs are uncomfortable for use when sleeping. And if they're going to have wires forget about it.
A wristband seems to make more sense in terms of a device that will be worn at all times. I am, however, not discounting the idea that Apple may be working on a family of wearable tech products, one of which could be headphones.
A wristband seems to make more sense in terms of a device that will be worn at all times. I am, however, not discounting the idea that Apple may be working on a family of wearable tech products, one of which could be headphones.
IF this is true, I certainly hope they are well made and fit well
..close to perfect. I have NEVER really used any of Apple's ear buds (once) and found them to be rather cheap - falls apart after a year of use, quickly turns dirty, do not cancel noise. I've always gotten the kind that cancel noise, fit perfectly and cost much more - they last and last
.. and I don't have to listen to the muscle juice heads at my gym 
It didn't come from outer-space!!!
All these stories through the years of alien abduction, probing etc. It wasn't from outer-space... It was Apple Beta Testing new probe placements...
All these stories through the years of alien abduction, probing etc. It wasn't from outer-space... It was Apple Beta Testing new probe placements...
Really?
I used to work for a company and every summer the CEO would have is new crop of Ivy League interns. I would take the tiny tots out to lunch and ask them the same question: What percentage of the US population over 25 years old have a 4 year degree. Without fail, they would all say a number north of 40%. The real number is around 25% and has been so forever.
What's my point? People who live in a bubble have a hard time imagining what life is like outside that bubble. The people at Apple are highly educated people, earning way above the US median income amount and are probably not as fat, on average, as the rest of the country. When you look at the stats for exercise and body fat in the US, it's hard to make a case for something like a biometric sensor earbud.
Get out of the bubble and stop dreaming up stuff that only you and the rest of your $100 yoga pants wearing set will give two dog farts about!
I used to work for a company and every summer the CEO would have is new crop of Ivy League interns. I would take the tiny tots out to lunch and ask them the same question: What percentage of the US population over 25 years old have a 4 year degree. Without fail, they would all say a number north of 40%. The real number is around 25% and has been so forever.
What's my point? People who live in a bubble have a hard time imagining what life is like outside that bubble. The people at Apple are highly educated people, earning way above the US median income amount and are probably not as fat, on average, as the rest of the country. When you look at the stats for exercise and body fat in the US, it's hard to make a case for something like a biometric sensor earbud.
Get out of the bubble and stop dreaming up stuff that only you and the rest of your $100 yoga pants wearing set will give two dog farts about!
Perhaps i'm not that clever or maybe i'm just not the right target but i don't understand the increased attention on biometric sensors in our portable devices. I don't need a watch, phone, or pair of earbuds to tell me i'm fat; mirrors can do that for me already. I've also managed to live my entire life without needing to know my exact heart rate and blood pressure at any given moment. Outside of athletes and perhaps hypochondriacs, who would this appeal to?
Yeah mine won't stay in either if I move my head in the slightest. I've been looking at options such as SPRNG. Probably will grab a pair and try them out.
The EarPods don't have the best sound quality, but what do you expect with bundled earphones? Plus, they're way better than the old iPod/iPhone earbuds. Fine for on the go, or listening to Podcasts, audiobooks etc. I use my Beats Studio for music.
Interesting. The original earbuds were OK but my wife and I both HATE the new earPods with a passion. We find them nearly useless. The sound is terrible unless they are in just right and they tend to fall out of our ears without warning even if we're just sitting in one spot. Forget about trying to wear them while walking or running.YMMV of course and as you said it's a tough product to get right for everyone. For us though they're not just a step backwards, they're a complete failure.
That would be so arrogant if it turned out to be true. As if they could not conceive a competitor making a competent first product in any situation
Why? Lightning is audio out, so why would you need to even use the 3.5mm jack?
Also, I wouldn't be surprised if the final product was completely different. Everyone thought that the iPhone was going to be something along the lines of a iPod with a slider kb or something...what we generally get with Apple products is something that makes sense, but is totally different. I wouldn't be surprised if they trashed the entire idea of headphones and did something different.
2¢
Sounds incredibly boring.
Apple probably should have done a little more market research in to how many people actually give two $'s about their iPhone and iDevice accessories monitoring their health 24/7.
While I could see some minimal, average interest from people for checking their blood pressure once in while, most people could care less about wearing a device that constantly monitors you.
I personally have no interest it. That kind of hypochondria is not going to take over my lifestyle as it does people who become obsessed with it.
Making this a primary focus of iOS 8 and the iWatch (likely) is huge mistake, and a gigantic YAWN will come over the WWDC crowd if they spent more than 5 minutes talking about Healthbook and every Fitness Focus aspect.
Apple probably should have done a little more market research in to how many people actually give two $'s about their iPhone and iDevice accessories monitoring their health 24/7.
While I could see some minimal, average interest from people for checking their blood pressure once in while, most people could care less about wearing a device that constantly monitors you.
I personally have no interest it. That kind of hypochondria is not going to take over my lifestyle as it does people who become obsessed with it.
Making this a primary focus of iOS 8 and the iWatch (likely) is huge mistake, and a gigantic YAWN will come over the WWDC crowd if they spent more than 5 minutes talking about Healthbook and every Fitness Focus aspect.
Yeah...maybe you should at least google it. There is a MIT paper (PDF link) describing a method for calculating blood pressure from the ear.
The thing is it is not meant to be highly accurate - but instead to be able to detect fluctuations continuously. Even the cuff monitors aren't perfectly accurate.
This seems too cynical. You could make the same argument for any company that addresses a certain market. Maybe they work in a "bubble" but it could also be said that they simply have a good feel for who buys their products. In any case, why criticize a product that doesn't exist, and may never exist? If the concept has problems, then that's a different issue than saying it's targeted at the wrong sort of people.
Any professional musician for starters. I have custom made 'buds' with Sennheiser IE-9. That's probably $500 worth of headphones. The new Apple buds are much better than the old ones, but there are still NO match.
And as for Beats headphones, don't even get me started. Those are toys! But what do you expect from a what used to be a cable company...
I don't think he's being too cynical at all.
I follow Apple very closely and feel I have a very good understanding of their motives and decisions at every turn.
The Fitness focus of iOS 8 (and presumably iWatch to boot) really stumps me, as it makes Apple seem (in my eyes) incredibly out of touch with their target market.
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I'm gonna drive you crazy with this: As a musician and former DJ as well, I am of the opinion that small drivers are small drivers, and while there are slight differences in quality across the board, a $5 set at Walgreens will sound almost as good as a $300 pair from _insert major brand here_ .
Professional musicians aren't buying $70 Apple in ear headphones....
I was comparing the in-ear for $70 to Apple's EarPods for $20. I get there are better out there.
Android had used the "phablet" form factor since 2011 and the "new" "magical" flat UI since 2012.
I follow Apple very closely as well, and I think this analysis leaves a lot to be desired. First of all, it's difficult to grasp why you think a fitness-related product would not address an Apple target market. Second, you should tell us why biometric sensors are inherently useful only for fitness-related products. Finally, we are dealing in the realm of rumors here. The vast majority of the "iWatch" concepts we've been force-fed here are massively lame, but we should not mistake these shots in the dark for what Apple is really going to do. What this article suggests to me is that Apple is working out a more comprehensive approach to wearable tech than most people seem prepared to accept.
You know, my read was that these new earpods would use the lightning port for the biometric stuff and the audio jack for sound. So youd already have a pair with two connectors, you just dont use the biometrics when you just want to listen to music and charge your phone at the same time.
Oh look! Appears LG have already started to copy the Apple rumour
http://www.lg.com/us/fitness-activity-trackers/lg-FR74-heart-rate-monitor
/s
http://www.lg.com/us/fitness-activity-trackers/lg-FR74-heart-rate-monitor
/s
There is a pretty great bbc episode explaining future biometric possibilities, one notable is being able to adjust your life style based on what you know right at that moment in time.
