The future of audio is wireless: Apple Air Pods

Apple’s new AirPods look like regular EarPods without the wires. They are only available in white and come in a special charging case. A single charge is good enough for around five hours of listening or two hours of talk time, which, though short, is actually quite decent for headphones of its class.

Portrait of Tammy Strobel
My Reading Room

Apple’s new AirPods look like regular EarPods without the wires. They are only available in white and come in a special charging case. A single charge is good enough for around five hours of listening or two hours of talk time, which, though short, is actually quite decent for headphones of its class.

If you run out of battery, simply placing them into the charging case for 15 minutes is enough to give the AirPods three hours of additional listening time or one hour of talk time. The charging case alone holds enough charge to provide over 24 hours of listening time.

The AirPods contain Apple’s new W1 chip, which was designed for wireless audio and allows for many wonderful things. For example, simply opening the AirPods near your iPhone is enough to initiate the pairing process. It took me less than 10 seconds to get the AirPods paired with my iPhone and raring to go.

The W1 chip also controls and monitors the AirPod’s ac-celerometers and sensors. For example, taking the Air-Pods out of your ear will automatically cause music playback to be paused, and putting them back into your ears will automatically resume playback. 

You can also double tap on the AirPods to activate Siri without taking your phone out of your pocket. You can ask Siri to make phone calls, turn up the volume, play playlists, or even ask for directions or the weather, and more.

So, the AirPods are pretty nifty, but how do they sound? To begin, the Bluetooth connection was steady and I never encountered problems with connection dropping. There were, however, a couple of instances where audio skipped.

Overall, the AirPods have a fun sound signature with a U-shaped response that will appeal to most mainstream listeners. Bass is slightly over-emphasized, much like the highs. The mid-range, on the other hand, sound a little too recessed for my liking. As a result, vocals tend to be a little soft and distant.

If you have one of Apple’s newest iPhones, the AirPods will easily be one of the most convenient wireless options out there, if you can stomach the high asking price.

Conclusion
Wonderfully compact and easy to use, the AirPods are ideal for Apple’s newest iPhones.

AT A GLANCE
Connection: Bluetooth
Battery life: 5 hours
Weight: 5g
Price: $238

The AirPods pair instantly with an iPhone and is easy to see how much battery it has left.
The AirPods pair instantly with an iPhone and is easy to see how much battery it has left.
My Reading Room

Text: Kenny Yeo / Pictures: Apple