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Are Apple AirPods Worth The Money?

by Jerry JuaProduct Reviews

Nov 15, 2020

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I’ve had my fair share of earphones, and I was looking at getting a new pair. But I’ve seen a lot of people with Apple AirPods and wondered if they’re worth the money. I did some research into what people thought about them, and here’s what I found.

So, are Apple AirPods worth the money? Apple AirPods are definitely worth the money and make a great buy even though they have some cons compared to competitors. For example, there are similar headphones from companies like Sony and Sennheiser, which are well known for making high-quality headphones. However, they are about double the price of Apple AirPods.

There is a range of wireless headphones that you can use to make voice calls, and they have different designs. However, earbuds from Apple are uniquely discreet and have a few other benefits. So read on to discover why they are such a good buy.

Why are Apple AirPods worth the money?

Apple AirPods and other wireless headphones have many of the same advantages over wired headphones. But, Apple AirPods are cheaper than other models from well-known brands. Which makes them a better choice. They also integrate seamlessly with Apple products.

All wireless earbuds have these advantages over wired earphones:

They are comfortable
The earpods stay in
The battery lasts a long time
There is a ‘Find my AirPods’ feature
They are handsfree

1. They are comfortable

Some wireless headphones are not comfortable. Examples are the ‘sports earphones’ that go over your ear and have an earbud in the center. The plastic part that wraps over your ear is generally quite uncomfortable, and the earbud rarely stays in.

Other wireless earphones have the traditional headphone shape. Some of these are the wrong size, and the headphone part jams into your ear when you wear them correctly. Also, the band that sits on the top of your head can be uncomfortable after you wear them for a while. Especially when it is hot, and your head starts to sweat a bit.

Earpods, however, are very comfortable because of the silicon Apple uses. And after a while, you hardly notice you are wearing them. So, this is a major advantage to these kinds of wireless earphones over other kinds you can get.

2. The earpods stay in

Standard wireless headphones are also prone to falling off when doing any bending down motion. For example, if you bend over to pick a toy from the floor or bending down while vacuuming.

With a bit of practice, you can get them to stay on. But, if they fall off onto hard floors like tiles, or worse into a plate of food, or a bathtub filled with water, it’s a major inconvenience. Where they can break open, get covered in food, or fizzle out in the water.

Compared to wired headphones, the wire doesn’t get in the way, where it can catch on your belt, earring, or a door handle. You can pull them off with your hands by accident while moving around, for example, while jogging. You can pull the headphones out of your phone jack in the best-case scenario. In the worst case, you can pull them off out of your ears, which can be a bit hurtful, and they can fall somewhere you don’t want them to.

However, the earpods with their silicon earbud jams itself comfortably into your ear, making it very difficult for them to fall out, even while doing vigorous motion. They also don’t have a wire at all, so you don’t have any of the above problems. This means your earphones are a lot safer, and you won’t have to replace them as often.

3. The battery lasts a long time

Most people will be concerned that they’ll be at the supermarket, at the gym, or doing stuff on their laptop, and the battery will die.

However, Apple thought of this, and the battery life on them lasts for a really long time. According to Apple, they have 18 hours of talk time (on the phone) and 24 hours of music listening time. Which means you only have to charge them once every two days or so. In which case, you can charge them overnight when you go to bed.

They also charge really quickly. Businessinsider.com says they take about 20 minutes to charge. On the plus side, the charging case that comes with them can charge them 3 to 4 times before you need to charge the case. So, you won’t have to be concerned with your AirPods running out of battery.

One of Apple’s biggest competitors, Samsung, has the Samsung Galaxy buds, which are similar wireless headphones and only last 6 hours of listening time. So, the Apple AirPods are by far better in this regard.

Here’s a cool unboxing video that shows everything that comes with the Apple AirPods:

4. There is a Find my AirPods feature

There is an app on your iPhone that can be used to find your AirPods if misplaced. When you open the app, it will show a map with the location of your AirPods.

The one caveat is that it only works when your AirPods have charge on them. The good news is that their charge lasts such a long time that it shouldn’t be an issue. My recommendation is to be extra careful not to lose them when they are really low on battery.

Most other wireless earbuds have a similar app that you can download for them, so this isn’t a feature that is unique to the Apple AirPods. But, it is an added advantage over wired headphones. Thus you won’t need to worry as much about losing them and won’t have to replace them as often.

5. They are virtually hands free to use

When you get a call on your AirPods, you can double-tap the outside of your AirPod to answer the call. You can double-tap either earphone. You can also press and hold either one, which most people have set to lower or turn up the volume.

But, there are settings for them on your iPhone where you can change what each action does. For example, press and hold could pick up or hang up a call. While double-tap on the left will increase the volume, and double-tap on the right to decrease the volume.

The other actions you can do are:

Activate Siri
Play, pause or stop the audio
Skip to the next or previous track

Other wireless earbuds like the Samsung earbuds, also have this functionality. Here’s a link to all the commands you can do with Samsung earbuds.

Now I’ve covered all of the advantages of Apple AirPods, but there have to be some things which aren’t that great about them, right? Yes, you’re right. There are some minor drawbacks, and that’s the topic for the next section.

What are the disadvantages of Apple AirPods?

The disadvantages of Apple AirPods are the same across the different earbuds on the market. Although they share these disadvantages, in my opinion the Apple AirPods are the best wireless earbuds on the market. The disadvantages are:

The sound quality isn’t ridiculously good but is still decent
They are easier to lose compared to wired headphones

1. The sound quality isn’t ridiculously good but is still decent

Other more expensive wireless earbuds do have much better sound quality. The sound quality on the Apple AirPods is about the same as the Apple headphone that would come with the iPhone 5 and above. In my opinion, the sound quality is solid, but if you paid a lot more, you could get better sound quality.

So, I wouldn’t say they have the best sound quality. However, for the price, they are still good value for money. Most of the other brands of wireless earbuds are more expensive, at almost double the price. However, with this price, you do get a much better sound quality.

Therefore, this can be somewhat of a drawback if you like a really quality audio experience and are willing to spend more on other brands such as Sennheiser and Sony.

2. They are easier to lose

You can use the Find my AirPods function, but because wireless AirPods aren’t connected to each other they can be easy to lose. And in my opinion, you will lose one or both more often than standard headphones. This due that they have no interconnecting wire to spot them easily and that they are so small.

There is also a small chance that one will fall down the side of the couch, or in a place where they are really hard to fish out, for example, in the crack of a sliding door. With earphones, you can feel when they fall off and can pull them out by the cord.

When you do lose one, or the case, you can buy them individually. An individual Airpod costs roughly half the price of a brand new pair, and there is a specific page dedicated to getting a replacement, which you can access by searching the Apple.com website or by clicking here, to go to the official page.

All in all, the Apple AirPods are worth the money because of the extra features they have over wired headphones. If you want to buy a pair, then click.

Conclusion

Apple AirPods are definitely worth the money because they are much more comfortable than the other earbuds on the market. They also don’t have the drawback of standard headphones that can fall off as you’re doing your day to day activities or at the gym. The battery lasts a long time, there is a ‘Find my AirPods’ feature, and they are handsfree.

They do have a few cons in that they are easier to lose, and the sound quality is about the same as the wired earbuds that would come with an iPhone 5 or newer. But, this sound quality is good enough and is suited for pretty much everyone, except for those people who don’t mind spending quite a bit more on getting a much better sound quality.