 Apple Airpods |
|
|---|---|
| RRP Price | £159 |
| Pros |
Secure fit, even when active Comfy and light, no pressure points Great sound quality for such small headphones Cordless design offers great freedom Auto pause/play when Airpods are removed/placed in ear Wireless control of music and phone calls with Siri Charging can be done in the case without a power source |
| Cons |
Price tag: they're not cheap Any third-party strap has to removed before charging Siri can feel drawn out, asking multiple times for each volume increase |
We tested the Apple Airpods both in the office and out and about, including taking in some downhill mountain bike tracks in the Surrey Hills and a horse ride across the South Downs.
Overall we were very impressed - they were light and comfy and felt very secure even when being active.
We generally loved the freedom to listen to music without worrying about getting tangled in wires, and Siri gave us more control to skip tracks, play a different album and even make and receive calls.
Prices
| Shop | Price |
|---|---|
| Techinthebasket.com | £118.75 |
| Amazon | £129.99 |
| John Lewis | £159.00 |
| Currys | £159.00 |
| Apple | £159.00 |
Connectivity
The Apple Airpods connect wirelessly over Bluetooth to compatible Apple devices such as iWatch, iPad and iPhone.
We found the Bluetooth connection setup to our iPhone 7 was easy and quick, and we haven't had any issues with the device unpairing itself or having trouble "finding" the Airpods.
Headphone fit
The Apple Airpods fit and feel just like the original Apple in-ear headphones - so if the wired version fit and feel comfy to you, then it's likely the Airpods will too.
Aside from the music blaring away, we could have forgotten we were wearing them they feel so light.
When we tested the Airpods out mountain biking, we found the Airpods stayed in our ears and didn't shift about or give us the impression they might fall out. And even whilst running a few downhill tracks with berms and drops, they stayed completely secure and we weren't at all distracted or worried that they might wiggle lose and fall out.
The benefit of wireless in-ear headphones really came into its own when being active, removing the usual worry of getting caught up in wires.
Although, they're equally great whilst at the office, removing any wires that would otherwise be trailing over a keyboard.
The Apple Airpods gave us loads of confidence and freedom out and about.
Functionality
The Apple Airpods are unsurprisingly a lot smarter than simply offering wireless connectivity.
They can sense when you put them in your ears and when you take them out, playing or pausing the music.
Although in practice, we found this feature a little confusing as sometimes while the music paused when we took them out, the music didn't always start again when we put them back in.
Either Airpod can be double tapped above the stem to activate Siri.
With Siri, users are able to control the volume, skip tracks or play different albums, as well as answer and make phone calls and ask for directions.
In practice, while it was very useful, it could feel drawn out, for example increasing the volume had to be asked multiple times for each step up.
Being able to skip a track without taking our iPhone out of our bag was a great plus, but we couldn't help but feel technology like Siri would benefit from a few years to evolve.
The Apple Airpods offer a comfy fit and a very light feel.
Sound quality
The sound quality of the Apple Airpods was crisp and clear and we didn't notice any distortion or loss of quality over the wireless connection.
Apple say the Airpods deliver better sound due to the custom-designed Apple W1 chip and music is played using AAC audio.
The Airpods also use dual beamforming microphones (no, us neither) to filter out background noise when you make calls or use Siri.
Overall, the sound quality of the Airpods did seem more immersive than Apple's wired in-ear headphones. The sound was much wider, with a deeper bass and more detail, and had none of the usual tinny quality of such tiny headphones.
Charging case
The charging case is compact and neat - and has a small coloured LED to indicate charging status of the Airpods and of the case itself.
The charging case holds a separate charge of its own - allowing you to recharge the Airpods between uses without needing to connect to a power source.
When the Airpods are in the case and the charging case is opened, the iPhone will display the battery status of both Airpods individually as well as the case itself.
Due to its roundness the case doesn't really sit up but rather lay flat, and Apple say a wireless charging device will be available in 2018.
The Apple Airpods in their charging case
Overall
While the Apple Airpods come with a hefty price tag, we actually think these small white devices are well worth the money for anyone who can afford to splash out.
We love how comfy they feel and how much freedom they gave us when listening to music on the go.
We were incredibly impressed with how secure they felt even when running downhill tracks on our mountain bike.
That said, we did use a third party Airpods strap, which was handy when taking an Airpod out to talk to someone and gave us extra confidence that the bright green strap would help us locate them if the worse did happen!
The strap is also really useful to tie the Airpods around your neck when you're not using them - for example during a stretch of road cycling.
We were also impressed with the functionality to control volume, skip tracks or select an entirely different album, as well as make and receive calls through Siri - which is something we could never do with Apple's wired in-ear headphones.
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