I am not saying Apple or not (although I bet cheap Android phones have cheap Bluetooth radios). My Bluetooth headphones are Sony, and I don’t have interference, disconnections, or anything else.
Which is a knock against BT. Cheap wired earbuds might break elsewhere but the audio plug has never failed on me or led to problems using the earbuds. Cheaper BT earbuds do seem to have BT issues and hassles in addition to any other failure modes.
Really my big knock on BT is that it requires power and thus BT devices tend to be out of charge when I want to use them. Which would go away if I used them every day like my phone and watch but that’s not the case.
For the most part, not sure why you would bother with Bluetooth if you can physically connect the device. The quality is usually better, and there are fewer points of failure.
It’s a failure of Apple and other brands, to force consumers to use the more expansive, less reliable and lower audio quality of blue tooth.
No wires is easily worth the slightly lower sound quality. I love Bluetooth, can’t imagine going back to wired.
And failure on Apples part? That’s hilarious. AirPods are everywhere. And every other company is making their own version now.
I’d commented earlier in the thread about using Bluetooth in the car. I actually do plug in many of the times I use the stereo because of the aforementioned convenience, but I prefer wireless when the trip length is worth the hassle so I can either charge faster in the dedicated charger plug or pass the phone around in the car for music control (and to switch between those without messing up the audio.)
But yeah, any short trip when I’m alone I just use my Airpods in the car; they sound fine and don’t block any environmental noise so I’m still alert.
/giphy dubious
If the car trip is short enough that I don’t bother to plug in my phone (5-10 minutes to the store, when I’m in the store for a while) I do the same. Just leave 'em in at low/moderate volume and keep listening to what I’m listening to.
Based on what? Have you seen how they are designed?
Jeez, I bought my (wired) headphones specifically to block environmental noise, which they are quite good at (although not as good as earplugs). But, I don’t wear them while driving.
Earphones while drive always seems like a dangerous idea.
And illegal, at least in my state, which I’m all for.
Yeah, accidents due to distracted driving does seem to be on the rise.
That’s why I prefer just a long form podcast or two. Set it and forget it, all plugged into an aux cable into my car speakers, while charging the phone through the USB port.
Riding a bus everyday on the freeway I often look out the window while listening to podcasts. A lot of people use headphones while driving. More than I ever thought. I see 1-5 people every drive. Usually it people in crappy cars.
I’ve seen people driving and talking with single ear speaker/mic combos for years. Haven’t seen any AirPods yet thankfully.
See it all the time. They can be used to make phone calls though, so it doesn’t necessarily mean they are listening to music or anything that will block outside sound.
I guess my commute each day is too short. ;)
It does annoy me when people walk into my work and don’t acknowledge me because they are listening to music.
I tell ya, people watching is the best part of riding the bus. It also makes me scared of driving. The amount of people I see using their phones while they drive…
You all know that sound can come into your ears at the same volume from speakers and ear buds, right?
With open back headphones, sure, I guess.
AirPods are open. They don’t create even the slightest seal, so as long as you aren’t playing loud music, you can hear quite well with them. Which can be a major drawback.