How do people manage with Ear Pods ?

[! 0 t A]

This question has been bugging me for so long now. I thought let me open it up to the community.

I have been using neck band earphones (Oneplus) for about a couple of years and have been pretty satisfied with the mobility, connectivity, battery life and sound quality that they offer. Typical use would be office calls during the day and gym background music in the evening.

However, suddenly i am seeing a tsunami of Earpods from ever company like Boat, Boult, Oneplus, Samsung and so on. And i am wondering how do people manage with these Earpods ?

1. Don't they fall out OR have the risk of falling out when you are walking / running / moving ?
2. Don't you constantly have to put them in the case and take them our when calls come OR have them plugged into your ears all the time ?
3. Incase Point 2. is true then doesn't it engage your hand / pocket - defeating the whole wireless portability utility ?

I feel neckbands were the best solution to sound portability - but maybe i am missing something ?

 

[iPwnz]

I totally agree with BT neckbands. I don't own one but I do want one.
The "what if it falls out of the ear" is also my dilemma so my lack of interest. I do want to try one but only for when I'm home and mainly when I sleep. What I don't understand is the prices of the high end ones. 10k+ ear buds lol.

 

[enthusiast29]

Yeah TWS are absolute garbage. IDK how people are interested in them.

 

[AINDRASIS_GUPTA]

Well, for the last couple of years, companies like Apple, Samsung, Sony and the likes have successfully brainwashed the mainstream consumer in believing that anything "wired" is bad. Thus, the craze for TWS has increased multi-folds.

It simply boggles my mind when people are mindlessly spending 20K INR on a crappy WF1000XM4 or the Airpods Pro, which can get kaput at any time and/or become an e-waste after 1.5-2 years. Welcome to the new realm of crappy wireless audio products that relies on a technology as unreliable as Bluetooth.

 

[! 0 t A]

Absolutely.. i believe it's more of marketing lead brainwashed generation of consumers.

 

[superczar]

This question has been bugging me for so long now. I thought let me open it up to the community.

I have been using neck band earphones (Oneplus) for about a couple of years and have been pretty satisfied with the mobility, connectivity, battery life and sound quality that they offer. Typical use would be office calls during the day and gym background music in the evening.

However, suddenly i am seeing a tsunami of Earpods from ever company like Boat, Boult, Oneplus, Samsung and so on. And i am wondering how do people manage with these Earpods ?

1. Don't they fall out OR have the risk of falling out when you are walking / running / moving ?
2. Don't you constantly have to put them in the case and take them our when calls come OR have them plugged into your ears all the time ?
3. Incase Point 2. is true then doesn't it engage your hand / pocket - defeating the whole wireless portability utility ?

I feel neckbands were the best solution to sound portability - but maybe i am missing something ?

Different strokes for different people.
While I liked wired headphones for their simplicity and (often) great SQ, I don't miss them at all because bad usability.

Then for a few years, I tried using neckbands - Liked them for their convenience but couldn't really carry them on me so often i wouldn't have them when needed - also, walking around with one used to get a little bit inconvenient.

Personally TWSs have been great for me. Small enough to leave in ears for extended durations and the case is portable enough to just throw it in my pockets.

Overall, I may have spent more upfront on my TWSs than neckbands - but the significantly increased usage pattern means better value recovery.

 

[blr_p]

I do want to try one but only for when I'm home and mainly when I sleep.

I don't see how that will work because if they contain a battery then you won't be able to sleep on your side.

I can with the ones i use. Because battery is not in the bud but on the wire so the bud can be much smaller and does not protrude much, like this guy demonstrates

Neckbands will be the same with even more battery backup.

What I don't understand is the prices of the high end ones. 10k+ ear buds lol.

They launch at that price if i recall the jabra elites that came out couple years ago and are going at half that price these days. Amazing price drop and only goes to show the ridiculous levels of markup these items have. And this is why every one and his dog reviewed them. Free samples for all with decent reviews

How you sound on calls with TWS is an open question because the mic is much further away from your mouth. I find not many reviewers show this and when you find some you don't sound all that great. This even applies with those high price noise cancelling headphones from Bose & Sony. The real joke is you will sound better using those wired earphones they bundled for FREE in the old days when we had earphone jack compared to these wireless solutions. And on a noisy street all you do is hold the mic up to your mouth and you're good

Then for a few years, I tried using neckbands - Liked them for their convenience but couldn't really carry them on me so often i wouldn't have them when needed - also, walking around with one used to get a little bit inconvenient. Personally TWSs have been great for me. Small enough to leave in ears for extended durations and the case is portable enough to just throw it in my pockets.

That's why I went with the sennheisers i linked above. They bundle up into something tiny and this also means easy to lose them.

Neckbands are great for people that need to be on the phone all the time. Not so portable otherwise.

 

[superczar]

How you sound on calls with TWS is an open question because the mic is much further away from your mouth. I find not many reviewers show this and when you find some you don't sound all that great. This even applies with those high price noise cancelling headphones from Bose & Sony. The real joke is you will sound better using those wired earphones they bundled for FREE in the old days when we had earphone jack compared to these wireless solutions. And on a noisy street all you do is hold the mic up to your mouth and you're good

Mic Quality and ambient noise suppression is where the expensive buds shine over the cheaper ones (although there are some expensive ones that are pretty bad too).

Airpods perform phenomenally well on calls And the pixel buds also come very close.
The cheaper variants sound terrible in comparison .

If one is buying purely for audio playback, the cheaper ones from Anker and the likes end up making far more sense from a value POV

 

[blr_p]

1. Don't they fall out OR have the risk of falling out when you are walking / running / moving ?

Now i had this issue with the sennheisers i linked above. Not that they fell out but the isolation was not that great. They came with 4 sizes of tips but still the fit wasn't great. The only thing they are good for is lasting a long time.

So I tried Comply's tips. Never fall out and comfortable but also expensive and a pair wears out in three months with medium use. And now i can't find them any more on amazon.

Looked for replacements and went with these Chinese foam tips.

Less than half price and twice as many tips. Plus these tips are harder wearing than the Comply's. I won't say they are as comfortable or isolate as well as Comply but they are decent.

They are designed for buds with a larger stem size than the sennheisers so i recycled the earwax guards from the complys, this is a rubber sleeve with a barrier that allows sound through and then stick these foam tips on top. Otherwise some plumbers teflon tape wrapped on the stem could do the trick. But keep in mind these tips have no ear wax guard.

Works good and way better than the stock tips.

 

[mathrisk]

I too was skeptical on these TWS till last year. I had bought a cheap Oppo one to try it out. And though listening part was okayish, talking part on calls was not at all good.
Sometime last year, from my company I had received an AirPods Pro and with that my perspective got changed towards the TWS.
I had left that company in March and had to return that, so last week I bought one for myself. I mostly use it for calls - on mobile or office calls from laptop and my experience is superb (that's why I justified spending 17k on a headphone set).

And wearing the Airpods, though I haven't ran/jog, but I do walk in the evening for an hour almost everyday and that thing doesn't come off.
But yeah have to be little careful with the mask's strings, while wearing/removing the masks.

I don't use the noise cancelling feature much, only when listening to music. But I find that worth spending 3K over the 3rd gen Airpods.

Rajasthan: 28-year-old man dies after Bluetooth headphones explode while in use

A 28-year-old man died in Rajasthan when his Bluetooth headphone device exploded while he was using it, the police said on Saturday.

www.republicworld.com

This is more scary part of TWS for me though.

 

[blr_p]

I don't use the noise cancelling feature much, only when listening to music. But I find that worth spending 3K over the 3rd gen Airpods.

Rajasthan: 28-year-old man dies after Bluetooth headphones explode while in use

A 28-year-old man died in Rajasthan when his Bluetooth headphone device exploded while he was using it, the police said on Saturday.

www.republicworld.com

This is more scary part of TWS for me though.

says

was using Bluetooth headphones when the electronic device was plugged into an electrical outlet. The police said that the device suddenly exploded while he was talking to someone.

I've used mine while charging them. But mine are not TWS.

the man died due to a cardiac arrest, possibly because of the shock due to the explosion.

It was the shock killed him, for a 28yr old this is surprising to hear

wireless ones have lithium-ion batteries that could generate ignition if they get overheated. There are two lithium-ion batteries in the wireless earphones and if even one gets overheated, it heats up the other battery too. This way they can explode.

They are two separate units. I don't understand how if one gets overheated it can heat the other one up ?

As far as heating goes i've heated up batteries past 60 degrees C with a hair dryer a few mms away with no problem at all. There is no way these earbuds got that hot in this guys ears before they exploded.

The hardware or the performance-determining element of a wireless earphone does not have any component that can explode, but if they have rechargeable batteries, the risk of the explosion will always persist. This can easily be avoided by using the earphones in a sustainable manner, by not using them for extremely long hours and by investing in a branded product. The app in use can also influence the heating of the wireless device.

So it was a generic. Does not explain why the battery exploded. Medical doctors cannot give engineering answers.


Found a more detailed report

While many reports have only focused on the actual blast incident and demise of the young man, there is some telling information about the possible cause in a report from TV9Marathi, which states “Suddenly the light went out, and after the light returned, the earphone in his ear exploded”. It’s possible the earphones blast was because of a deadly combination of a low-quality device; with a potential power surge that can occur after an outage.

How does a power surge affect a device that is charging ? if anything its the charger that should fail and not the earphones

The brand name of the earphones involved has not been reported, although it has been commented on Twitter that the device was a cheap “local” brand sold at places like gas stations.

ok but so what

While some of the reports have cautioned users not to rely on such inexpensive and likely substandard earphones, such explosive events can befall expensive trusted brands too. A few years ago a woman suffered facial burns when her Beats headphones exploded on a flight from Beijing to Melbourne, and a man in Florida was shocked to find one of his Apple AirPods had blown up after he removed them while at a gym because he had seen white smoke coming out of them.

Got it! one comment with the airpods video made sense. The internal battery got shorted by sweat. Now THAT could make them explode

Lithium batteries do not like to be shorted. They will explode if that happens. How long they take to explode depends on the construction. Better quality battery, tougher construction gives you more warning time. Cheap one goes off like a cracker.

Guys into vaping, make sure your 18650's don't have damaged wrappers !! Toss them if they do and get new ones.

Anytime you hear exploding phone or this or that device. It means the internal battery got shorted somehow. Figure out how that happened and you are closer to the reason.

So the moral of the story is you need good IP(x,y) ratings on ear buds to prevent this problem. The x is dust and y is for water.

Number y needs to be minimum 4 or better for TWS. IPx4 means its splash proof from all directions.

If it does not have an IP y rating. DON'T BUY THEM !

How to Tell if Your "Waterproof Earbuds" Are Actually Waterproof

There's an entire category of wireless earbuds designed to get hot and sweaty. So how do you know if your earbuds are up to the task?

www.gearpatrol.com

Airpods pro and gen 3 airpods are IPx4, gen1 & gen 2 airpods are not IPx rated. The man with the exploded airpod in the YT video was most likely using gen 1 airpods since this incident happened in 2018.

But if you sweat buckets, or run in inclement weather, that might not be enough resistance for comfort. IPX5 and IPX6 are the next steps up. An IPX5 rating means that the wireless earbuds are resistant enough to withstand a sustained low-pressure water spray, while IPX6-rated earbuds can withstand a sustained high-pressure spray. The new Sony WF-SP800N (IP55) and Master & Dynamic MW07 Go (IPX6) are two examples of such-rated wireless earbuds.

IPX7 is the highest water-resistance that wireless earbuds can have. It means that they’re essentially waterproof, as the earbuds can be submerged in up to three feet (or one meter) in water for 30 minutes. For reference, the Jaybird Vista and the Jabra Elite Active 75t are some of the few IPX7-rated wireless earbuds that you can buy.

Sports TWS will be the safest since they are designed to resist sweat.

Jabra's looking good here but call quality ain't great though.

So I guess this is why so many phones in the last few years all come with IP ratings. Or why user replaceable batteries were deprecated

 

[AINDRASIS_GUPTA]

I do want to try one but only for when I'm home and mainly when I sleep.

I don't see how that will work because if they contain a battery then you won't be able to sleep on your side.

Most TWS earphones these days come with mono mode. Using one earbud while the other stays inside the case can help you sleep on the side.

 

[desiibond]

Well, for the last couple of years, companies like Apple, Samsung, Sony and the likes have successfully brainwashed the mainstream consumer in believing that anything "wired" is bad. Thus, the craze for TWS has increased multi-folds.

It simply boggles my mind when people are mindlessly spending 20K INR on a crappy WF1000XM4 or the Airpods Pro, which can get kaput at any time and/or become an e-waste after 1.5-2 years. Welcome to the new realm of crappy wireless audio products that relies on a technology as unreliable as Bluetooth.

While I do agree that boat noise and all are bad/pathetic, I would not call WF1000XM4 or Airpods Pro crappy. Just because you do not like the product category does not mean that they are bad or crappy. I use HD599 headphones for audio and I also use Blon BL-03 while on the move. In short, I am a wire-hugger.

Audio quality or mentioned devices: Neither of these two are made to please an audiophile or wire-hugger. They are made for those who prefer hassle free and wireless over wired. Airpods Pro audio quality is very very good. I am saying this as I use Senn HD499 SE. Sony ones are more bassy and I would not call them amazing at audio. For those who love loads of bass, they are good.

Bluetooth reliability: Bluetooth 5.2 provides very stable connectivity and audio quality too is better thanks to increased bandwidth. I would not compare this to a wired and say that these are junk. I do not have a single Bluetooth audio device to listen to music now. I was using Oppo Enco M31 for bicycle ride workout and one day, there was a loud (very very loud) blast that I heard in right ear. I thought some bomb exploded nearby. This followed loud static noise. I understood that something in the headset exploded and I immediately removed the headset and hung it on bicycle handlebar expecting some kind of fire. Thank God my heart continued to beat and thank God I did not panic and fall on the road. After this, I stopped used anything with battery on my head when I sweat. For work, I use Jabra bluetooth headset. Did I ditch all wireless devices? No. Do I hate wearables with battery? No. I understood that going cheap is not safe. That I would never ever use wireless headset while working out, even if that headset is made by Apple or Sony.

Wired vs Wireless: When I take calls, I prefer a wireless headset (always). I can move around without worrying about wire dangling. I love high quality audio and I prefer to use HD599 wired headphone while I am relaxing at home or Blon BL-03 for in-ear (when I am riding bicycle). Not to forget that most devices now come without a 3.5mm jack. Due to this, I have two dongles (one for USB-C to 3.5mm for my OnePlus 8 and newer lightning to 3.5mm dongle for my iPhone). Then there is an external DAC that I have to use with my HD599. With my iPhone, I need lightning to type-c cable and for iPad and other devices, I need Type-C to Type-C cable. This is the hassle with wires. Many of my friends who are not into 'pure audio, clean audio' thing go with wireless earphones/headphone. So, when one can get very good quality audio by paying more for Bluetooth headset and if they have money, they should go with devices like Airpods Pro and XM4. If you do not like wireless, feel free to stick to wired like how I am living with wires. No one is going to put you in jail for using wired headset. I can write lot more on the seamless connectivity between iPhone and Airpods and the spatial audio that Pro variant brings (which is something that one has to experience at least once). Calling people mindlees because they like something that you hate is poor judgement on your part.

PS: My father hated mobile phones and always used wired landline. He thought that this hi-tech and those using hi-tech are stupid. In my opinion, he chose not to embrace the change.

This question has been bugging me for so long now. I thought let me open it up to the community.

I have been using neck band earphones (Oneplus) for about a couple of years and have been pretty satisfied with the mobility, connectivity, battery life and sound quality that they offer. Typical use would be office calls during the day and gym background music in the evening.

However, suddenly i am seeing a tsunami of Earpods from ever company like Boat, Boult, Oneplus, Samsung and so on. And i am wondering how do people manage with these Earpods ?

1. Don't they fall out OR have the risk of falling out when you are walking / running / moving ?
2. Don't you constantly have to put them in the case and take them our when calls come OR have them plugged into your ears all the time ?
3. Incase Point 2. is true then doesn't it engage your hand / pocket - defeating the whole wireless portability utility ?

I feel neckbands were the best solution to sound portability - but maybe i am missing something ?

1. If the fit is not tight, in-ear ones will fall out while running or while doing workout. Even those with tight fit may fallout when there is excessive sweating. Anyways, it is highly advised not to use any kind of headset while working out.
2/3. Is this not the case with any headset. Take the headset off after a call (unless one is listening to music)? If you do not want to keep the earpiece in box, keep it in pocket or on the desk. Gone are those days when people (especially IT service company managers) used to flaunt those ugly mono headsets everywhere, as if they are stopping a nuclear attack.

 

[AINDRASIS_GUPTA]

While I do agree that boat noise and all are bad/pathetic, I would not call WF1000XM4 or Airpods Pro crappy. Just because you do not like the product category does not mean that they are bad or crappy. I use HD599 headphones for audio and I also use Blon BL-03 while on the move. In short, I am a wire-hugger.

Audio quality or mentioned devices: Neither of these two are made to please an audiophile or wire-hugger. They are made for those who prefer hassle free and wireless over wired. Airpods Pro audio quality is very very good. I am saying this as I use Senn HD499 SE. Sony ones are more bassy and I would not call them amazing at audio. For those who love loads of bass, they are good.

Bluetooth reliability: Bluetooth 5.2 provides very stable connectivity and audio quality too is better thanks to increased bandwidth. I would not compare this to a wired and say that these are junk. I do not have a single Bluetooth audio device to listen to music now. I was using Oppo Enco M31 for bicycle ride workout and one day, there was a loud (very very loud) blast that I heard in right ear. I thought some bomb exploded nearby. This followed loud static noise. I understood that something in the headset exploded and I immediately removed the headset and hung it on bicycle handlebar expecting some kind of fire. Thank God my heart continued to beat and thank God I did not panic and fall on the road. After this, I stopped used anything with battery on my head when I sweat. For work, I use Jabra bluetooth headset. Did I ditch all wireless devices? No. Do I hate wearables with battery? No. I understood that going cheap is not safe. That I would never ever use wireless headset while working out, even if that headset is made by Apple or Sony.

Wired vs Wireless: When I take calls, I prefer a wireless headset (always). I can move around without worrying about wire dangling. I love high quality audio and I prefer to use HD599 wired headphone while I am relaxing at home or Blon BL-03 for in-ear (when I am riding bicycle). Not to forget that most devices now come without a 3.5mm jack. Due to this, I have two dongles (one for USB-C to 3.5mm for my OnePlus 8 and newer lightning to 3.5mm dongle for my iPhone). Then there is an external DAC that I have to use with my HD599. With my iPhone, I need lightning to type-c cable and for iPad and other devices, I need Type-C to Type-C cable. This is the hassle with wires. Many of my friends who are not into 'pure audio, clean audio' thing go with wireless earphones/headphone. So, when one can get very good quality audio by paying more for Bluetooth headset and if they have money, they should go with devices like Airpods Pro and XM4. If you do not like wireless, feel free to stick to wired like how I am living with wires. No one is going to put you in jail for using wired headset. I can write lot more on the seamless connectivity between iPhone and Airpods and the spatial audio that Pro variant brings (which is something that one has to experience at least once). Calling people mindlees because they like something that you hate is poor judgement on your part.

PS: My father hated mobile phones and always used wired landline. He thought that this hi-tech and those using hi-tech are stupid. In my opinion, he chose not to embrace the change.

TWS earphones are nothing but glorified e-wastes, doesn't matter how much you sugarcoat it. The fact that you have to throw away a 20K INR investment after 1-2 years is simply mind-boggling. A similarly priced IEM will last close to 10 years or more for that matter.

Plus, the mark-up at which these companies are selling these wireless products and looting customers, while damaging the earth, is nothing short of a travesty.

When a WF1000XM4/AirPods Pro costs similar to full-range planar magnetic headphones while having significantly lower sound quality than an IEM costing 1/3rd of the price, serious questions need to be asked about the companies that are making these products & the consumers consuming them. Have you even gone though the Sony/Samsung/Apple subreddit and seen how many people are facing issues with their newly bought TWS earphones? Seems like spending copious amounts of money still can't buy you reliability as good as wired.

Not to mention the elephant in the room - Bluetooth. One of the most unreliable technologies that still can't play hi-res audio after so many years. Forget hi-res, you can't even game properly on a TWS. Forget gaming, you still have to deal with interferences/signal drops.

Anyways, who am I to say what others should buy. If you like splurging on costly TWSes every two years in the name of 'convenience' then be my guest.

Also, I like your father's perspective. At least he leads an unadulterated life unlike the rest of us and definitely not adding to the e-waste unlike the TWS-loving people.

 

[superczar]

TWS earphones are nothing but glorified e-wastes, doesn't matter how much you sugarcoat it. The fact that you have to throw away a 20K INR investment after 1-2 years is simply mind-boggling. A similarly priced IEM will last close to 10 years or more for that matter.

Plus, the mark-up at which these companies are selling these wireless products and looting customers, while damaging the earth, is nothing short of a travesty.

When a WF1000XM4/AirPods Pro costs similar to full-range planar magnetic headphones while having significantly lower sound quality than an IEM costing 1/3rd of the price, serious questions need to be asked about the companies that are making these products & the consumers consuming them. Have you even gone though the Sony/Samsung/Apple subreddit and seen how many people are facing issues with their newly bought TWS earphones? Seems like spending copious amounts of money still can't buy you reliability as good as wired.

Not to mention the elephant in the room - Bluetooth. One of the most unreliable technologies that still can't play hi-res audio after so many years. Forget hi-res, you can't even game properly on a TWS. Forget gaming, you still have to deal with interferences/signal drops.

Anyways, who am I to say what others should buy. If you like splurging on costly TWSes every two years in the name of 'convenience' then be my guest.

Also, I like your father's perspective. At least he leads an unadulterated life unlike the rest of us and definitely not adding to the e-waste unlike the TWS-loving people.

The catch is, they aren't.
I have a pretty decent hi-fi system - in fact a few of them setup ranging from entry level to the lower tier of the top end. So I have a fair sense of how good audio should sound like.

WHen it comes to headsets though, convenience / ease of use starts mattering more (for many people although of course not all)
I could have brought a 10K wired IEM instead of a Airpods pro - but my total annual usage would have been a few hours vs the everyday workout that the APPs get (a few hrs everyday including music and calls)
So in the end , I have recovered my money's worth after 3 years (and say 1500-2000 hours of usage) and they should probably last another 2. As against a 10K IEM which I would have used for maybe 100 hours so far.

PS: FWIW, I liked the APP so much that I also ended up buying the AP Max earlier this year
Depending on who you ask, their SQ comes close to $1000 wired options or sounds worse than $50 ones .
Even if I were to say that outlier options aside, they are at least as good as 20-25K wired options (They do sound really good BTW)
As far as I am concerned, they are still more useful to me as they see regular usage as against the once in a while usage that the other option would have got

 

[blr_p]

PS: My father hated mobile phones and always used wired landline. He thought that this hi-tech and those using hi-tech are stupid. In my opinion, he chose not to embrace the change.

I never let go of the landline like some did to replace with mobile. Mobile at best is field radio quality. Much better call quality with landline.

There are times when mobile to mobile can be uintelligible because both have weak signal. Call up the mobile with a landline and the quality improves.

There is another reason to use landline. Mobile connections get snappped anytime there is unrest in the country. Landline still works

 

[dexterz]

TWS is just another better income stream for the companies. It's no different than year on year new phone releases that people with disposable income keep buying. Lot of things are e-waste and damage the earth. Didn't and won't stop the majority from buying stuff. I gave my TWS to my wife after she broke 7~8 wired ones. Now peace of mind for both of us.

Similarly a normal user would think why would you buy an audiophile headphone for 1000's of rs when a normal headphone would get the job done.

If the person has the disposable income to splurge on a TWS or Audiophile headphone and it makes them happy, then go for it. What are we earning for if not to make ourselves happy?

 

[blr_p]

Forget hi-res, you can't even game properly on a TWS.

Aptx-LL. You will need a transmitter on the other end. No phone support it. Latency is under 50ms

Earphones i use have aptx-LL and are used by people that prospect with metal detectors for precisely this reason.

 

[hellblazer33]

I use TWS and I feel they are pretty good.You have to test them and feel them if it is suitable for you or not.I do walking and little bit running every morning and evening and they dont seem to fall off.I have also used neckband bt earphones and find them good as well mostly because they have bigger battery.So it all depends on your choice.

 

[raksrules]

I use Samsung Level U which is a neckband earphones for last 2+ years for my office calls and I am very satisfied with it. It serves the purpose and due to being neckband with more battery capacity, it lasts entire day.

But then I also use Jabra Elite 75t which is TWS for workouts and while lying in bed and watching stuff on my iPad.

Basically, I have two earphones for different purpose and those work for me. But yes, upto a certain extent, I will avoid spending airpods pro level of money on TWS.