My Shokz Aeropex bone conducting headset is just out of warranty. The music still plays well, but people say they can barely heard me over the mic. All Shokz is offering is 20% off of a new one.
My standard iPhone earbuds work ok, but being all connected up in tangled wires while walking, using my iPhone for cashless payments, or to get on the train, or taking photos, etc. gets awkward. I don’t know how people did that in the 1900s.
And I’m taking a trip to the U.S. next month and thought it would be nice to have something with noise canceling. I looked at some over-the-head headsets today, that were considerably less expensive than Airpod Pros and had much longer battery time. But they are big and clunky and it’s hard to imagine using them day-to-day. Also, the noise cancelation wasn’t great.
Then I tested the Airpod Pros 2nd gen at Yodobashi Camera in Akihabara and… wow.
The sales guy was really nice and patient, despite the huge crowds today, and spent a lot of time with me showing it off and letting me try it on.
First, I was stunned by how good the noise cancelation was. The sounds in Yodobashi Camera (pretty loud with the crowds and announcements, etc.) completely vanished from existence! I was really amazed!
I loved the way you could control noise cancelation by long-touching on sound in the iPhone control panel and choosing from different options, like ambient sound, off, etc.
More awkward were the touch controls. I tried increasing and decreasing the volume by sliding over the part he was trying to get me to use, and after a bunch of failed attempts sort of got it to work, but it clearly needs practice.
I didn’t have them in long enough to really know how comfortable they would be for 14 straight hours (flying time from Tokyo to Boston). Typically I don’t like having things jammed in my ear. But I guess unless you get really expensive over-the-ear headsets the plugs are the only way of cutting out outside sounds and it must also help with keeping them in.
While one did fall out when first trying, he explained I needed to put it in at a different angle. After that they didn’t seem like they would fall out. He let me shake my head like a crazy man to test, and they stayed in place.
The downsides are several though. Unlike the headsets, the battery life is much shorter. Apparently you get up to 6 hours listening time on a full charge. After that you get 1 hour per 5 minute charge. That sounds quick, but what does it mean for a 14 hour flight? After 6 hours, 8 more 5 minute charges (for example)? Of course you could take a break and do 10 minute charges.
A plus side is that you don’t need anything else. (Though I guess you would need an extra accessory to use it with airline entertainment, right?) But I mean you don’t need separate daily use earbuds and travel noise canceling headphones.
I’m worried about what happens if you lose one of course. I’m not quite sure what happens, though under AppleCare+ there seems to be a flat rate for replacement. However unlike iPhones and other Apple devices, you can’t extend the warranty after two years.
If I get it from Apple I can always return them within 14 days if I decide they really aren’t for me.
So thinking about those. The sound quality and noise cancelation really are amazing. Of course I shouldn’t use noise cancelation while walking. I could literally get hit by a truck and not hear myself die in the crash.
Oh, for the Magsafe chargers, can those also be charged wirelessly? I read somewhere about being able to charge them on Watch chargers.
What do users here think? Does it take a long time to get used to? Do they fall out? Are they comfortable for long periods of time?