Airpods: Difference between revisions

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~~These horrific portable wireless earphones are anti~~-~~right~~-~~to-repair in several areas~~. ~~Most importantly~~, ~~their design prevents all but~~ the ~~most deft of hands from replacing their internal Li-Ion rechargable batteries, rendering them useless due to a part which inevitably ages over time~~, ~~like tyres~~ on ~~a car. If you had to throw your car away because it was physically impossible to replace the tyres without ruining the body of the car~~, ~~that would be Airpods~~.

{{StubNotice}}{{InfoboxProductLine

| Title = AirPods

| Release Year = 2016-12-13

| Product Type = Wireless earbuds

| In Production = Yes

| Official Website = https://apple.com/airpods

| Logo = AirPods logo.png

}}AirPods are wireless earbuds designed by [[Apple]]. They first debuted on September 07, 2016, alongside the iPhone 7, and were released on December 13, 2016.

~~They also led~~ to an ~~era of lossy~~, ~~awful wireless~~-~~only sound~~, by ~~allowing manufacturers~~ to ~~justify removing lossless~~, ~~CD quality headphone outputs from~~ their ~~phones~~ and ~~audio devices~~. ~~Bluetooth is always lossy~~. ~~Even Sony Ericsson sold breakout boxes~~ for ~~normal headphones~~ for their ~~C905~~, ~~W995~~, ~~for example~~.

In addition to playing audio, the AirPods contain a microphone that filters out background noise as well as built-in accelerometers and optical sensors capable of detecting taps and pinches (e.g. double-tap or pinch to pause audio) and placement within the ear, which enables automatic pausing of audio when they are taken out of the ear.

On March 20, 2019, Apple released the second-generation AirPods, which feature the H1 chip, longer talk time, and hands-free "Hey Siri" support. A higher-end version includes a charging case that supports Qi charging.

On October 26, 2021, Apple released the third-generation AirPods, which feature an external redesign with shorter stems similar to AirPods Pro, spatial audio, IPX4 water resistance, longer battery life, and MagSafe charging capability.

On September 9, 2024, Apple announced the AirPods 4, which feature the H2 chip, Bluetooth 5.3, and a USB-C charging case. A higher end model features active noise cancellation and a charging case that supports Qi and Apple Watch chargers.

==Consumer impact summary==

AirPods are designed to be unrepairable even by Apple, leading to them ending up as e-waste after a few years of use. The replacement of the lithium-ion batteries used by the AirPods requires the destruction of the outer casing, adding to the waste problem. Up until September 22, 2023, Apple used their proprietary Lightning connector on the AirPods' charging case.

The lithium-ion batteries in AirPods can see significant degradation over time, with two-year-old sets lasting for less than half of the advertised five hours. Apple has a program to service batteries and purchase replacement individual AirPods and charging cases. The replacement of one or both AirPods or the charging case has a lower price with AppleCare+ than without. Apple offers battery servicing for free with AppleCare+ and for a fee without. However, this is just a replacement service, as AirPods cannot be repaired without destroying their outer case, resulting in a 0/10 repairability score.

{{Placeholder box|Overview of concerns that arise from the conduct towards users of products part of the product line.

Touch on relevant topics like:

* User Freedom

* User Privacy

* Business Model

* Market Control}}

==Incidents==

This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this product line. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{PAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]].

{{Placeholder box|Replace the placeholder text in the sections below with the incidents that affect this product line and a short summary. Also replace the link so it point to the right company article.}}

===Example incident one (''date'')===

{{Main|link to the main article}}Short summary of the incident (could be the same as the summary preceding the article).

===Example incident two (''date'')===

...

Incidents affecting all of the company's products can be found in the company article: [[Company article]]

==Products==

*AirPods (1st generation) (December 13, 2016<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2 March 2025 |title=Every Apple AirPods Generation: A Full History of Release Dates - IGN |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/all-apple-airpods-release-dates-in-order |website=IGN}}</ref>)

*AirPods (2nd generation) (March 20, 2019<ref name=":0" />)

*AirPods Pro (1st generation) (October 30, 2019<ref name=":0" />)

*AirPods Max (December 15, 2020<ref name=":0" />)

*AirPods (3rd generation) (October 26, 2021<ref name=":0" />)

*AirPods Pro 2 (previously 2nd generation) (September 23, 2022<ref name=":0" />)

*AirPods 4/ANC (September 20, 2024<ref name=":0" />)

==See also==

{{Placeholder box|Link to relevant theme articles or product lines with similar incidents.}}

*[[Apple]]

==References==

[[Category:Airpods]]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-These horrific portable wireless earphones are anti-right-to-repair in several areas. Most importantly, their design prevents all but the most deft of hands from replacing their internal Li-Ion rechargable batteries, rendering them useless due to a part which inevitably ages over time, like tyres on a car. If you had to throw your car away because it was physically impossible to replace the tyres without ruining the body of the car, that would be Airpods.
+{{StubNotice}}{{InfoboxProductLine
+| Title = AirPods
+| Release Year = 2016-12-13
+| Product Type = Wireless earbuds
+| In Production = Yes
+| Official Website = https://apple.com/airpods
+| Logo = AirPods logo.png
+}}AirPods are wireless earbuds designed by [[Apple]]. They first debuted on September 07, 2016, alongside the iPhone 7, and were released on December 13, 2016.
-They also led to an era of lossy, awful wireless-only sound, by allowing manufacturers to justify removing lossless, CD quality headphone outputs from their phones and audio devices. Bluetooth is always lossy. Even Sony Ericsson sold breakout boxes for normal headphones for their C905, W995, for example.
+In addition to playing audio, the AirPods contain a microphone that filters out background noise as well as built-in accelerometers and optical sensors capable of detecting taps and pinches (e.g. double-tap or pinch to pause audio) and placement within the ear, which enables automatic pausing of audio when they are taken out of the ear.
+On March 20, 2019, Apple released the second-generation AirPods, which feature the H1 chip, longer talk time, and hands-free "Hey Siri" support. A higher-end version includes a charging case that supports Qi charging.
+On October 26, 2021, Apple released the third-generation AirPods, which feature an external redesign with shorter stems similar to AirPods Pro, spatial audio, IPX4 water resistance, longer battery life, and MagSafe charging capability.
+On September 9, 2024, Apple announced the AirPods 4, which feature the H2 chip, Bluetooth 5.3, and a USB-C charging case. A higher end model features active noise cancellation and a charging case that supports Qi and Apple Watch chargers.
+==Consumer impact summary==
+AirPods are designed to be unrepairable even by Apple, leading to them ending up as e-waste after a few years of use. The replacement of the lithium-ion batteries used by the AirPods requires the destruction of the outer casing, adding to the waste problem. Up until September 22, 2023, Apple used their proprietary Lightning connector on the AirPods' charging case.
+The lithium-ion batteries in AirPods can see significant degradation over time, with two-year-old sets lasting for less than half of the advertised five hours. Apple has a program to service batteries and purchase replacement individual AirPods and charging cases. The replacement of one or both AirPods or the charging case has a lower price with AppleCare+ than without. Apple offers battery servicing for free with AppleCare+ and for a fee without. However, this is just a replacement service, as AirPods cannot be repaired without destroying their outer case, resulting in a 0/10 repairability score.
+{{Placeholder box|Overview of concerns that arise from the conduct towards users of products part of the product line.
+Touch on relevant topics like:
+* User Freedom
+* User Privacy
+* Business Model
+* Market Control}}
+==Incidents==
+This is a list of all consumer protection incidents related to this product line. Any incidents not mentioned here can be found in the [[:Category:{{PAGENAME}}|{{PAGENAME}} category]].
+{{Placeholder box|Replace the placeholder text in the sections below with the incidents that affect this product line and a short summary. Also replace the link so it point to the right company article.}}
+===Example incident one (''date'')===
+{{Main|link to the main article}}Short summary of the incident (could be the same as the summary preceding the article).
+===Example incident two (''date'')===
+...
+Incidents affecting all of the company's products can be found in the company article: [[Company article]]
+==Products==
+*AirPods (1st generation) (December 13, 2016<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2 March 2025 |title=Every Apple AirPods Generation: A Full History of Release Dates - IGN |url=https://www.ign.com/articles/all-apple-airpods-release-dates-in-order |website=IGN}}</ref>)
+*AirPods (2nd generation) (March 20, 2019<ref name=":0" />)
+*AirPods Pro (1st generation) (October 30, 2019<ref name=":0" />)
+*AirPods Max  (December 15, 2020<ref name=":0" />)
+*AirPods (3rd generation) (October 26, 2021<ref name=":0" />)
+*AirPods Pro 2 (previously 2nd generation) (September 23, 2022<ref name=":0" />)
+*AirPods 4/ANC (September 20, 2024<ref name=":0" />)
+==See also==
+{{Placeholder box|Link to relevant theme articles or product lines with similar incidents.}}
+*[[Apple]]
+==References==
+<references />
+[[Category:Airpods]]