Apple today introduced AirPods, innovative new wireless headphones that use advanced technology to reinvent how we listen to music, make phone calls, enjoy TV shows and movies, play games, and interact with Siri, providing a wireless audio experience not possible before. AirPods eliminate the hassles of wireless headphones, by just flipping open the lid of its innovative charging case and with one tap, they are instantly set up and ready to work with your iPhone and Apple Watch. Advanced sensors know when you are listening and automatically play and pause your music. Using Siri, AirPods allow you to access your favorite personal assistant with just a double tap. This revolutionary experience is enabled by the new ultra-low power Apple W1 chip, which enables AirPods to deliver high-quality audio and industry-leading battery life in a completely wireless design. AirPods will be available starting in late October.
“AirPods are the first headphones to deliver a breakthrough wireless audio experience, and with the new Apple W1 chip they deliver innovative features including high quality sound, great battery life and automatic setup,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing, in a statement. “AirPods are simple and magical to use, with no switches or buttons, automatically connecting to all your Apple devices simply and seamlessly, and letting you access Siri with just a double tap. We can’t wait for users to try them with iPhone 7 and Apple Watch Series 2.”
With AirPods, setting up and using wireless headphones has never been easier. Just open the charging case near your iPhone and with a simple tap, AirPods are immediately set up with all the devices signed into your iCloud account, including your iPad and Mac. AirPods are connected and ready to go when you are, just put them in your ears when you want to listen. AirPods can intelligently and seamlessly switch from a call on your iPhone to listening to music on your Apple Watch.
The all new Apple W1 chip enables the groundbreaking innovations in AirPods, with dual optical sensors and accelerometers in each AirPod that work with the W1 chip to detect when AirPods are in your ear, so they only play when you are ready to listen. Simply remove them to automatically pause the music, or just remove one to have a conversation and automatically resume when you put it back. Access Siri with a double tap to your AirPods to select and control your music, change the volume, check your battery life or perform any other Siri task. An additional accelerometer in each AirPod detects when you’re speaking, enabling a pair of beam-forming microphones to focus on the sound of your voice, filtering out external noise to make your voice sound clearer than ever before.
The ultra-low power Apple W1 chip operates at one-third of the power of traditional wireless chips, enabling AirPods to deliver up to 5 hours of listening time on one charge. The custom-designed charging case holds additional charges, for an industry-leading more than 24 hours of total listening time,* ensuring AirPods are charged and ready to go whenever you are.
Pricing & Availability
The new Apple-designed wireless AirPods including charging case will be available for $159 (US) from Apple.com and Apple Stores beginning in late October.
AirPods require Apple devices running iOS 10, watchOS® 3 or macOS™ Sierra.
*Compared to completely wireless stereo headphones.
Source: Apple Inc.
Hopefully they will optionally be available in Black.
I don’t care what color they are, they look cool as hell. But that jet black color would be amazing.
Flesh colored might be good too. White is too conspicuous.
They look cool. Of course how many of us will lose one like a sock in the wash, but all in all, kinda neat.
My thought the instant the slide at the keynote played, “How fast will I lose one of ’em?”
That and, “One will fall out of my ear and then I’ll step on it.”
For me, if they fit anything like traditional Apple ear buds then they’re going to be a complete waste of space. I like the Beats stuff though, at least with a cord I stand less chance of losing them.
I agree. I’m surprised they didnt go for a tighter fit like the Bragi. I have the Bragi dash and like them a lot but they were expensive (300$). They fit well enough that i wear them while paddleboarding. Bragi just announced a newer version that dont have fitness tracking and internal memory for 149$. I suspect they wiill give Airpods a lot of competition once the word gets out.
Not sure how I feel about these. Yes they’re cool but how much radiation do they emit and will they cause brain cancer .I wonder if Apple has done done testing
It will be very low power, much less radiation than from the other wireless elements of your iPhone.
I think you can be quite sure that Apple has done rather a lot of testing. They are very proud of their RF testing facilities.
You’re kidding right? I heard the sarcasm all the way over here.
I would love these if they didn’t have the same molded shape as the earpods. The earpods do not fit my ears correctly and they eventually move around. I could see the airpods falling out of my ears. I’ll have to check out the Beats wireless versions.
I wouldn’t be surprised if 3rd party suppliers come out with silicone sleeves and tips to improve the fit and comfort.
I have always had a problem with Apple’s EarPods… Simple cheap remedy… buy earbud foam slip covers. Works like a charm!
First thing I do when I get a new iPhone is take it out of the box and leave the EarPods where they are.
They are so uncomfortable for me, and the noise leak is so bad you might as well just use the iPhone speaker.
I know what you mean. I hope these are more comfortable but I don’t usually use any kind of ear buds or headphone with my iPhone anyway. But of course many do.
Looks like they just cut off the wires and called it wireless AirPods. How hard working must the design team at Apple be? New iPhone 7, looks same to me.
What were you expecting – a round iPhone to criticize? Pretty disingenuous to complain. There was plenty to redesign here, mostly inside. Really what form factor do you think a phone can take that’s all that different from what we have now or 5-10 years from now? Most of the changes like a future full faced display you would put down as minimal too. Perhaps you just need to put down the whiskey and stop being so petulantly spoiled.
Perhaps you need to stop being a tit.
As soon as you stop being a tat.
Josh, peterbulge is this forum’s village idiot.
Don’t react, you cannot out-stupid the stupid.
Another anonymous poseur imposter poster (FFS = Feckless Fool Spittle) posting to his own posts and enforces the madness – typical of this site’s scourge and disease. Nice try but no cigar except for the explosive one that just went off in your face. Try a little consistency in your site identity and maybe you’ll have some site cred, you strike ‘n hide coward.
FFS is spot on, it’s not really possible to “out stupid” the professional internet troll.
Don’t even try, you’ll end up like him. Obsessed, angry and small minded.
By the way, disingenuous means not candid or sincere, typically by pretending that one knows less about something than one really does. In this baboon’s case, no pretending is needed.
FFS is you idiot. Here’s another of the same guy posting under a different name. Frowned upon by MDN but unfortunately not enforced. He comes on and tries to denigrate others who expose him for the little sh*t he is, all the while hiding like the cowardly troll he was born to play. Baboon doofus indeed, who amusingly thinks he’s fooling anyone.
With all the millions Apple pay Ive and the design team, what, let it rest? How about asking them to take a year vacation with no pay, refresh and come back. You get paid, you produce. And no complains?
So you are aptly named. What makes you think the new iPhone doesn’t have a sh*tload of work behind it except your anti-Apple mind set and biased stupidity? They got paid and they produced big time. I wish you could say the same instead of being a useless and loud-mouthed drag on human resources. But I guess you got lots of unfocused & generic “complainin'” to do, but that’s all you got.
Meh. According to Apple’s website claims, wireless audio playback with the iPhone 7 is listed to be 20% less than wired audio listening for the iPhone 6S.
One more thing to lose, one more thing to charge, one more adapter to carry around to use legacy devices that exist everywhere.
Does seem odd that fashionistas at Apple didn’t offer a range of colors. But though the audio changes to the iPhone 7 are not a selling feature, the memory increase is welcome. Very happy to finally have black iPhone colors again too.
The colors will come next year as “innovation”. LOL
So I can’t charge the phone AND connect to the Aux input in my car at the same time??? Either charge it OR listen to music???
Both not both at the same time…???
How innovative!
Aux input? How innovative.
I use mine in the car – I plug in the headphone socket for the music and plug the power into the cigarette lighter for the power to keep the GPS going.
Perhaps it’s time you bought your own car and got rid of the jalopy your parents gave you 15 years ago. Luddite + cheapskate is a deadly combination.
oh peterblood….you’re right….i’ll just fork out another $31,000 for a new car so I can connect via bluetooth….and because your dipshitass is just so clever…..dickhead…
Ever hear of a new car head audio unit with bluetooth you can add for about $100? Who’s the dipshitass dickhead m*ther f*cker now? Show your age, not your shoe size/IQ bonehead.
The dipshitass dickhead m*ther f*cker now is still you, you bloody idiot. Why you think it’s innovative to have to spend more $$$ and have additional parts to carry around or add to make a *new* product work the same as an older product is just stupid….you know, like you…
I would suggest you do not drink and post nut job, it makes you sound 10 years old, irrational and a total imbecile.
@penishead71
It is you who responded to my comment like you were a 10 year old irrational imbecile. Actually, you respond to most people that way. Your mother must be proud….
Really kid do your parents know you’re annoying people? You instantly came on as a raving loon so you’ll be treated like one. Certainly your parents must be utterly humiliated and ashamed of your horrid manners and depravity.
I bet a lot of these are going to fall out at drunk festivals. They will be like mittens, lose one, the pair is virtually useless.
Mind you that could be alleviated if they were worn as ear rings. Fashionistas start your piercings.
These look great except for the long piece hanging out of your ear, looks like that’s where most of the battery is, perhaps it helps balance the weight to keep it in place too. I would have preferred something like Bragis that doesn’t stick out like that. The Beats x have a long neck cord (probably more battery here too), not very minimalist like we’re used to from Apple. They didn’t advertise the Airpods as sports accessories, probably doesn’t say much about how well they stay in the ear.
Apple will make a killing selling replacement wireless earbuds.
You could make a fortune yourself coming up with an ear lasso to keep them from falling and being lost. Then there’s may an app you could write – “Find My AirPods.”
At @99.99 a pop for 1 each. I’m sure Apple is already counting on that revenue stream
Anyone still shitting on the Beats purchase???
Yep. Watch as Airpods become the next social equivalent of Google Glass — the sign of a dork who thinks his all-digital life is better than anything that came before it.
Most people living in the real world don’t hate analog wires enough to pay an extra $150 plus the inconvenience of recharging yet another thing.
Big whoop! Another device to milk the doofus customer or idiot fanboy. Apple just can’t seem to stop thinking of ways to get the sheep to open their wallets! Let me guess: This is innovation, right? Apple has become a spinner of pure shit! What’s more pathetic is the fools who keep eating at its trough, and then talking about how great the meal was!
Hmmm, just like every other manufacturer on the planet, while evolving the device. Apple can never win can they with such complaints?
Once again a reminder – no one’s holding a gun to you or anybody else’s head. Enjoy your ShamPC-verse & it’s ickosystem choices. They await you and doubtless are the panacea of the perfection you seek.
Apologists are the worst kind of sycophant.
the stuff that Apple introduced today is an indication that the lunatics are running the asylum.
Total Garbage.
Ditto for cluelessness knuckleheads like you – all spoiled, entitled complainers, with no actual facts. ShamPC-verse awaits you as well. Good luck with that. See you later whinygator.
As a hearing aid wearer, Im thinking about what a game-changer these could be with an app to simply amplify the surroundings.
Instead of paying $5k for hearing aids, buy these for $159
These earbuds will only be complete when you add the double dork look of Google Glass. Epic Fail.
MDN: Please require signup to comment and an IQ test to signup.
The level of stupid here hurts.
But then you would be among the first to be excluded.
Will these AirPods work with older iPhones or only with the new 7’s? Sound quality?
http://www.cnet.com/products/apple-airpods/preview/
They will work only with iPhones running iOS10.
Initial reports seem to all say that they sound no better than the current analog headphones that iPhone owners currently get.
Of course there will be plenty of aftermarket headphones to enable you to get the proper fit you need, just expect to pay $150 and up for them — and they will not magically have superior sound than a $50 analog wired headphone. Too many variables in play to guarantee that. Besides, with Beats, it’s clear that Apple is more interested in selling branding and fashion image than performance. Those of us who already own Etymotics or B&W or some other audiophile headphone aren’t going to downgrade to Airpods.
Judging from the comments I don’t think people realize the paradigm shift this is beginning. Why use a phone or a watch when quick messages can be sent through the AirPods via verbal dictation? Or how about Siri stating the message from the last Instagram post, etc. “Hey Siri, set an appointment, book me a ride, what movies are playing, get directions, etc.” This will save a huge amount of time, and is a game changer. I also see this as a building block towards an AR input solution.
I’m surprised this isn’t mentioned anywhere:
Are AirPods water resistant?