AirPods are Apple’s Bluetooth earbuds, released mainly for later iPhone models due to the lack of a headphone jack. They’re meant to be easy to use, and the perfect companion for your iPhone. But, are AirPods perfect for travel?
How do they sound?
The sound is loud and clear. When listening to music, you can hear lyrics and background instruments perfectly. However, there isn’t much depth. In fact, they sound virtually identical to the wired EarPods that come in the box with your iPhone. There’s a slight improvement with sound clarity compared to the EarPods, but not much of one. And if you’re looking for lots of thumping bass, you’ll need to look elsewhere.
Are they comfortable to wear?
The one-size-fits-all design works for most people. The unique shape points the speakers directly into the ear canal without plugging it up completely like rubber tipped buds do. However, I’ve found that they don’t create a very good seal around my ear canal, so I can hear what’s going on around me. Due to the seal problem, I have to turn up the volume to almost max. And when I turn the volume up that much, it starts to hiss, which can be painful and irritating.
How convenient are they?
AirPods are loaded with four extremely convenient features.
To begin with, the case isn’t just a carrying case. It also acts as their charger. The charging/carrying case can give your AirPods up to 24 consecutive hours of charge.
Another is the automatic play-and-pause feature. There are sensors on the AirPods that detect whether they’re in your ears or not. If you take an AirPod out of your ear, the sensors will detect that you did so. What you’re listening to will automatically pause. Put the AirPod back in your ear, and it instantly resumes.
A third convenient feature is the instant pop-up menu when you open the carrying case.
With the W1 chip inside the AirPods and the iPhone, the AirPods are automatically detected when you open the case near your iPhone. It’s really handy if you want to quickly check how much battery life is left on your AirPods. They’ll also appear in your ‘batteries’ widget in the Notification Centre.
The last convenient feature is what I call “Double Tap.” If you double tap on the stem of one of the AirPods, you can activate Siri. The onboard microphones in the AirPods make Siri easy to use because they know when you’re talking and when you’re not. In Settings, you can make Double Tap play and pause, as opposed to activating Siri.
What’s the battery life?
The AirPods will give you 5 consecutive hours of playback and the charging case can charge them about 4.5 times before dying. The carrying case itself charges via a Lightning port at the bottom. On the inside of the charging case, there’s an LED light that will indicate whether the AirPods have finished charging or not.
Are they good value?
Apple’s pricing for the AirPods is a little steep at $219 CAD ($162 USD). Most people spending that sort of money would want to make sure they’re buying the best headphones possible. I must say the price is a bit ridiculous, but if you’re an Apple fanatic like me, they’re a great companion for your iPhone.
Are AirPods perfect for travel?
I wouldn’t recommend them as a main source of audio for travellers. They don’t block out enough noise, and the audio quality isn’t great for the price. And quite frankly, they’re too easy to lose, even if you’re great at keeping track of your things. They would be good as a backup pair of headphones, or while exercising during your trip. Weighing just 1.62 oz (46 g), and about the size of a pack of dental floss, they won’t take up much space in your bag.
For more information, check out Apple’s technical specifications.
Care to weigh in? Are AirPods perfect for travel?
Guest Author Jacob Halbach is a self-proclaimed Apple fanatic. When he’s not evaluating his next Apple purchase, he’s working on his high school diploma in Edmonton, Alberta.
Thanks for this great article on whether or not Airpods are perfect for travel. I like that you covered many pros and cons, allowing me to weigh the odds myself. As a person who is hard of hearing, I appreciate knowing whether or not outside noise will be eliminated. But I would ask, if Airpods are not perfect for travel, is there a headset, or type of headset, that you would recommend?
Hello Terri. Thank you for dropping by and leaving a comment. I agree that Jacob provided a good description, with a helpful list of pros and cons. As for your question, you might want to drop into the Bose store at the Rideau Centre in Ottawa. There are several products on display that you can test drive to determine what might work best for you: headphones, earphones and products with noise-reducing and noise-cancelling features. Bose has a reputation for quality products, but they tend to be more expensive. Still, a visit should point you in the right direction. Good luck.
Anne Betts recently posted…Emergency ID bracelet for travellers
Airlines don’t always supply earphones for their backnofnthr seat console. You can plug in standard wired headsets. These do you no good. And 5 hours is far too little for long flights –
Or train or bus rides.
Thank you Anna, for your feedback. I agree that five hours isn’t enough for travel. My preference is to travel with wired in-ear buds with a noise-reducing feature to minimize the noise of engines and crying infants or other passengers. A decent headset might provide a tighter seal and better audio experience, but I found they were so bulky I tended to use them only on travel days. Ear buds take up much less space and I use them more often.
Anne Betts recently posted…Packing list for a safari in Southern Africa
I don’t really like the airpods,i prefer the traditional earbuds 🙂
Hey Anne,
Thanks for sharing this article. AirPods are quite too expensive if you are looking for good sound quality. If you travel a lot and you want an earphone that would eliminate noise without sacrificing sound quality then this is not the best option. I think AirPods are great as a back up earphone and I like the idea of it being very handy. 🙂
I really enjoyed browsing your site. About the AirPods, the fact that some airlines do not allow the use of bluetooth during flight would make them less than ideal for a travel earpod.
So we have to shed extra bucks for these airpods? These should be given along with the phone like they have been doing with other version?
AirPods Problems recently posted…AirPods Problems
I use the airpods for when i travel. I like how convenient and portable they are. They only last 4/5 hours of a signal charge but they recharge pretty quick. When i’m travelling on a plane sometimes i’ll bring some noise cancelling headphones but most of the time i rather use my airpods.
Matthew recently posted…Sennheiser HD800 vs HD800s: Worth The Extra Cost?
I haven’t used AirPods yet! but few of my friends used it and said the audio output is hilarious!
That’s why I saved money to buy an AirPods I hope to will be very useful for travelling!
Airpods is a great choice to carry on your travelling day. Also I have found samsung galaxy buds pro very user friendly as well. You can try if you wish to.