6 Reasons why Apple's new wireless Earphones are a failure
If you haven't already heard, Apple released their new iPhone 7 the other day with the revelation that there is no longer a standard headphone jack.
The announcement received mixed emotions from the public with many taking to Twitter expressing their disappointment in the decision, trending the hashtag #applefail. Industry experts also chimed in with their thoughts, with tech entrepreneur Jack Crighton explaining "the decision by Apple to remove the headphone jack is a step towards prohibiting hardware interoperability".
With this in mind, we've come up with 6 reasons why Apple's new wireless earphones are a failure.
1. They're far too expensive
Apple's earphones are now roughly 5x more expensive than their wired counterparts at $159. For the average person, this is a big outlay when you're already spending $649 on the 32GB version of the phone.
2. They get lost easily
Surely everyone has experienced the feeling of listening to your earphones and having one ear suddenly cut out, seemingly for good, until you manage to jiggle the wire just right to make it work again.
Now imagine completely losing one of your earphones and permanently having that feeling. Oh and that'll be another $159 thanks.
3. You have another gadget to charge
We had no issues charging our laptops, we don't mind charging our phones, we reluctantly embraced needing to charge our brand new smartwatches, but now you're telling us we also have to charge our earphones too!?
There is no more setting your earphones down on your desk at night and picking them up on the way out the door to work the next morning. You now have to actively think about charging your earphones too.
4. People just don't want them
A poll on Twitter with 12,429 (at the time of writing) respondents found that 53% of users don't want wireless earphones, whilst 28% angrily answered "I guess i'll have to soon". Only 19% of users outright said that they actually want wireless earphones.
5. You can't leave them on the bench if you have young kids
Believe it or not, the new wireless earphones are actually a choking hazard. If you have young children you need to now be extra cautious where you place your earphones so your children can't reach them.
Additionally, they also look like a pretty good toy for your pets too.
6. They stuck with the old, average design
Why did Apple stick with the old look of their EarPods? EarPods were never great for actually staying in your ear and the new wireless AirPods are essentially the same thing without wires.
Many earphone companies will ship their earphones with different size tips, styles etc. to help conform to each individuals ear. Apple has gone with the one-size-fits-all approach which makes wearing the AirPods uncomfortable for some.
How the market reacts to Apple's new AirPods in the long term is yet to be seen, but for the short term and judging by the reactions on social media, I can't see them being favorably received.