I've had my AirPods for a week so far, with 3 workouts. I previously had the Powerbeats2 wireless. Here's my review between the two.
My issues with the Powerbeats2 wireless - they weren't really wireless, they had a cord connecting each earpiece to the other. No other cord though. They're a lot nicer than corded headphones, but still had the snag issue. I'd put the cord around the back of my neck, and most of the time that was good. Occasionally, me twisting a certain way, or sweat would cause them to pull a little. Never had the headphones come off, but that's because they had the around the ear hook.
So, I had no problem with the Powerbeats2 ever coming off. I thought I'd have an issue with the AirPods falling out, since the wired ones fell out of my ear. No such issue! My typical workout is working out with weights for 55 minutes, then 40-45 minutes on the elliptical. The AirPods never fell out or even felt like they would. I think the EarPod cord causes tension to pull them out.
Battery life? The Powerbeats2 had a battery life of 6-8 hours. Not enough for a complete week (my workouts take 8-10 hours a week), so I had to charge them twice a week. Plus, there was no indicator of how much battery life was left. A few times late in workouts, the battery would die. But I wouldn't know 2 hours before. No indicator until about 15 minutes left. You can check the AirPods anytime. Plus, the 'real' battery life of the AirPods is about 24 hours as long as you don't leave them in constantly. I just use mine for my workouts of 90-120 minutes, then put them back in their case for the next day. I don't need to charge them with a cable for about 3 weeks!
Instant-on for the AirPods are so much nicer too. I had to hold the power down to start the Powerbeats2. Not much different, but took a little longer for the Powerbeats2, and wasn't as reliable. Additionally, sometimes I would turn off the Powerbeats2, but they really wouldn't turn off, and the battery was dead the next day. No such issue with the AirPods. They're off while in the case.
Anything worse? Only thing I do NOT like on the AirPods is Siri. When I was gardening, listening to music, Siri would be accidentally enabled. So I turned it off and went to double-tap to pause my music.
The only other thing is a plus and a minus. You can hear the outside world clearer. Without the music on, I can leave the AirPods in and talk with someone. With the music on, at half-volume, it drowns out the music in the gym. You can't hear any music at all when doing something like mowing the lawn, it lets too much sound in. But that's both a good and a bad thing. My PowerBeats2 is similar. It muffles a little more, but one of the reasons I liked it was because I could hear things going on, and that's important if you're outside. I want to hear all the car honks and noise. I have a Beats over-the-ear noise cancelling headphones for work, because there, I want complete silence from co-workers and office noise. I would NOT want gym or workout headphones to be the same.
What do I LOVE? Phone calls. I can take out my right AirPod, use my phone to answer a call and hear it in my left ear. Awesome! It works GREAT with my Apple Watch. Volume control there is outstanding. Since I have volume control on my watch, I don't mind that it's not on the AirPods. In fact, I had volume control on my Powerbeats2, but I rarely used it, like maybe once a month. It was so much more convenient to do by phone or watch, because I could change tracks and see what I was listening to there as well.
Overall I love my Airpods, and my Powerbeats2 are history.
