Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Ralfi

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 22, 2016
4,373
3,101
Australia
After about a month of wearing a matt black skin on the OG Airpods, going from them to the Pro’s this week was an improvement in every area bar the look - I wasn’t really a critic of the white (wore them for almost 3 years), but it was only when skinning them, & seeing them blend in with my beard ??, I realised how much better they looked, dark.

So now I’m on the hunt for Pro skins. Just the buds will do, as the case doesn’t bother me + it’s cheaper.

I was hoping the mob I got the OG skins for had them (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/192310343810?ul_noapp=true), but no yet. The nearest I’ve found are these , though I’m not sure of the quality, & I think they’re a bit pricey shipped to Australia, so may wait until end of year sales happen.

I know it may be early, but does anyone have any recommendations?
 
Last edited:

AVBeatMan

macrumors 603
Nov 10, 2010
5,968
3,849
After about a month of wearing a matt black skin on the OG Airpods, going from them to the Pro’s this week was an improvement in every area bar the look - I wasn’t really a critic of the white (wore them for almost 3 years), but it was only when skinning them, & seeing them blend in with my beard ??, I realised how much better they looked, dark.

So now I’m on the hunt for Pro skins. Just the buds will do, as the case doesn’t bother me + it’s cheaper.

I was hoping the mob I got the OG skins for had them (https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/192310343810?ul_noapp=true), but no yet. The nearest I’ve found are these , though I’m not sure of the quality, & I think they’re a bit pricey shipped to Australia, so may wait until end of year sales happen.

I know it may be early, but does anyone have any recommendations?
I’ve just got these and can recommend.
ESR Hybrid AirPods Carrying Case for AirPods Pro (2019 Release), Translucent Protective PC Cover with Flexible TPU Frame and Keychain, Matte Surface, Supports Wireless Charging, Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07ZR9G1PN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_vPs2DbMA51NCE
 

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,581
2,627
New York
If money isn’t an issue, Colorware or Evil Headphones on Etsy got good reviews for painted options. A little pricey but I’m extremely disappointed Apple doesn’t offer more color options (black). These things aren’t exactly discreet and they’re worn on the your face.
 

bp328i

macrumors regular
Oct 27, 2019
118
80
Last edited:

Ralfi

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 22, 2016
4,373
3,101
Australia
I’ve just got these and can recommend.
ESR Hybrid AirPods Carrying Case for AirPods Pro (2019 Release), Translucent Protective PC Cover with Flexible TPU Frame and Keychain, Matte Surface, Supports Wireless Charging, Black https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07ZR9G1PN/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_vPs2DbMA51NCE
Thanks. It appears that’s Case only? I‘m after buds only, if I can find it, as I like the portability of the case as is & how it slides in & out of my pocket thanks to it’s smooth coating.

I came across these looking for a wrap, but don’t have firsthand experience with the product or company:

https://www.slickwraps.com/devices/wearables/apple/airpods-pro.html

I’m in the opposite camp, looking for a wrap just for the case, going to try the dbrand option
Yeah, Slickwraps are pricey. I’m probably not going to invest that much into skins myself.

You should have heaps of options for case-only covers.
If money isn’t an issue, Colorware or Evil Headphones on Etsy got good reviews for painted options. A little pricey but I’m extremely disappointed Apple doesn’t offer more color options (black). These things aren’t exactly discreet and they’re worn on the your face.

Painted look great, but again, too ??? for me.

Thanks for the suggestions. I’m sure more options will pop up soon.

Here are the applied skins on the OG’s by the company I reference in the OP fyi...
9CAE2767-DFE8-4F29-92CA-1ED5A2C48376.jpeg 5DA07ACC-1BF7-4932-A182-EFA2CC0175EF.jpeg D88456D4-EF49-4F11-B44D-B4EE431601C7.jpeg 4610BA5D-72AE-4BDF-B2B8-E4B46A6BCDEB.jpeg 626371A4-F679-4AAD-A155-2CBED36A6E24.jpeg 26101461-6F79-4458-BF3A-1D2D608FDABB.jpeg C1CA857C-442C-48CC-845A-FE227BD3BAD3.jpeg
 

Ralfi

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 22, 2016
4,373
3,101
Australia
I was generously sent some prototype skins which arrived today.

They leave more of the white sections exposed compared to those of the original Airpods above. & they overlap a fair bit on the top section. But they still look great imo & fit in the case with no issue. I’ve left this feedback with the manufacturers, so hopefully they address it & v2 will improve on these in terms of coverage...

FC910DB1-A710-483E-BAE0-1004469E3CCF.jpeg EF536A95-A792-4B37-B207-51BC3A558026.jpeg 3706D45F-5999-4DB0-88DB-F16D62F4110E.jpeg 7E009D48-A1FE-413A-8608-720EA90702B6.jpeg B97ADD1C-C0A1-422B-B666-173C0D2AD71F.jpeg EEA1A6B0-79DD-4E4C-B697-9C6D49EC0486.jpeg 57449ED7-3077-412B-971E-CB3964625AEE.jpeg CD875C64-F1DF-4DC8-B741-7DD28E4E028B.jpeg 7EDF88C2-36A5-496D-A70A-A3CC4A1AA8D0.jpeg
 

Ralfi

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 22, 2016
4,373
3,101
Australia
Noticed another brand on Amazon...Sopiguard:

They seem to cover more of the bulb section, but they leave the stem more exposed compared to the APSkins I have. You also need a hair dryer to apply them, so the install may be more fiddly.

& there's also Mightyskins:

I'm not sure of their quality. Reviews seem to paint a negative picture on them - too many seams due to seperate pieces, but they may be referring to the case skin only (i'm only interested in the skins for ear pieces).
 

Ralfi

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 22, 2016
4,373
3,101
Australia
Update...

2nd application attempt turned out much better... Was able to line up the top edges of the flaps for a much cleaner look...

6690D5B8-3C83-4372-B4C5-06ADD6232664.jpeg 303C4D87-39A2-4A39-A6A0-F60378BF6ECA.jpeg

Only issue was a small speck of white exposed due to one of the flaps not wrapping around the external speaker far enough...

AF1EE41C-889E-4338-8E21-82D3B6A0C99C.jpeg

I managed to fill that white section in by dotting it with a fine black marker, which did the job...

AE694086-0C8D-4037-9B12-588E83A3938E.jpeg

Overall though, these look great imo & I’ll leave them on until a style with more coverage appears.

6C43459F-7F05-435B-9944-B38E9147E321.jpeg 541E70A2-93D7-4A3F-9797-652E32B461C5.jpeg D2113456-87C2-47ED-8B43-AE8C755282FD.jpeg 05A5FC99-2E42-4078-9F17-137E0E265AE5.jpeg D82CA903-4306-482D-BB90-F26BDF65CC81.jpeg
 
  • Like
Reactions: Complex757

DeepIn2U

macrumors G5
May 30, 2002
13,051
6,984
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
While I appreciate heavily the efforts and tests those that contributed to this thread have done. Unfortunately these skins don’t offer a critical part of what I was hoping they’d do: had the AirPod Pro’s white colour right by the ear hole piece of skin that hairs hair coming out of my ear :(

dark har black skin these very small amount of hairs stand out when in conversation proximity.

then again since wearing a mask or bandanna has taken the focus off faces I’m feeling ok about it all. Yet soon I may just have to keep hoping or paint them myself
 

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,581
2,627
New York
While I appreciate heavily the efforts and tests those that contributed to this thread have done. Unfortunately these skins don’t offer a critical part of what I was hoping they’d do: had the AirPod Pro’s white colour right by the ear hole piece of skin that hairs hair coming out of my ear :(

dark har black skin these very small amount of hairs stand out when in conversation proximity.

then again since wearing a mask or bandanna has taken the focus off faces I’m feeling ok about it all. Yet soon I may just have to keep hoping or paint them myself

Maybe trim the ear hair with one of those small personal grooming clippers?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ralfi and DeepIn2U

DeepIn2U

macrumors G5
May 30, 2002
13,051
6,984
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Maybe trim the ear hair with one of those small personal grooming clippers?

an idea yet you’ll get split ends on these hairs too. Rig hit now I’m using teasers. I made the non-advisable and VERY painful mistake of using NEAT hair removable meant for women’s leg hair. 12mins your ear will bleed and sting like a 200 decibel volume of alertness!!

wax - out of the question - just as painful as NEAT; to me that is.

note this isn’t a grooming issue it’s an age issue ;) eventually we’ll all start growing ear hair. Just don’t want to fashion it off for the world lol.

thx. Looks like colorware maybe my only choice for official space gray AirPod Pro’s. Hope Apple would honour AppleCare+ on those. Time to look into that.
 

Ralfi

macrumors 601
Original poster
Dec 22, 2016
4,373
3,101
Australia
While I appreciate heavily the efforts and tests those that contributed to this thread have done. Unfortunately these skins don’t offer a critical part of what I was hoping they’d do: had the AirPod Pro’s white colour right by the ear hole piece of skin that hairs hair coming out of my ear :(

dark har black skin these very small amount of hairs stand out when in conversation proximity.

then again since wearing a mask or bandanna has taken the focus off faces I’m feeling ok about it all. Yet soon I may just have to keep hoping or paint them myself
No problem.

I do usually trim hair with a beard trimmer, as I notice that also. Maybe I wasn't thorough enough before taking the shots above ;)

It's an easy fix though, with either a beard trimmer or a good quality nose trimmer.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DeepIn2U

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,581
2,627
New York
an idea yet you’ll get split ends on these hairs too. Rig hit now I’m using teasers. I made the non-advisable and VERY painful mistake of using NEAT hair removable meant for women’s leg hair. 12mins your ear will bleed and sting like a 200 decibel volume of alertness!!

wax - out of the question - just as painful as NEAT; to me that is.

note this isn’t a grooming issue it’s an age issue ;) eventually we’ll all start growing ear hair. Just don’t want to fashion it off for the world lol.

thx. Looks like colorware maybe my only choice for official space gray AirPod Pro’s. Hope Apple would honour AppleCare+ on those. Time to look into that.
I hear ya. I only suggested it because I do it myself. Sometimes I use a Bic to get a closer cut and I’m good for the whole week. Same here with the age thing. Didn’t grow this stuff till in my late 30’s lol. Gotta be real careful with the Bic though. If you cut that little piece of ear, it bleeds for days lol.

I had mine painted by someone called EvilHeadphones on Etsy. Much cheaper than Colorware and a very good job. Got good reviews so I took a shot. Plus they’ll do it on used AirPods whereas I believe Colorware requires brand new AirPods. I wouldn’t count on any warranty to be honored after a modification like this but I may be wrong.
 
  • Like
Reactions: DeepIn2U

DeepIn2U

macrumors G5
May 30, 2002
13,051
6,984
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
No problem.

I do usually trim hair with a beard trimmer, as I notice that also. Maybe I wasn't thorough enough before taking the shots above ;)

It's an easy fix though, with either a beard trimmer or a good quality nose trimmer.

no shots taken :) as I said good idea which I’ve actually tried before but seems to spawn more or split ends in my experience (beard trimmer). Nose trimmer was much more efficient though until that broke.
 

DeepIn2U

macrumors G5
May 30, 2002
13,051
6,984
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I hear ya. I only suggested it because I do it myself. Sometimes I use a Bic to get a closer cut and I’m good for the whole week. Same here with the age thing. Didn’t grow this stuff till in my late 30’s lol. Gotta be real careful with the Bic though. If you cut that little piece of ear, it bleeds for days lol.

I had mine painted by someone called EvilHeadphones on Etsy. Much cheaper than Colorware and a very good job. Got good reviews so I took a shot. Plus they’ll do it on used AirPods whereas I believe Colorware requires brand new AirPods. I wouldn’t count on any warranty to be honored after a modification like this but I may be wrong.

Bleed - right?!? I had chemical burn. Also had the 5 blade Gillette nick one time (definitely NOT the best a man can get for this lol).

thanks for the paint tip I’ll check that out.

PS: any youth that happens on this thread and laughs at us older guys with ear hair concerns. Like cats do not mess making fun like I once did with my pops; it’s comes back right to ya lol
 
  • Haha
Reactions: Itinj24

Itinj24

Contributor
Nov 8, 2017
4,581
2,627
New York
Bleed - right?!? I had chemical burn. Also had the 5 blade Gillette nick one time (definitely NOT the best a man can get for this lol).

thanks for the paint tip I’ll check that out.

PS: any youth that happens on this thread and laughs at us older guys with ear hair concerns. Like cats do not mess making fun like I once did with my pops; it’s comes back right to ya lol
5 blade Gillette on the ear?!? You’re a brave soul for sure hahaha.
 

jwip

Suspended
Jun 17, 2020
113
1,084
are people really that bored with them that this type of thing is warranted?
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.