Engineer Brings Wires and USB-C Connector to AirPods

[FriendlyMackle]

I bought a pair of Hey Dude 'shoes' (they are really overpriced slippers?) and after wearing them for a few days was struck with the idea they are just Crocks with fabric, and totally not recyclable. I felt some guilt too. But they are comfortable. I will wear them until they aren't wearable again. It doesn't deflect from their lack of recyclability, but will at least delay their replacement. I love Birkinstocks, and wear them until the sole completely disintegrates, after trying to prolong their demise for as long as I can. Yeah, fashion is hard on the environment. Think of trillions of pairs of 'yoga pants' filling landfills...

Except that you can add new soles to Birkenstocks. People keep them (with resoling) for over 20 years.
As to Crocs...they are an abomination. I don't care how 'comfortable' they supposedly are. They're literally made from plastic and are therefore future landfill and ocean and water microplastics. Not to mention they are gross and don't breathe. I don't want to think what someone's feet are like after removing them. Ugh.
If people must wear unmentionably hideous 'shoes', they should at least be made out of natural materials that will degrade rather than persist for decades (centuries?). Leather, cork, rubber, felt, wool...there are so many choices. And continuing to use plastics just fuels the global petrochem industries and all of their lobbying against better and actually beneficial technologies.

 

[MaxBurn]

In my experience all headphones are disposable. Cables break. Ear tips and cups eventually fall apart. Countless ear tip replacements across the board as I prefer noise isolation. I was on my third set of cables on my ultimate ears triple fi's and the second on my sure 215's before I gave up and went wireless. Wireless was a rough transition but got there in the end.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Except that you can add new soles to Birkenstocks. People keep them (with resoling) for over 20 years.
As to Crocs...they are an abomination. I don't care how 'comfortable' they supposedly are. They're literally made from plastic and are therefore future landfill and ocean and water microplastics. Not to mention they are gross and don't breathe. I don't want to think what someone's feet are like after removing them. Ugh.
If people must wear unmentionably hideous 'shoes', they should at least be made out of natural materials that will degrade rather than persist for decades (centuries?). Leather, cork, rubber, felt, wool...there are so many choices. And continuing to use plastics just fuels the global petrochem industries and all of their lobbying against better and actually beneficial technologies.

Birkies can be resoled but the cork can't be replaced. I had a pair that I dearly loved and the sole cracked and water and who knows what else got in and started the decomposing of the area in the Londons where the front toe box meets the back heel and buckle area. Once that is rotted enough, it's days are numbered, sadly. I felt like I lost a family member. Those shoes were so comfortable. Barge glue works as a waterproofing salve that can be applied to the outside cork. It can help stabilize already damaged cork. (Also finding official Birkenstock sole material is harder than it seems it should be. Copycats are popping up everywhere, which is surprising as it's just shoe sole material)

 

[jhfenton]

In my experience all headphones are disposable. Cables break. Ear tips and cups eventually fall apart. Countless ear tip replacements across the board as I prefer noise isolation. I was on my third set of cables on my ultimate ears triple fi's and the second on my sure 215's before I gave up and went wireless. Wireless was a rough transition but got there in the end.

Agreed. I used to sweat through 3 or 4 pair of $10 gummy ear pods per year running. EarPods died early deaths too. Then I tried Jaybird wireless buds, and I sweated through 3 of those before the warranty ran out on the third pair of them. My various incarnations of the AirPods have all held up to my apparently corrosive sweat for multiple years. (I did have one bud develop a crackling problem one time, and it was replaced under warranty. So maybe that was a sweat failure.)

So for me, at least, AirPods have reduced the volume of waste generated from headphones.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Agreed. I used to sweat through 3 or 4 pair of $10 gummy ear pods per year running. EarPods died early deaths too. Then I tried Jaybird wireless buds, and I sweated through 3 of those before the warranty ran out on the third pair of them. My various incarnations of the AirPods have all held up to my apparently corrosive sweat for multiple years. (I did have one bud develop a crackling problem one time, and it was replaced under warranty. So maybe that was a sweat failure.)

So for me, at least, AirPods have reduced the volume of waste generated from headphones.

I ruined a pair of Polk 'waterproof' wired ear buds, and they DID replace them, but also said that I wouldn't be able to replace the replacements when they failed. Talk about a warranty. Nice... I gave them away...

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

I'm shocked that I was only the potential victim to two April Fools Day attempts at tomfoolery.

I did have to laugh (probably a little too hard) at the wife, who fell for the 'joke' that Mackinac Island has to have its moorings replaced otherwise it will float out into the Great Lakes. She loves going there the few times we've been, and freaked that this was possible. But the island gets all of their power and water from the mainland, so that would seem to be a larger issue if the island was actually cabled to the bottom of the lakes.

Well played though...

 

[BRX1138]

I'm frustrated that somehow Apple dropped wired earpod in line mic support from macs since my M2 MBA doesn't support it...

My M2 MBA does support wired earpod in-line microphone via the analog 3.5" jack. I'm posting a quick video illustrating this. Hope it helps figure out what's happening on your end. Edit: This works on the following systems: 2022 M2 MacBook Air running macOS 13.2.1; mid-2012 11" MacBook Air (Intel) running macOS 10.15.7; and 2008 15" MacBook Pro (Intel) running macOS 10.13.6.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

My M2 MBA does support wired earpod in-line microphone via the analog 3.5" jack. I'm posting a quick video illustrating this. Hope it helps figure out what's happening on your end.

Interesting that the M2 does (even though it's through AirPods (genius hack BTW)) when the Intel (last Intel) MBP doesn't any longer. I had to go buy an 'audio inyourface' at the local Guitar Center to get audio in to the MBP. Like $200 worth of 'inyourface'. WOW!! Thanks Apple... It has a jack, but y'all dropped audio in? I'm sure it saved them a few pennies, but good grief, not impressed with that decision.

 

[BRX1138]

Interesting that the M2 does (even though it's through AirPods (genius hack BTW)) when the Intel (last Intel) MBP doesn't any longer. I had to go buy an 'audio inyourface' at the local Guitar Center to get audio in to the MBP. Like $200 worth of 'inyourface'. WOW!! Thanks Apple... It has a jack, but y'all dropped audio in? I'm sure it saved them a few pennies, but good grief, not impressed with that decision.

Your reply prompted me to investigate further. I can confirm that the in-line microphone on the wired earpods w/ analog 3.5" jack does work on the following of my personal Intel Macs, in addition to the M2 mentioned previously: 2022 M2 MacBook Air running macOS 13.2.1; mid-2012 11" MacBook Air (Intel) running macOS 10.15.7; and 2008 15" MacBook Pro (Intel) running macOS 10.13.6. (Took me about 30 minutes just to boot up that MBP!) I'm getting normal audio output, and audio input, via the earpods on all three systems, confirmed in the macOS Sound settings.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Your reply prompted me to investigate further. I can confirm that the in-line microphone on the wired earpods w/ analog 3.5" jack does work on the following of my personal Intel Macs, in addition to the M2 mentioned previously: 2022 M2 MacBook Air running macOS 13.2.1; mid-2012 11" MacBook Air (Intel) running macOS 10.15.7; and 2008 15" MacBook Pro (Intel) running macOS 10.13.6. (Took me about 30 minutes just to boot up that MBP!) I'm getting normal audio output, and audio input, via the earpods on all three systems, confirmed in the macOS Sound settings.

So why wouldn't it work with just a microphone? I was trying to use a 'contact' piezoelectric microphone, and it didn't work, at all. Hmm... So only with the mic in AirPods? Hmm... Good to know...

 

[JoshNori]

We need legislation to penalize manufacturers for putting out eWaste on the basis of bad/selfish design decisions. Their form factors need to be engineered for cleaning and reuse. “Recertified” should be the default rather than “fake new”. Instead of putzing around with pointlessly ambulating form factor changes: decide on a form factor and don’t iterate unless there’s a ridiculously good reason. Plastic junk aftermarket cases and neurotic/chaotic/pointless changes in 1mm to a camera bump are totally inconsequential except to artificially fuel an accessories market. Shame on Apple in every way for this. They trade our environment for their profits in reckless ways and have the nerve to gaslight us into their green lies.

 

[Makosuke]

I'm a pretty big fan of reparability, but:

[Pillonel's project] is designed to raise awareness about these repairability issues, encouraging consumers to think more about simply buying a non-consumable pair of wired earbuds rather than Apple's wireless offering.

I've been using headphones and earbuds of one flavor or another for a bit shy of 4 decades, and "non-consumable" is not a word I would have used to describe any but one really expensive pair of large cans. Usually the sound just dies, and when it doesn't they basically disintegrate anyway.

Not being able to replace the battery isn't a great situation, but my AirPods Pro are as durable as any other earbuds I've ever owned.

 

[BvizioN]

I would buy one.

Just out of curiosity, why? Unless you are one of so called "Audiophile" and claim to be able to hear things that we normal people can NOT, which apparently can't be transmitted via Bluetooth just yet! There is a reason why these things are extremely popular.

 

[inkswamp]

What, no SCSI option?

 

[jonnysods]

People amaze me - this is pretty cool, good for him to pull that off!

 

[Amazing Iceman]

At home we have two of the Original AirPods, both sets with bad batteries:
• One set because i used them a lot
• The Devon set because it was barely used.

And on each sets, it’s the right AirPod the one with a bad battery.
Go figure….

 

[ss2cire]

I have GOT to get me a set of these. Wireless is on its away out!

 

[Wayne088]

A problem that has already been solved, Apple still sells cabled ear pods

 

[_Spinn_]

That is both impressive and hideous at the same time.

 

[FriendlyMackle]

Birkies can be resoled but the cork can't be replaced. I had a pair that I dearly loved and the sole cracked and water and who knows what else got in and started the decomposing of the area in the Londons where the front toe box meets the back heel and buckle area. Once that is rotted enough, it's days are numbered, sadly. I felt like I lost a family member. Those shoes were so comfortable. Barge glue works as a waterproofing salve that can be applied to the outside cork. It can help stabilize already damaged cork. (Also finding official Birkenstock sole material is harder than it seems it should be. Copycats are popping up everywhere, which is surprising as it's just shoe sole material)

Well, sure, nothing is going to last forever! Even leather eventually corrodes where it is overly stressed over time. I just had a favorite belt (cloth/canvas with a leather attachment to the buckle ends) where the leather part which folds over the metal broke. The cloth part of the belt and the buckle (metal) are still completely intact. This belt was over ten years old (probably closer to 13 years). I was really suprised that the cloth outlasted the leather! But that was probably the most stressed component, where it held the metal buckle. I could probably have new leather applied to restore the buckle, but it would actually cost less just to buy an entirely new belt with all new parts. I know, terrible. But at least the belt components, being natural materials will decompose in time. I do hate it when favorite things wear out, though. But at least the Birks ARE biodegradable and will go back to the earth, unlike plastic(!) shoes such as Crocs (which, I must repeat again are unmentionably HIDEOUS). A character in a tv show best described them as the ‘shoe indicating you have given up on life.’

 

[JoshNori]

Well, sure, nothing is going to last forever! Even leather eventually corrodes where it is overly stressed over time. I just had a favorite belt (cloth/canvas with a leather attachment to the buckle ends) where the leather part which folds over the metal broke. The cloth part of the belt and the buckle (metal) are still completely intact. This belt was over ten years old (probably closer to 13 years). I was really suprised that the cloth outlasted the leather! But that was probably the most stressed component, where it held the metal buckle. I could probably have new leather applied to restore the buckle, but it would actually cost less just to buy an entirely new belt with all new parts. I know, terrible. But at least the belt components, being natural materials will decompose in time. I do hate it when favorite things wear out, though. But at least the Birks ARE biodegradable and will go back to the earth, unlike plastic(!) shoes such as Crocs (which, I must repeat again are unmentionably HIDEOUS). A character in a tv show best described them as the ‘shoe indicating you have given up on life.’

Lol @ the number of tangents here. It was like reading something I wrote myself.

 

[FriendlyMackle]

Lol @ the number of tangents here. It was like reading something I wrote myself.

I just can't help myself 😂