TL;DR AirPods 3 aren't compatible with a Daith-style ear piercing.
I've owned every style of AirPods since their inception. I've also had the same ear piercing since my first pair of AirPods and it never interfered with sound or the controls. I was excited for the AirPods 3 because they had all the fancy features as the AirPods Pro but without the claustrophobic feeling of noise canceling that I've always had trouble feeling comfortable with.
So my new AirPods 3 arrived on launch day this week. I put them in my ears and was impressed with the sound quality and the fit. But I quickly realized the controls on the right-side stems weren't responsive. I called Apple Support and they tried some troubleshooting before telling me I'd need to take my brand new Apple device to the Apple Store for a repair. I almost felt like I'd won the jackpot: I'd never received a defective Apple device before!
Because they were brand new, the store suggested simply exchanging them for a new pair instead of going through the hassle of a diagnostic and repair. So they bring out the new pair and I happily take them out of the store. But my paranoia started kicking in when I got to my car so I unboxed them, put them in my ears and... sure enough, the controls in the right-side stem weren't responsive, again!
Perplexed, I walked back to the store and found an equally perplexed Apple Genius. We knew we couldn't be dealing with two defective pairs in a row. He was about to bring out his diagnostic tools when I tried taking the right-side AirPod and placing it in my left ear. Sure enough, the controls started working!! That's when we realized the piercing in my ear must be interfering with the sensor in the AirPod.
My ear piercing (a daith piercing) is uncommon but far from unique. It seems like this would have been caught during testing by Apple especially since all other AirPods worked with my piercing including the AirPods Pro which seem to have sensors in the same places as the AirPods 3. I'm keeping the AirPods 3 - they're still exactly what I want in a pair of Apple headphones and I can just use the controls in the left-side ear piece. I'm just sharing because it's a funny story but also a word of caution to anyone thinking of purchasing the AirPods 3 and also has a daith ear piercing.
Happy Friday
I've owned every style of AirPods since their inception. I've also had the same ear piercing since my first pair of AirPods and it never interfered with sound or the controls. I was excited for the AirPods 3 because they had all the fancy features as the AirPods Pro but without the claustrophobic feeling of noise canceling that I've always had trouble feeling comfortable with.
So my new AirPods 3 arrived on launch day this week. I put them in my ears and was impressed with the sound quality and the fit. But I quickly realized the controls on the right-side stems weren't responsive. I called Apple Support and they tried some troubleshooting before telling me I'd need to take my brand new Apple device to the Apple Store for a repair. I almost felt like I'd won the jackpot: I'd never received a defective Apple device before!
Because they were brand new, the store suggested simply exchanging them for a new pair instead of going through the hassle of a diagnostic and repair. So they bring out the new pair and I happily take them out of the store. But my paranoia started kicking in when I got to my car so I unboxed them, put them in my ears and... sure enough, the controls in the right-side stem weren't responsive, again!
Perplexed, I walked back to the store and found an equally perplexed Apple Genius. We knew we couldn't be dealing with two defective pairs in a row. He was about to bring out his diagnostic tools when I tried taking the right-side AirPod and placing it in my left ear. Sure enough, the controls started working!! That's when we realized the piercing in my ear must be interfering with the sensor in the AirPod.
My ear piercing (a daith piercing) is uncommon but far from unique. It seems like this would have been caught during testing by Apple especially since all other AirPods worked with my piercing including the AirPods Pro which seem to have sensors in the same places as the AirPods 3. I'm keeping the AirPods 3 - they're still exactly what I want in a pair of Apple headphones and I can just use the controls in the left-side ear piece. I'm just sharing because it's a funny story but also a word of caution to anyone thinking of purchasing the AirPods 3 and also has a daith ear piercing.
Happy Friday