Apple AirPods 2019 Review – Solid Earbuds But Not For Everyone

The Apple AirPods 2019 comes at a price of Rs. 12,999 in India. The earbuds are only available in the White colour option.

The Apple AirPods 2019 packs the following items inside the box:

• AirPods
• Charging Case
• Lightning to USB Cable
• Documentation

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Before we talk more about the Apple AirPods 2019, let’s see what on-paper specs look like:

• Connectivity: Bluetooth 5.0
• Supported OS: iOS, Android 
• Battery: More than 24 hours of playback time
• Weight: 4 grams (earbud), 38.2 grams (case)

Apple rules supreme in terms of design and build quality. But, the second-generation AirPods are not significantly different from the first-generation AirPods in terms of design. Even though the new charging case now has a small LED light on its front, the long stem design and pillbox-style charging case appear to be nearly identical.

Despite being made of plastic, the new charging case has a great feel to it. It’s small and lightweight enough to fit in your pocket. You will notice a lightning port on the bottom of the case and a single button on the backside which enables the pairing mode.

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The AirPods 2019 charging case has a magnetic hinge that opens and closes smoothly. Furthermore, the build quality indicates that using it for an extended period of time should be no problem. However, after a week of use, I discovered that both the earbuds and the case had picked up dirt and scratches.

The earbuds are also made of durable plastic like the case, which is not only long-lasting but also has a glossy and shiny finish. The only drawback to their design is that they have a fixed shape and cannot be used with eartips. While the AirPods 2019 are designed to fit just about everyone, I felt discomfort after only 15 minutes of use.

It was quite uncomfortable to try to properly insert them in my ears so that I could enjoy the best audio quality. The design allows for very little passive noise sealing and hence ambient noise can easily creep in. Moreover, the earbuds do not come with any IP rating for water or sweat resistance.

The second-generation AirPods are almost similar to the first-generation model in terms of sound quality. The only difference is that the new earbuds are a little louder. That may not seem like much, but it is proof that something has changed.

Don’t get me wrong: the AirPods produce good audio, with a solid output and clear vocals. The bass, on the other hand, can be a little light and boomy at moments, and the highs might be a little recessed.

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The earbuds’ overall sound output differs depending on the style of music being listened to. There is no artificial bass increase or treble enhancement. You get the impression that you’re listening to songs with minimal to no tampering, which I always appreciate.

However, there is no noise cancellation here; for that, you should take a look at the Apple AirPods Pro. Because of the open design, the AirPods 2019 do not block noise from creeping inside the ears and affecting the audio.

The microphones on the Apple AirPods are surprisingly good. The call quality was excellent, and the other person on the call could clearly hear me. I’m sure that the earbuds are good for conference video calls and phone calls.

The battery performance of the Apple AirPods 2019 is better than its predecessor. Apple promises a playback time of five hours on a single charge and more than 24 hours with the case. However, I used the buds, and I can confirm that they lasted about 4.5 hours which is not far from the claims.

The case provided me with four more charge cycles. Now, I know the battery isn’t the best but not bad either. You can easily get a full day of use and still have some battery left for the next day. The battery life will also depend on your usage, volume level and more factors.

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Coming over to charging, the case takes about an hour and a half to fully charge using the lightning cable. The good thing is that it can deliver about three hours of playback time with just 15 minutes of charging. Moreover, the new charging case also supports wireless charging.

You can use any Qi-compatible charger and put the case on it to charge it. Of course, it will take longer for it to charge using this method.

The Apple AirPods 2019 comes with Bluetooth 5.0, which offers a stable connection. The new AirPods pair much faster. It’s very simple to pair them with your iPhone, just open the lid and a pop up will appear on your screen. While you need to use the pairing button on the back and manually connect to your Android phone.

The new H1 chip allows the new AirPods to perform hands-free ‘Hey Siri’ commands. This means that you can make calls, change songs, and more using the voice assistant directly from the earbuds without taking your iPhone out of your pocket.

The Apple AirPods 2019, like their predecessor, have touch-based controls. I tested the earbuds with both Android smartphones and an iPhone, and the touch controls worked flawlessly in both cases. Unfortunately, these controls can only be customized when they are connected to an iPhone.

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There are several options available, including the ability to use Siri, play/pause music, and skip or go back to a track. Sadly, there is no way to adjust the volume. But you can use Siri or Google assistant to do that.

The AirPods also have optical sensors that pauses the audio playback when you remove one of the earbuds from your ear. This feature is only available on iOS devices and does not work when used with an Android device.