Apple Airpods vs Beats X

[lparsons21]

Been tossing around the idea of wireless earpods for some time and had got down to these two as possibles. So I said to hell with it and ordered both!

Beatx X - Very nice pods that come with a variety of earpieces for a better fit. And because of that they are pretty good at sound deadening too. While they are wireless to the device you connect to, they do have the wire between the pods and for around the neck. Very comfortable in my ears, which is a big plus for them. They have volume up/down controls on the left side wiring, power/pairing button on the right side. Battery life is a claimed 8 hours and many reviews have indicated that is fairly accurate. Also has a pause/call siri button on the left side. Frankly the controls aren't as handy as I'd like, but they are more versatile than the Apple Airpods offer.

Current pricing on Amazon is less than $100 which is big discount from their $149 retail price. They have the W1 chip inside just like the AirPods and are produced and supported by Apple.

Sound quality is very good IMO.

AirPods - Excellent pods that are a one-size fits all design as are Apple wired pods. They fit my ear well, better than the Beats X, but they are not claimed to be any kind of sound deadening which means they probably won't be the best fit for noisy areas like airplanes. No wires at all and the only control on them is to double-tap the pod. Default is to call up Siri on both pods but you can change that with the settings for them. No volume control on the AirPods at all but if you have an Apple Watch you can control that with it, as well as with the iOS device they are paired to.

Sound quality is better than the Beats X IMO, just seems clearer to me. They have a claimed 5 hour battery life between charges, and with the included charging case, you can recharge and use for a total of around 24 hours. Reviews seem to indicate that is pretty much correct. When you take the pod out of your ear the music/audio pauses automatically, you can make it start playing again with just one of them in your ears and the sound will be a combined sound for both channels, just in one ear. That would be handy for listening to audio books while being able to still hear what is going on around you.

I spent some time today switching between the Beats X and AirPods and found plenty to like with both of them and few downsides, so much so that I'll keep both of them and use the Beats X when I'm in noisy areas and the AirPods at other times. Both brands are Apple brands and are supported by Apple, and both will work with anything that can pair and function wth Bluetooth earphones though you won't have the features that only work with Apple gear.

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[lparsons21]

A little followup.

AirPods - While they seem to fit my ears a little better than the Beats X, I noticed that they irritate my ears a little more during extended wear. I suspect that is because they are a rigid material instead of the softness of the Beats X pods. The sound quality is a bit crisper on the AirPods and they really sound much better than the Beats X with classical music, not so much with more contemporary stuff

Controlling the AirPods with the Apple Watch only seems to work with the AirPods and Beats X when they are paired with the iPhone.

When using the AirPods, unless the music is pretty loud, you can still hear people talk to you though you may not want to try to carry on a conversation with something playing. With the Beats X that isn't as possible a normal listening levels because of the passive sound deadening they do. Listening to audiobooks is nearly the same with both pods IMO, you can hear things going on around you quite well while still listening.

One thing I noticed is that listening to audiobooks with just one earpiece in is enjoyable, and in the case of the AirPods can result in near seamless listening for up to 24 hours since keeping one earpiece in the case keeps that one charged and you can just switch earpieces. With Beats X that isn't possible since both earpieces are always on or off together.

The sound deadening on the Beats X is pretty good, especially compared to the AirPods, but it isn't as good as a good quality over-the-ear set of sound deadening headphones do.

 

[TheForce]

I use my airpods with my Sony Xperia Premium as well. No volume control but the double tap works to control pause / play on the Android You Tube app. This comes in handy for use with my VR goggles for phone displays using google cardboard mode.

I can't wear airpods for long time periods because they cause my ear canal to sweat. No ventilation I guess.

 

[lparsons21]

I don’t have a problem with my ears sweating with them, but after an hour or two I need to take them out for a bit as they start to get uncomfortable.

I’ve been using them at the house to listen to classical music while reading, and with audiobooks.


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[TheForce]

Almost 100% of my use is with audio books.

 

[lparsons21]

One of the best things about the AirPods is the charging case. Works so well and is very small so carrying them along is pleasurable and unobtrusive.

Of course that smallness makes it easier to lose too! The other downside to the case is that none of the skins for the AirPods can be used during charging.


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[TheForce]

Lloyd, do you recall my method of carrying the airpods? The leather case is actually an amazon purchased Zippo Lighter case with a belt loop. I used a razor to trim the bottom openong a little to clear the charging port for charging on the go from a flat battery that rests behind my iphone 6+ in the case.

 

[lparsons21]

No I didn't. Thanks for the pics and suggestion.