AWSI Musings: AirPods Easy Once You Know How Its Done…

And they’re freaking out…

Apple’s new wire-free AirPods sure looked dorky dangling from my ears, but the technology works well.

The above written by the San Francisco Chronicle’s Benny Evangelista in his review of the Apple AirPods that were unveiled on September 7.

EXTRA: Here’s a summary of Apple’s September 7 Announcements

Missed our big launch news? Here it is in 107 seconds. Don’t blink. pic.twitter.com/zCdx8oDwgg

— Apple (@Apple) September 7, 2016

We especially liked this chart:

Slide from the September 7th Unveil.

And that he brought up this:

To be clear: Apple isn’t forcing you buy AirPods, despite what people may think. True, the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus eliminate the familiar headphone jack that’s been ubiquitous since the days of the Sony Walkman. But Apple is throwing in a pair of more conventional earphones, known as EarPods, that plug into the port that’s used for charging. It also is providing an adapter that will connect traditional corded headphones to the port.

Slate did a great job putting it in perspective, as Will Oremus stated, “The AirPods are Apple’s first ear computer. And they just might be the future.”

To us, an ear computer is definitely an “eye-opener.” Of course, Tommie perked up wanting to explore the topic further.

Some key points, per Slate’s Will Oremus:

The AirPods aren’t just headphones, any more than the first iPhone was just a phone. Between the speaker, embedded microphone, W1 processor, and a bevy of sensor arrays, these earpieces amount to a wearable computer in their own right.

Also, he noted Apple is combining Bluetooth with proprietary technology to make pairing with Apple devices—and switching between them—a snap.

What exactly that proprietary technology is, Apple isn’t telling. But it happens on a new kind of processor that Apple and Beats have embedded in their wireless earpieces, called the W1 chip. The upshot is that Apple controls both ends of the pairing process, resulting in a Bluetooth experience that “just works,” to borrow a slogan from Apple’s past.

Snappy and Apple controlling the experience — both “par for the course.”

And the Complaint?

Back to Benny, who said:

I’d probably never wear them outside my home or office because I’d be afraid I’d lose them. And at $159 a pair, they’re not something I want to have to replace.

Yeah, sums it up nicely.

Others are miffed at how Apple is creating “a mass market for an expensive new category of headphones.”

Well, duh! Create a niche and own it. That’s like Marketing 101.

And our Enchanted Jukebox said

Lyrics: Jerk It Out
‘Cause it’s easy once you know how it’s done
You can’t stop now
It’s already begun
You feel it runnin’ through your bones
And you jerk it out
And you jerk it out

The Apple Ad from 2007

As We See It…

This announcement is just another example of “Apple being Apple.” No doubt, the AirPods will become a status symbol just like those ubiquitous white ear buds of the past. We also believe that there will be an “AppleCare for that” —- covering lost or stolen AirPods. Lastly, as much as we want to take check out these technologically stunning ear phones, we’ll wait until the manufacturing kinks get ironed out. Samsung Note 7 customers are paying dearly for being early adopters. Delayed gratification is a good (er… great) thing.

That’s a Wrap! Thanks for reading and please #SCMF !

—The Gang

Bonus Coverage

Here’s a link to the Steve Jobs video that explains why Apple does things like removing headphone jacks.

10 Songs Steve Jobs Made Famous
This appeared five years ago at AdAge care of Andrew Hampp. Published on August 26, 2011.

Apple COMPLETE iPod “Silhouette” ad campaign compilation (2004-2008)
Compilation of the Dancin’ Silhouette ads

And what’s inside… Per the Slate story:

For the techies, here’s a drill down on some nifty details about the AirPods per the Slate piece.

Infrared sensors detect when the pods are in your ear, so they can automatically pause playback when you take them out and resume when you put them back in.
Speak and the AirPods will detect the vibration of your voice, triggering a noise-canceling effect that will home in on your voice to distinguish it from ambient sound. (Apple achieves this with the help of special accelerometers and a “beamforming microphone,” technologies it first outlined in a 2014 patent filing.)
Listen with both pods and you’ll get stereo sound; just one and it will switch to mono.
The W1 chip is designed to optimize battery life, giving you up to five hours of listening on a charge, while a compact wireless charging case holds another 24 hours of juice.

Wait… there’s one more thing!

Conan had some fun spoofing those silhouette ads. Take a look!So does this piece from late night television: