Apple's wireless earphone "AirPods" has arrived so I really do not fall down, I actually tried using usability

A self-contained complete wireless earphone which was suddenly released on December 14, 2016, when it was ahead of Christmas, and it quickly became out of stockAirPods"I also arrived at GIGAZINE editorial department which I was somewhat caught. Appearance is almost same as conventional wired earphone "EarPods", What kind of incompatibility is the latest wireless earphone which incorporates dedicated chip and battery etc in small body, andAre they not really falling down?I tried to try it on the actual machine.

AirPods - Apple (Japan)
http://www.apple.com/jp/airpods/

This is the box of AirPods that I got to the editorial department. The design follows the original Apple design as it is.


The back is like this. Illustrations of AirPods in the case and cables that can be charged per case are drawn.


Once you open the box, you will find Quick Guide, legal documents and AirPods in case ......


In addition, there was a lightning cable for charging under the case.


The exclusive case which can charge by simply holding the earphone is pure white, and the front is very simple design that only the groove for opening the lid is cut.


Looking at the back side, the hinge for opening and closing the lid is shining in the silver, and the lightning terminal for charging is arranged on the bottom.


Open the lid and face AirPods.


The size is almost the same as the EarPods included with the iPhone, but the part of the bar extending downward is obviously long.


It is like this when compared with EarPods (right). Compared to EarPods which has only slits seen as for acoustic adjustment, AirPods (left) has a slit enlarged, a sensor to sense the wearing on the ear, a beamforming microphone to offset noise, etc. are added.


From this angle, you can see that AirPods are somewhat bigger than EarPods. Even so, it is a real surprise that we have a W1 processor, battery, and antennas in this small body.


In AirPods, sensors are also added to the parts that are in contact with the ears, so you can see that the letters "R" and "L" are moving towards the bottom of the bar.


A small microphone is built in the tip of the bar, and a silver electrode is attached around it. The electrode is divided into two, and when put in the case, the terminal comes in contact and energizes / charges it.


At the bottom of the hole of the case, gold colored terminals protrude like this.


Two holes are visible beyond the net, which is the same shape as the conventional EarPods. However, the net color seems to be slightly thinner.


It actually looks like this when you wear it on your ear. The tip is facing forward facing the face is not due to the manner in which the picture is taken, but the actual appearance. Although the wired type EarPods is about the angle which hangs down just under, AirPods seems to be angled towards the mouth so that you can catch the sound well.


From this angle, you will see well that you are facing towards the mouth. Looking only at the angle, it looks like a Bluetooth wireless headset of the type worn on the ear.


Pairing with the terminal is complete with only 2 actions. First, if you turn on Bluetooth on your device and bring it closer to the terminal with the lid of the case open, "AirPods" display appears from the bottom of the screen. Tap "Connect" in this state ......


The connection was completed in just a few seconds and it got usable. Since the screen shows the remaining battery charge of AirPods and case, it is possible to check the status at any time.


AirPods can activate Siri by tapping the main body twice. Tap lightly with "TONTON" in the state of being worn on the ear ... ...


Siri started on the iPhone main unit.


In that state, for example, when "voice search" "gigajin" is inputted, Siri recognized the voice as usual and made a search.


You can also use Siri to create notes and emails and make phone calls, just as you did with EarPods and the main microphone. For example, if you tap AirPods twice, start Siri and talk to "Create new memo", Siri's voice input screen will be displayed.


For example, when speaking to "I am at 8 o'clock in the venue tomorrow," Siri recognized the voice and converted it into a letter and created a memo.


When I opened the memo, memos were created as I was talking to.


Although it is the voice quality at the time of an interested call, I felt it was a level comparable to a call using a normal earphone. The fact that we can not find any points to mention specifically seems to be said to be a reversal of clearing the necessary quality. I tried calling tests even in places surrounded by noises like in a train, but it seems that the other party received a clearly heard voice.


In order to check the sound quality as earphone, I listened to the usual reference song. The impression that the bass stretches downward than EarPods (using several months), even if it is new. It is not strictly measured, it is to say that it is an "impression" to the last, when describing it, the low frequency range of the band which the so-called subwoofer is responsible is well reproduced. Nevertheless, there is no bass of Mokomoko / Bokoboko that is often seen in earphones of the "bass emphasis model", and the impression is that the center of gravity of the sound is lowered thanks to the bass stretched to the bottom as it is a skitched sound image . Especially, bass synth bass that crawls the ground appearing in EDM songs, the feeling that the bass pulsates according to the kick due to the effect of the compressor is well regenerated, and it is satisfactory in terms of the power of the sound.


On the other hand, I was slightly concerned about the time lag during game play. For example "Super marion runWhen playing with AirPods on, it seems that sound effects are heard just a little behind the operation and action, people who care are getting more and more concerned. I tried playing some games, but because there is a slight delay in either case, it may be better to use a wired type earphone if it is a severe timing to geek. When you measure the delay of sound with a stopwatch depending on the feeling, the time lag is about 0.1 to 0.3 seconds.


Although it is anxious "easiness of ease of dropping", it seems that it does not seem to be a problem at all at the level where you shake your head quietly in the room or trying to jump. Because the main body is very lightweight, the influence of inertia is small, it follows well the movement of the head and body, so it will not seem like it will fly to the rhythm. Rather it will receive even more impressions than wired earphones that tend to be pulled by the cable.

It is AirPods which seems to be almost problematic on practical use, but if you fall off the ear when you get a big shock such as falling, there is much possibility that you will not know where you went, so you might need to pay close attention. Also, as an unexpected blind spotStolen damageIt is better to care about. The possibility of encountering snatchers in the city is not zero, and damage is not small if expensive AirPods are stolen, I would like to call that it is better to be careful when wearing it.

Also, it may be inconvenient for AirPods to be unable to use the volume control / playback control function of the remote control that can be used. When you think of "I want to lower the volume" when listening to music in town, you have to bother to take out the terminal and operate the main unit. Even though it's wireless, it seems that the operation depends on the body is a minus point.

In this way, although there are some weak points, once I got used to the real thing and got accustomed to that lightness, when I got back to the wired type, I was noticed "This cable is disturbing!" There is a charm in AirPods to exist. I also felt at the time of Apple WatchIt is convenient when you have it, but you can live without itAlthough it seems to be settled in the position that it is settled in the position, if it actually used it seems to be said that it is a fact that it is difficult to return to the wired type on the other hand. AirPods is sold at Apple's online store and other taxes at 16,800 yen. It is awaiting arrival of 6 weeks at the time of article creation.

Buy AirPods - Apple (Japan)