Apple AirPods Controversy

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Part of a series on Apple AirPods. [View Related Entries]

Overview

The Apple Airpods Controversy refers to the criticism surrounding Apple's decision to forgo including a headphone jack for their upcoming iPhone 7, instead opting to sell wireless earbuds called "AirPods" for an additional $159.

Background

On September 7th, 2016, Apple introduced the iPhone 7. Among the features unveiled were the "AirPods," wireless earbuds that would pair with the new phone.^[1]

Developments

The AirPods were instantly met with backlash,^[2] as people figured the small size of the airpods made them easy to lose, especially for having a price of $159. People on Twitter mocked the news using the hashtag "#courage", a reference to Apple's tendency to chalk up design decisions to their "courage."

Users sarcastically mourned the death of the headphone jack, while Android users teased iPhone users by calling the headphone jack an Android exclusive feature. Reddit user BTKSD posted an image of the head of an electric toothbrush in his ear to mock the AirPod's appearance in a comment that gained nearly 4,800 points in /r/funny.^[3] People also compared the AirPod's appearance to a hairdryer or simply old Apple EarBuds with the wires cut off.

A few days after the announcement, tech company Spigen introduced a $10 AirPods Strap that would keep the headphones together, which tech journalists noted seemed to undercut the appeal of "wireless headphones."^[4] As of January 18th, 2017, the top Amazon review for the product, written by LongTimeReader,^[5] sarcastically praises the wire for being a stunning advancement in technology.

"The Future truly is now with this innovative new design. No longer will I loose my wireless earbuds, which tend to fall out of my ears with a stiff gust of wind. At the current rate of technological advancements, I am sure within the next year or so there will be a way for me to connect these earphones to my phone directly to charge them. I would imagine the best way of doing this would be to design an innovative new port in the next model of Iphone."

The AirPods' release was delayed two months, as Apple pushed back its initial October 17th, 2016 release date to December 2016.^[6]