Apple AirPods For iPhone 7 Receive Excellent Reviews

Last week, it was reported that the AirPods, Apples much-hyped wireless earbuds, were delayed. The Wall Street Journal said Apple had made a rare misstep.

“Three months after trumpeting the AirPods as a breakthrough technology, Apple still hasn’t made them available. It says it needs time before they’re ready for consumers,” said columnist Tripp Mickle, noting that Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller hailed the earbuds as the entree to a wireless future with a seamless connection to an iPhone and five hours of battery life.

The article noted that it was the first time Apple had delayed a product since the white iPhone 4 in 2010. However, Apple finally (sort of) made the AirPods available on Tuesday morning. You can purchase Apple’s AirPods now on their website, but they won’t be in stores until next week. Commenters after an article about the release by CNET aren’t too thrilled about Apple’s new buds.

“What a joke. Just what I want…more radiation in my ears next to my brain and some little tiny loose earbuds to keep track of,” says Moonbeard.

“Hitting stores next week. Hitting the floor a few minutes later,” jokes Befuddledms.

However, those who have actually reviewed the AirPods are pretty impressed. Rolling Stone describes the AirPods as “pretty f***ing cool.”

“And while $159 is still a pretty penny to spend on far less than audiophile-grade headphones, it’s a bargain for the experience of walking around, totally wire-free, with a personal soundtrack pumped directly into your brain. In a nutshell: pretty fu***cool.”

The review adds that connecting these buds is far easier than connecting other Bluetooth products. Forbes also likes the AirPods and says they are made of pure magic.

“That’s right folks, these Bluetooth wireless headphones require no button pushing or connection with the physical world. They are simply magical. Many wizards worked tirelessly on either the optical sensor and motion accelerometer technology or the marketing campaign. The lines are blurred. Magic does that.”

The article adds that the five hours of battery life are actually quite impressive considering how small the buds, which come with a charging case, are. And author Curtis Silver seems to think that the only bad thing about the Airpods is that many who ordered them from the Apple Store website certainly won’t be getting their buds in time for Christmas.

Pocket-lint also gave Apple’s new wireless buds four stars. Reviewer Stuart Miles likes that the AirPods are easy to connect, work instantly across the Apple ecosystem, have a carry case as the charger, and provide sound isolation for phone calls and Siri control. However, Miles doesn’t like the polarizing design, the fact that Siri control can be sluggish, and that there is no audio upgrade.

There is a lot of excitement for the AirPods on Twitter.

If you're not excited for me to get my AirPods next week I'm not sure how much I can support you

— Mac (@Macabe13) December 14, 2016

Really excited to be getting AirPods. Thanks @mkonikov for tipping me off that they were for sale.

— Yossi Kanner (@yosefitche) December 14, 2016

The AirPods can really be used with any product that has Bluetooth. However, they were made with the iPhone 7 in mind since Apple didn’t include a headphone jack — something that became really controversial — with sites like The Verge claiming that Apple was being downright hostile to its iPhone customers by not including the headphone jack. However, iPhone 7 and 7 Plus sales have reportedly not suffered because of the headphone issue, especially because there is a small headphone adapter that actually comes in the box.

There have been a lot of wireless earbuds released this year, but none have taken off. Do you think the Apple AirPods have a chance in the marketplace? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.

[Featured Image by Stephen Lam/Getty Images]