My string of apple headphone failures
So yes, this year I think I have become a bit of an audiophile, with a whole bunch of my posts being about earphones, and getting some awesome new speakers for Christmas. Yes, tech plasters string of audio related posts comes back, and this time I’m going to be talking about the generic Apple headphones.
So my ACS custom fitted buds are great (as you can read in my earlier review) but for generic and short term use, you want to be able to just throw a pair of earphones in your pocket and forget about them, without worrying about them getting broken, or without having to carefully take out your good pair, slide them in and hope you don’t get run over while crossing the road. the standard Apple headphones are great for this, providing a decent sound quality, at a decent price, with a low level of care.
Anybody who has used the same pair of Apple headphones for more than around three months however, will notice the extreme decrease in sound quality and comfort. First the volume level in one ear tends to decline, eventually to an almost indistinguishable level. Next the rubber rung around the speaker mesh comes loose, and eventually falls off, while all at the same time your little headphones are loosing a dramatic amount of sound accuracy and bass.
After going through around six pairs of headphones, I’m pretty sure this wasn’t just a one time careless event, and that it happens to most people.
The sad thing about these headphones is that I don’t think there is any way to combat this. I take care of my electronic equipment extremely well, and even for me these headphones tend to fall apart completely. There is however, at least one good side to this. If I’m right, Apple headphones fall under iPod and iPhone warranties. So if you’ve purchased your iPhone or iPod within the last year, your probably eligible for a new pair, provided you can prove to the employee they are screwed up enough.
image courtesy of http://www.ldigames.com/images/27.jpg
Ewan Roxburgh
Hamish Prior
jamiereiter
technoladget 