Teardown of Apple's EarPods finds more durable, water resistant design
Apple's newly redesigned headphones, the EarPods, have been taken apart to reveal a more durable design that is more resistant to water and sweat damage.
The teardown of Apple's new EarPods was published on Tuesday by iFixit. A repairability score was not given to the headphones, as they will come packaged with new iPhones and iPods and are "still of the throw-away kind."
But the EarPods can also be purchased separately for $29, which is how iFixit got their hands on the new accessory before the new iPhone 5 launches on Friday. The solutions provider used a guitar pick to separate the integrated volume controls and microphone on the headphone cord, while the earbuds were taken apart with an X-Acto blade.
"Like most speakers, the EarPod speakers consist of a diaphragm/cone, a voice coil, a permanent magnet, and a cabinet," they explained. "The voice coil is supported by a composite diaphragm made of a paper cone and a polymer surround. This is the first iteration of Apple headphones to use paper cones rather than all plastic."
The switch to paper cones is said to make the speakers more resistant to tearing. That's an improvement from the plastic that Apple previously used.
In their teardown, the repair website found that Apple "had durability in mind" when the company designed the new EarPods. In particular, the redesigned controls include larger cable wrapping on both ends to reduce strain on the wires.
The EarPods are also said to be more resistant to water and sweat damage. This was accomplished by removing the external microphone grate Apple employed on its previous earbuds.
"Unfortunately, these products are still of the throw-away kind," iFixit concluded. "Sourcing parts is next to impossible, and it would be a tough sell to convince someone to take apart their earbuds in stead of buying a new pair. They will never be the same once taken apart."
Apple unveiled its redesigned EarPods at the iPhone 5 media event in San Francisco, Calif., last week. Apple design chief Jony Ive said his company scanned hundreds of ears searching for commonality between them, and the new headphones are designed to fit the geometry of a user's ear without creating a seal.
EarPods feature a directed speaker that points forward into a user's ear canal. A second port on the back aids with mid-level tones, and also maximizes air flow for improved sound quality.
The teardown of Apple's new EarPods was published on Tuesday by iFixit. A repairability score was not given to the headphones, as they will come packaged with new iPhones and iPods and are "still of the throw-away kind."
But the EarPods can also be purchased separately for $29, which is how iFixit got their hands on the new accessory before the new iPhone 5 launches on Friday. The solutions provider used a guitar pick to separate the integrated volume controls and microphone on the headphone cord, while the earbuds were taken apart with an X-Acto blade.
"Like most speakers, the EarPod speakers consist of a diaphragm/cone, a voice coil, a permanent magnet, and a cabinet," they explained. "The voice coil is supported by a composite diaphragm made of a paper cone and a polymer surround. This is the first iteration of Apple headphones to use paper cones rather than all plastic."
The switch to paper cones is said to make the speakers more resistant to tearing. That's an improvement from the plastic that Apple previously used.
In their teardown, the repair website found that Apple "had durability in mind" when the company designed the new EarPods. In particular, the redesigned controls include larger cable wrapping on both ends to reduce strain on the wires.
The EarPods are also said to be more resistant to water and sweat damage. This was accomplished by removing the external microphone grate Apple employed on its previous earbuds.
"Unfortunately, these products are still of the throw-away kind," iFixit concluded. "Sourcing parts is next to impossible, and it would be a tough sell to convince someone to take apart their earbuds in stead of buying a new pair. They will never be the same once taken apart."
Apple unveiled its redesigned EarPods at the iPhone 5 media event in San Francisco, Calif., last week. Apple design chief Jony Ive said his company scanned hundreds of ears searching for commonality between them, and the new headphones are designed to fit the geometry of a user's ear without creating a seal.
EarPods feature a directed speaker that points forward into a user's ear canal. A second port on the back aids with mid-level tones, and also maximizes air flow for improved sound quality.
Comments
I'd be more interested to hear how an audio site would rate those headphones, as audio quality is the most important feature, in my view. I never did like the sound quality of the old Apple headphones.
Since they call themselves iFixit, I guess that they're a little bit biased against things that aren't easily fixed, but I disagree with them, when they say that it's unfortunate that these products are still of the throw away kind. Why is it unfortunate? Who's going to bother and go fix a pair of $29 headphones? Of course they're disposable.
If somebody is really interested in good sound quality, then they're already using other, much more expensive headphones to begin with.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apple ][
I'd be more interested to hear how an audio site would rate those headphones, as audio quality is the most important feature, in my view. I never did like the sound quality of the old Apple headphones.
Since they call themselves iFixit, I guess that they're a little bit biased against things that aren't easily fixed, but I disagree with them, when they say that it's unfortunate that these products are still of the throw away kind. Why is it unfortunate? Who's going to bother and go fix a pair of $29 headphones? Of course they're disposable.
If somebody is really interested in good sound quality, then they're already using other, much more expensive headphones to begin with.
Cnet gave them a "meh" rating. They called them the best included headphones on the market but not worth $30 on their own. Sound is substantially improved from old headphones but fit is slippery.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Apple ][
If somebody is really interested in good sound quality, then they're already using other, much more expensive headphones to begin with.
I was at the Apple Store over the weekend looking for some good headphones for listening to music during airplane travel. What model do people recommend?
I have the Shure earphone now.
I was looking at:
Bowers & Wilkins
Bose
Sennheiser
Quote:
Originally Posted by mstone
I was at the Apple Store over the weekend looking for some good headphones for listening to music during airplane travel. What model do people recommend?
I have the Shure earphone now.
I was looking at:
Bowers & Wilkins
Bose
Sennheiser
I've got a great solution for you. It's called a book. That way your fellow passengers don't have to hear what you're listening to while they quietly read or chat during the flight. Unless we're talking Sennheiser closed ear headphones [large, great but bulky] all earbuds bleed sound out and very rarely does someone listen to them on 3 or 4. They jack'em to 11.
Quote:
Originally Posted by mdriftmeyer
I've got a great solution for you. It's called a book. That way your fellow passengers don't have to hear what you're listening to while they quietly read or chat during the flight. Unless we're talking Sennheiser closed ear headphones [large, great but bulky] all earbuds bleed sound out and very rarely does someone listen to them on 3 or 4. They jack'em to 11.
Good suggestion thanks. I was curious how well the Bose noise cancellation works. With the flights I often take especially ones in Central America, the planes are really loud. I don't know if you have ever been on a twin engine prop aircraft but after an hour or so of that you are likely to have a splitting headache. Forget about chatting, you need to be able to read lips.
Quote:
Originally Posted by AeronPrometheus
ifixIt gives these headphones a 0 on the repair-ability scale. No phillips screws, everything is glued together, and no user-replaceable speaker cones. This is a slap in the face to Apple's user base.
They are included ear pods that cost $29 to replace. Who would even bother repairing them?!
If you are looking for a great airplane headphones try audio-technica noise-cancelling headphones.
These are very good, and about $40 at Amazon.
They are included ear pods that cost $29 to replace. Who would even bother repairing them?!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Waverunnr
Might want to get your sarcasm meter checked out...
Ouch. Right you are.
They have some bass! They stay in my ears better! The box they come in is fantastic! (Good for putting them away without tangling, but pay attention to how they wind them at the end when you unbox. I didn't and now I can't figure out how they did it.)
I don't have any other ear buds to compare them to except the old Apple ones, so I'd be interested to hear if anybody has other recommendations for about the same price.
My originals, 8 months old, had lost a channel and the strain reliefs were tearing. Plus I misplaced them, no more limping along with one good ear. Now I'm glad they got lost.
I have Bose over the ear noise cancelling headphones and they work great. However, note that there are several types. I have the oldest ones where the ear cup completely surrounds your ears. The newer ones have a smaller cup with at least partially sits on top of your ears and I didn't find them to be as comfortable.
Come on, how are the iFixit people going to make a living if people won't pay the $50 diagnostic fee plus $60 per hour to fix their headphones?
Quote:
Originally Posted by mstone
I was at the Apple Store over the weekend looking for some good headphones for listening to music during airplane travel. What model do people recommend?
I have the Shure earphone now.
To your list, I would consider Thinksounds also. They were on my short list until I stumbled on the EQu app, which gave my current set (Westone WS-1) a new lease on life.
While I haven't tried the new Apple EarPods, the NuForce are the best pair of $30 earbuds that I've used to date. I'm not interested in spending much more for travel since they get bashed around so much.
At home I use my venerable Grado SR-80 headphones, but they are an open-air design and will leak sound to people around you.