Florida man's AirPods reportedly 'blow up' during gym workout

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  • Reply 21 of 41
    airnerdairnerd Posts: 693member
    adm1 said:
    getvoxoa said:
    I suppose an iPhone was close by. Why not take a video of it? It's a tiny AirPod, where do you go to get help? Just get a dumbbell to cover it. 
    Possibly inside a locker somewhere. When people panic, they often do not do the things that in hindsight are obvious. I dare say when it happened, he ran to get help for himself in case his ear was damaged? What happened to the Airpod was likely an afterthought.
    Agree.  Had there been video of this smoking airpod and then a pop while inside a gym (where phones usually aren't) then I'd be more skeptical.
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  • Reply 22 of 41
    It’s a good thing they didn’t go boom while he was sleeping... (he might not have noticed the problem in time)

    P.S. Stop blaming (attacking) the people reporting a problem with an Apple device.  There is no evidence the guy did anything wrong, and it makes Apple fans look like fanatical ass@#$&’s.  The story is plausible.

    Lithium-Ion batteries have a history of problems in a variety of devices.  Good QC will catch most of them, but when you’re shipping millions of products not all defects will be caught.  Batteries are volatile by nature...
    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_787_Dreamliner_battery_problems
    larryaking editor the grateavon b7
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  • Reply 23 of 41
    "You had this in your body?" - Rhodey
    zroger73
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  • Reply 24 of 41
    GeorgeBMacgeorgebmac Posts: 11,421member
    These are not workout headphones.
    So much excess sweat(which has salt) entering the headphones might have compromised it.
    Thats why I always keep my AirPods clean & dry.
    They aren't?   What makes you say that?  It's certainly not how Apple markets them.
    zroger73StrangeDays
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  • Reply 25 of 41
    GeorgeBMacgeorgebmac Posts: 11,421member
    adm1 said:
    getvoxoa said:
    I suppose an iPhone was close by. Why not take a video of it? It's a tiny AirPod, where do you go to get help? Just get a dumbbell to cover it. 
    Possibly inside a locker somewhere. When people panic, they often do not do the things that in hindsight are obvious. I dare say when it happened, he ran to get help for himself in case his ear was damaged? What happened to the Airpod was likely an afterthought.
    That rationalization fails the stink test...
    ... Developing rational explanations for stories that just don't make sense....
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  • Reply 26 of 41
    macguimacgui Posts: 2,505member
    Rayz2016 said:
    “It’s the craziest thing I ever went through,” Colon said. 
    Really? Must be a fairly young chap, or needs to get out more.
    Probably. As a young chap, I went to Viet Nam. Very crazy. But that was then. Don't know how I would have fared in Afghanistan.

    My gripe with these device failures is that we, the general public, never hear the final analysis from qualified experts involved in the investigation, on what the investigation did or didn't find.

    Instead we get rank guesswork based on bias, often from forum commenters and bloggers that equivalent to monkeys beating a car transmission with sticks.

    What happened with the iPhone that 'exploded' and was thrown across the room and then videoed burning in the bathroom? The video got a lot of play but was in actuality still dwarfed by Samsung incidents.

    I understand the various reasons we'll never be entitled to details. It still chaps my hide.
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 27 of 41
    macguimacgui Posts: 2,505member
    leehericks said:
    When they came out people tested them with full water submerging. I doubt sweat will damage them.
    Sweat is probably more conductive than fresh water. If there was any slight exposure to the battery where sweat could enter, I could see this type of incident as a possibility.

    I've got AirPods and use them all the time. I've been thinking about a gym membership and might use AirPods taking care to dry them regularly. This assumes sweat was the problem. Possibly, but yet to be demonstrated.

    I don't recall these being advertised as 'workout' buds but could have missed that. I didn't RTFM so don't know if there were any contraindications about using them during workouts.

    Being suspicious of potential fraud isn't a bad thing, unlike claiming fraud in the absence of evidence. As an owner/user of AirPods and having endured some concussive-based hearing loss, I'm interested in any findings (which we may not get).
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  • Reply 28 of 41
    These are not workout headphones.
    So much excess sweat(which has salt) entering the headphones might have compromised it.
    Thats why I always keep my AirPods clean & dry.
    I mean, I suppose one could play their workout playlist while lying in bed.

    https://www.apple.com/airpods/


    StrangeDaysGeorgeBMacrandominternetperson
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  • Reply 29 of 41
    maestro64maestro64 Posts: 5,043member
    ivanh said:
    Is there a Chief Customer Safety Officer (CCSO) in Apple?

    The is a EU thing, in the EU a company officer can be charges with anything up to killing someone if the company did not take due precautions to prevent someone from getting hurt. I works of a UK company wand we have Corporate Safety and Regulation officer and he report directly to the board of the company. His job was to make sure all the business took safety and regulations seriously to keep the officer of the company out of trouble with the law. In the US it does not matter since the corporation shields the officers.
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  • Reply 30 of 41
    These are not workout headphones.
    So much excess sweat(which has salt) entering the headphones might have compromised it.
    Thats why I always keep my AirPods clean & dry.
    So they're holding it wrong? Sounds like par for the course to explain away an Apple problem.
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  • Reply 31 of 41
    StrangeDaysstrangedays Posts: 13,142member
    These are not workout headphones.
    So much excess sweat(which has salt) entering the headphones might have compromised it.
    Thats why I always keep my AirPods clean & dry.
    source for these claims?
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  • Reply 32 of 41
    StrangeDaysstrangedays Posts: 13,142member

    These are not workout headphones.
    So much excess sweat(which has salt) entering the headphones might have compromised it.
    Thats why I always keep my AirPods clean & dry.
    When they came out people tested them with full water submerging. I doubt sweat will damage them.

    creek0512 said:
    Shocking an allegedly catastrophic story about Apple the same day a new product is launching, that’s definitely never happened every time Apple has launched a new product.
    Yes, the timing is suspicious. Can't wait for my HomePod.
    Sweat contains salt. This is much more corrosive than fresh water. 
    Same goes for iPhone 7 & Apple Watch.
    Salt water, sweat & steam are quite dangerous things for even water resistant electronics.
    Thats why I hate these unrealistic tests.Normal wear & tear is different than some random tests.
    Are you honestly trying to suggest Apple didnt test the AP on sweaty ears in their own gym? Really?

    Nonsense. The APs are fine for working out, and until you post a source there is no science that says your ear sweat is going to corrode APs. I've used mine work heavy workouts for over a year and of course without incident. This guy had a defective unit, it happens. EOS.
    edited February 2018
    zroger73GeorgeBMacwatto_cobra
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  • Reply 33 of 41

    These are not workout headphones.
    So much excess sweat(which has salt) entering the headphones might have compromised it.
    Thats why I always keep my AirPods clean & dry.
    When they came out people tested them with full water submerging. I doubt sweat will damage them.

    creek0512 said:
    Shocking an allegedly catastrophic story about Apple the same day a new product is launching, that’s definitely never happened every time Apple has launched a new product.
    Yes, the timing is suspicious. Can't wait for my HomePod.
    Sweat contains salt. This is much more corrosive than fresh water. 
    Same goes for iPhone 7 & Apple Watch.
    Salt water, sweat & steam are quite dangerous things for even water resistant electronics.
    Thats why I hate these unrealistic tests.Normal wear & tear is different than some random tests.
    Are you honestly trying to suggest Apple didnt test the AP on sweaty ears in their own gym? Really?

    Nonsense. The APs are fine for working out, and until you post a source there is no science that says your ear sweat is going to corrode APs. I've used mine work heavy workouts for over a year and of course without incident. This guy had a defective unit, it happens. EOS.
    Or they were damaged and he didn’t notice, perhaps?
    randominternetpersonwatto_cobra
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  • Reply 34 of 41
    Would be interesting to know what type of charger/cable he was using.
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 35 of 41
    macxpressmacxpress Posts: 5,958member
    I'm sure there will be a lawsuit about this. I bet a lawyer has already contacted them about it. 
    watto_cobra
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  • Reply 36 of 41
    jdwjdw Posts: 1,469member
    "Statistical probability" predicted that not only would this happen, but that the media would get an article from it and lawyers (quite sadly) would be potentially enriched by it too.  It's all chance and numbers.

    No mass produced product with a battery will experience zero defects for the entire production of products.  Statistically, some percentage of products will fail due to short circuit and meltdown, even products with safety features in place.  We simply don't know the exact numbers to say precisely what our risk is.  1/200,000?  1/1,000,000?  Even if the risk is slim, I would prefer not to take that risk by putting rechargeable batteries inside my ears.  It's risk enough putting my iPhone inside my front shirt pocket, but it's an altogether different risk sticking a battery somewhere on my face or head.  I can hide a burn-mark scar on my chest easier than I can one of my head.
    edited February 2018
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  • Reply 37 of 41
    Everyone here suggesting user error due to sweating has clearly forgotten the articles from 10 months ago describing the hundreds of gallons of artificial sweat Apple uses each year in product testing. The link below includes photos of AirPods soaking in such synthetic sweat.

    http://bgr.com/2017/04/20/sweat-in-apple-airpods-and-watch/
    jony0avon b7
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  • Reply 38 of 41
    evilutionevilution Posts: 1,399member
    I think colon is full of shit.
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  • Reply 39 of 41
    maestro64maestro64 Posts: 5,043member
    tooki said:
    Everyone here suggesting user error due to sweating has clearly forgotten the articles from 10 months ago describing the hundreds of gallons of artificial sweat Apple uses each year in product testing. The link below includes photos of AirPods soaking in such synthetic sweat.

    http://bgr.com/2017/04/20/sweat-in-apple-airpods-and-watch/
    I know my wife dropped on in the sink of soapy water doing dishes, the it is still working fine, thank god since I forgot to buy Apple care for her EarPods.
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  • Reply 40 of 41
    getvoxoa said:
    I suppose an iPhone was close by. Why not take a video of it? It's a tiny AirPod, where do you go to get help? Just get a dumbbell to cover it. 
    He picks things up and puts them down... What you mean take picture with iPhone?
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