Apple Didn’t “Throw Out Their Research” From the OG AirPods

[perezr10]

Somebody made the ridiculous assertion that Apple turned their back on what they learned from researching the human ear when they designed the original AirPods. Nothing could be further from the truth. Apple did a huge amount of research on ears and then they made a financial analysis decision as to which single AirPod could reach the most people. They cranked out a compromise design which was aimed at trying to satisfy people with small, medium, and large ears. But they never said that they had the best design.

It seems obvious to me that with the AirPod 3s they are no longer catering to the small ear crowd. These AirPod 3s are GREAT. For me anyway. But if the last set was too big for you, these new ones aren’t even going to come close to fitting you. Why? Why would Apple do this? Did they “Turn their back on their research?”

No, in fact, it’s likely that they used a great deal of what they learned in that original study. What changed is the TARGET.

Now that Apple offers the AirPod Pros which actually can work with small ears, Apple shifted the target market for the AirPod 3s. They used what they learned about ear shapes over the last 5 years to make an even more comfortable and stable set of earphones which caterers to people with normal to large ears.

The AirPods have matured into a multi-product family. The original design was a compromise for everyone. There were no AirPod Pros in 2017 to pick up the slack.

Just like the iPhone is no longer one-size-fits-all, neither are the AirPods.

 

[jonnyb098]

While you make some valid points it still doesn’t jive with the fact that apple based the OG AirPods on the same earpod design from 2012 (which they spent 3 years developing before launching). So a total of 8 years on the market with a single design that sold better than hotcakes. It just seems like apple was searching for a problem to solve and did it by making the design larger to create a better seal. They could have done the same exact adaptive EQ with a similar design to the OG AirPods and increased the sound quality a bit but they are clearly chasing the money by having three product lineups. The whole point was for them to rest in the ear but for many now it’s like shoving a plastic earplug in. Not sure what the new obsession is with the giant bulbous design that puts so much undo pressure on the ear. Even people that say they don’t have pain from the new ones say they are much more noticeable in the ear than before rather than forgetting they’re even there for hours on end.

 

[Snørrbjørg]

The "giant bulbous design" allows a bigger membrane for better bass.

 

[stendy01]

That's great

 

[perezr10]

While you make some valid points it still doesn’t jive with the fact that apple based the OG AirPods on the same earpod design from 2012 (which they spent 3 years developing before launching). So a total of 8 years on the market with a single design that sold better than hotcakes. It just seems like apple was searching for a problem to solve and did it by making the design larger to create a better seal. They could have done the same exact adaptive EQ with a similar design to the OG AirPods and increased the sound quality a bit but they are clearly chasing the money by having three product lineups. The whole point was for them to rest in the ear but for many now it’s like shoving a plastic earplug in. Not sure what the new obsession is with the giant bulbous design that puts so much undo pressure on the ear. Even people that say they don’t have pain from the new ones say they are much more noticeable in the ear than before rather than forgetting they’re even there for hours on end.

I agree with you. The OG AirPods are a tweak of the earlier design. But that doesn’t change the fact that from 2012-on they were trying to satisfy everyone with one design. When you try to include people with small ears in your target market, that is about as good as you can do.

I much preferred the original AirPod design over the Pros. But I’ve always noticed that if I pressed my OG AirPods into my ears with a little bit of pressure, the sound was much better. Better bass and warmer sound. Now with the new design, there is more skin contact closer to my eardrum and I get that richer warmer sound. Plus, you couple that with bigger speaker drivers and it’s a homerun.

The bigger AirPod 3s allow for better skin contact and larger drivers. The improved sound would never have been possible without abandoning the original design. Apple probably knew this even back in 2012 but they couldn’t pare down their market because they used to include headphones in every box and they had to please all ear sizes.

Apple made the choice that performance improvements were only going to come about by reducing the target market. There are no longer headphones shipped with every iPhone. People buy the ones that fit now.

I wouldn’t be surprised if THIS was a big part of the reason that Apple stopped providing headphones with iPhones. Apple used to offer higher level silicone headphones but those were only available as a separate sale.

 

[ionasdf]

The "giant bulbous design" allows a bigger membrane for better bass.

Also the coin battery. I’m not sure what people who complain about AP3 actually want, smaller EarPod-like form with battery on the stem? ?

 

[perezr10]

In the video posted above, Johnny Ive says that their starting point was the scanned ear volumes of EVERYONE. The 2012 EarPod was designed to include smaller ears. Johnny comes out and says that it would be impossible to design one style AirPod for everyone, but they were going to try anyway.

My only point is that the research didn’t change nor did Apple ignore it. Apple simply asked “ Now that headphones don’t come in the phone box, and if we stop catering to the 10% with tiny ears, what would a redesigned AirPod look like?”. Their new starting point was the ear scans of all the normal and large ears.

This is why so many people find the new AirPod 3s more comfortable. It is a better fit for people with larger ear volume. And they most certainly used the scans that they already had on file to do the design project.

 

[Canyonero]

The AirPods Pro don’t fit smaller ears. That’s the problem! Now people with big ears have two options, both with new tech while people who loved the original fit will have to do with old tech until they are completely discontinued. So instead of striking a balance and offering something for everyone, they caterer to another part of the market and abandoned those who loved the fit of the first designs.