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emperormeow

macrumors newbie
Aug 23, 2023
1
3
I’m on my 10th pair of AirPods Max in about 2 years. On ear detection stops working on all of them after a few months, I believe due to this condensation issue. I never take mine out of the house, never work out with them. They’re out of warranty now, I’m just hoping this pair lasts…
 

Unregistered 4U

macrumors G3
Jul 22, 2002
9,939
7,860
I wonder if an impartial tester (i.e. Rtings.com) could do a test of these vs. Bose (QC35 ii, Noise Cancelling 700, etc), Sony (WH-1000XM4, WH-1000XM5, etc.), Sennheiser, etc.

My over-the-ear headphones get warm (due to pleather ear cups), but I've never seen any condensation inside.
I’d wager no one has seen condensation inside many of those. Particularly because they don’t lend themselves to being easily “opened”.
 

Bermy

macrumors newbie
Jul 3, 2010
9
26
This is exactly what I suspected killed mine earlier this year. I had covid and a high fever and had them on while fell asleep sweating profusely. After that they never worked again. :(
 
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ignatius345

macrumors 604
Aug 20, 2015
6,874
11,215
This might be the muggiest week I can ever remember here in the midwest. I try to go out and get exercise after midnight and it's still 85 with a heat index near 100. Going outside is like venturing into a soup.
I honestly cannot imagine why anyone would put on over-the-ear headphones with memory foam cushions outside in this weather. Even if they were water resistant (which, spoiler alert, they're definitely not) it's just a wretched experience to basically wear earmuffs in the summer. This is exactly what AirPods Pro, or any kind of sweat-resistant exercise earbuds are for.
 

AppelGeenyus

macrumors regular
Nov 3, 2019
202
275
The problem is the entire surface under the ear cushions is metal and needs to be insulated, or replaced with plastic. Otherwise the problem will persist forever.

And for those that still aren’t aware, you don’t need to wear them while outside or be active or sweaty or anything. If you use APM‘s in a cold and/or humid environment for a few hours they basically act as mini dehumidifiers and fill with liquid.
 
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wouwout

macrumors regular
Nov 2, 2007
123
147
Sydney
There's a reason these don't sell well in Australia, though we have 60% iphone market share - the highest after Japan. They're too damned hot for our climate.
 

BordeauxBro

macrumors newbie
Dec 28, 2022
11
22
I've been using mine since 2021 and since the first day I bought them after half an hour use or so condensation has happened in proportion to how long I keep them on my head. I knew this was a widely experienced issue when I got them so I found the solution in removing the ear cups every half an hour to let the inside of the airpods ventilate and let the water vaporize and I haven't run into any hardware issues since. I find the condensation problem to occur the most during winter months since the room temperature is colder and that keeps the aluminum outside of the headphones colder which causes more water to condensate inside.
 
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iBluetooth

macrumors 6502a
Mar 29, 2016
664
1,860
At least ...
Are you kidding me. Of course, errors may occur. You make it sound like Apple provides a good service.

They don't! They don't provide more than they should. Lousy product from them and overpriced.
Well, the best service I have experienced is from Apple, no questions asked, just replaced. I have experienced with different manufacturers, where replacing an item required an extensive approval process and weeks of being out of the component, while they reproduce the failure.
 
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AgeOfSpiracles

macrumors 6502
May 29, 2020
420
797
I honestly cannot imagine why anyone would put on over-the-ear headphones with memory foam cushions outside in this weather. Even if they were water resistant (which, spoiler alert, they're definitely not) it's just a wretched experience to basically wear earmuffs in the summer. This is exactly what AirPods Pro, or any kind of sweat-resistant exercise earbuds are for.
It's like the people I see running in hoodies and/or track pants in 85+ and 80% humidity. Meanwhile, I'm in a tank top and shorts sweating my absolute ass off. I've just accepted that other people's bodies function differently, but I still can't wrap my head around the physics of it.
 

whitby

macrumors 6502
Dec 13, 2007
294
303
Austin, TX
I wear mine for a maximum of 2 hours at a time, indoors, usually sitting in an armchair drinking a coffee or a glass or two of wine. No issues have ever occurred. As a side note I really prefer listening to music over a well designed set of speakers but wear headphones when my wife is practicing Spanish in Duo Lingo or she does not want the noise. 😂. When travelling I use my Sony WH1000MX4s as they are much easier to travel with, folding down into a smaller package in a proper case.
 
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federico0212

macrumors member
Apr 12, 2015
31
49
Yep, impacted by this. I own a launch day pair and noticed condensation immediately, none of my other headphones had water in them after using them. This is especially true in high humidity. Wear them outside in the summer and forget it, it’s gonna turn into a bathroom mirror after a hot shower.

Mine failed in December, it caused the head detection to fail and thus it doesn’t know when to pair and when to go to sleep.

I was underwhelmed by them since day one, and absolutely disappointed now. Enough where i haven’t pursued buying a new pair but would absolutely get them replaced if Apple was willing to.

Reddit is full of cases like these. Often, people who had theirs fail have gone through many pairs themselves, presumably people in higher humidity places in the US. Sadly, i consider it the worst Apple device I’ve bought in decades of owning pretty much every Apple category device.
 
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markxvi

macrumors newbie
Aug 24, 2023
1
0
I had a similar issue. While watching a movie on the couch in the living room, condensation started dripping from the Lightning port. The movie lasted no more than 2 hours. Accordingly, Apple's excuses about improper use sound humiliating. If headphones for 650 euros are not able to provide me with watching a movie on the couch, I think it's a really ****** deal. As a result, the microphone in the right earpiece failed. As a consequence, the transparency mode and noise cancellation stopped working. I was able to exchange my AirPods Max for new ones at the nearest Apple Store. But now I have to remove the headphones every 20-30 minutes of use and check for condensation.
 
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