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Actually it would just mean only supporting wireless bluetooth headphones from now on...



Are Bluetooth headphones practical, though? Does Apple even make any of their own?


Although I use Bluetooth headphones on a phone or tablet, I would be disappointed if I was required to use them on a laptop I'm using all day long.

Normal usage time is about 4 hours on the cheaper units I use, and that's just playback without any microphone use. Maybe longer on more expensive units, while they are new, but I doubt many would get you through a whole work day of continuous activity.

Also, pairing is still fiddly and would probably put off a lot of casual users. (Especially when you have a N-to-N mapping between devices and headphones.)

USB-C could still work if there are enough ports. While it's been great having a common standard for headphones across devices (partly thanks to the original iPhone not requiring a custom dongle), it does start to feel a bit of an anomaly in an era where everything is converging on the new USB standard(s).


You definitely pay for what you get in the battery department. I personally have a pair from Sony claimed to get 20 hours of battery life on a charge. I've never fully tested the claim, but they are more than enough to make it through a couple workdays without charging.


I use an LG Tone headset (I'm a consultant, on the phone almost all day). I usually charge mine once a week or maybe slightly more often. Maybe two or three hours of usage per day. The battery is really good, the quality is pretty good, but like you said, pairing can be a nightmare sometimes. I actually had to reboot my computer yesterday to get the Bluetooth driver to work properly. It's early days for Bluetooth headphones yet, but they're making really good progress.


> Does Apple even make any of their own?

Kinda? Apple owns Beats so http://www.beatsbydre.com/headphones/browse-headphones/wirel...


These are awesome, IMHO: https://usa.denon.com/us/product/portableaudio/noisecancelin...

Too bad they're expensive. Interestingly they're $275 here in .se, but listed as $399 on the US page.


Apple owns Beats, so technically, yes, Apple makes the Beats Solo2 Wireless, the Beats Studio Wireless, and the PowerBeats Wireless. I have a pair of Sony BT headphones and they are fine. Audiophiles will complain because of the compression, but they are great for everyday use for the regular folks.


Certainly not on os x, which can't keep a Bluetooth audio stream going to a device less than a foot away. Apple's wireless implementations, especially Bluetooth, on os x is such shit it might as well not exist. Even keyboards and track pads don't work properly, including the track pad they make which skips. This has been my experience with every single Apple laptop and I can recreate it now with ease. But anything to make my laptop one nano meter thinner, am I right?


Bluetooth audio works perfectly fine on OSX with some Sony BT headphones I recently got - even through a wall at 5+ meters.


Try forcing Apt-X codec; I've found it's consistently more reliable than the default.


>Actually it would just mean only supporting wireless bluetooth headphones from now on...

Why? USB DACs exist. I use one all the time with my apple stuff.


Where do you usually charge bluetooth headphones? On USB ports.




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