I'm the kind of person who cannot stand low-quality audio gear. Other things, I can ignore. Bad vacuum cleaner? Well, looks like I'll just go over it with the broom. Bad hairdryer? Eh, it's fine, I like looking a bit disheveled anyway. Bad earbuds? Eugh. No. Absolutely not.
That's why I'm adamant on only using the best earbuds money can buy. I don't mind spending $300 on earbuds, because I literally can't function without them. Yes, I know I'm dramatic. You try rawdogging a silent office for 8 hours a day.
I test earbuds for a living, so I've tested a fair few pairs of buds by now. Even so, I just can't let go of my AirPods Pro 2. The thing is, I know that they're not the be-all and end-all great audio gear. But they're the one thing I can't quit. I'm figuratively addicted. And it's not because I'm an Apple fangirl, if that's the reason you think.
If other audio brands want to pry my AirPods out of my cold, dead hands, this is what they'll need to do to kill my addiction.
Improve the ecosystem
I have an iPhone 16 Pro, a MacBook Pro, a MacBook Air (my work laptop) and an iPad, so I'm kind of Apple's target audience for AirPods. While this point won't apply to Android or Windows users, for other Apple users like me, AirPods just have that ecosystem integration that other earbuds fail at. (I'm not an Apple fangirl, though.)
Recently, I tested the amazing Skullcandy x Bose Method 360 ANC earbuds. I loved almost everything about them: phenomenal sound quality, 2008-cool aesthetics and a super useful companion app. However, the one hurdle upon which they fell was multipoint integration.
Even though I'd set up multipoint connection, when I switched from my iPhone to my MacBook Air, the earbuds struggled to follow along. I had to go into the Bluetooth tab on my laptop and manually select the earbuds.
When I'm using my AirPods, that never happens. The Apple buds seamlessly integrate from my phone to my laptop. If I take a quick break from working and watch a YouTube video from my phone, my earbuds automatically stop playing from my laptop and shift to my phone, without me having to do anything.
This isn't just a letdown with budget earbuds — the near-audiophile quality (well, as close to audiophile as you can get with wireless gear) Final ZE8000 MK2 ($349) earbuds struggled with this too.
I wanted to make the switch to the Final earbuds. The sound difference between the ZE8000MK2s and the AirPods Pro 2 is monumental. Even with low-res Spotify streams (and especially with Qobuz streams) I was hearing sounds I've never heard in music before.
But I just couldn't. Manually switching from laptop to phone is just too tedious. I still have the ZE8000MK2s and I listen to them about once a week just to feel something. Even so, they aren't my number one, and will never be, until Final sorts its integration out.
Shrink the earbuds
I didn't think I had particularly dinky ears, but it turns out I do. Or, every earbuds other than AirPods are simply massive. I wear my AirPods Pro 2 with the "small" silicone ear tip, and they fit perfectly in my concha.
When I tested the utterly mind-blowingly good AKG N5 Hybrid earbuds (£249, U.K. only right now), I was enamored with the sound quality. I thought these earbuds would help me jump ship from my AirPods — for the first few hours, anyway.
The AKG N5 Hybrid earbuds have nuanced, balanced sound with personality and oomph. I thought, "Yeah, this is what I've been missing."
But, as you can probably tell, it didn't work out. The earbuds are weirdly large and pulled on my cartilage piercings during wear. After a few hours, my ears were aching, so I had to admit it to myself: it's me and AirPods forevermore.
As these earbuds are so good, though, I couldn't let them go. I gave them to my boyfriend and he absolutely adores them — so maybe if you have normal people ears, they'll be the clear AirPods destroyer.
Copy Apple's features
This one's a little controversial. Let me explain.
There's one AirPods feature I never notice... until it's gone. And that's Personalized Volume. If you don't know what this is, it's when your AirPods automatically adjust the volume based on environmental surroundings. It's perfect for when you're wandering around town and a motorbike zooms past, or when you're reading a book and your roommate suddenly decides right now is smoothie time.
Beats earbuds have this feature, too (of course they do, they're owned by Apple), but it's surprisingly rare in other branded earbuds. Sure, the Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 have it, as do the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro. But it's absent on Bose, JBL and Sennheiser buds. They have auto-ANC, but not volume adjustment.
As I said earlier, I don't notice this feature until it's gone. And then I really miss it.
There are loads of other features I barely notice, but definitely use: IP54 rating (most buds are waterproof, but not dustproof), "Hey Siri" and Conversation Awareness. If other brands could do all of these things, with system integration, and comfort, and sound quality as good as (if not better) than my AirPods Pro 2? Then sure, I'll make the switch. I'll welcome it with open arms.
While I know AirPods Pro 2 don't have the audiophile seal of approval (they're wireless buds, after all), for me, they're the perfect product. If you have mostly Android and Windows gear, you'll definitely be raising your eyebrow at me right now. But I've unfortunately got a bunch of Apple gear — so for me, nothing can beat the AirPods.
Yet.
