dont have AirPods but had over the ear headphones that had similar rattling issues that were just the result of a small hair getting through the mesh and interacting with the driver
I was just on Apple's support page for this exact issue. I ordered my pros on launch day so I was hoping it was a quality control issue from the first batch.
One thing I've noticed is that the rattling noise goes away if I disable noise cancellation. It seems to be an issue with the NC microphones.
I had my faulty Airpod replaced via mail after calling them. They ship you a working one with a return label and you have a few days to send your broken one back. They also put a hold on a card as a deposit.
No idea why Apple, one of the richest companies in the world, and "all about the customer" needs to place a hold on my card for a warranty replacement. I've exchanged a faulty $3,000 camera on Amazon and they overnighted the replacement, and said that if I didn't return the faulty one within 30 days they'd charge me. They didn't pre-auth or hold funds.
In order to get the replacement, I needed to know the serial number of the AirPods but didn’t need to provide any proof of purchase (I wasn’t the original buyer of the AirPods). This suggests to me that anyone who can get AirPod serial numbers could get free AirPods sent to them by contacting customer service. Absent the credit card hold, it seems like a good way to steal a lot of AirPods. I would guess at Apple’s scale, someone probably has done this scheme in the past so they need to find a way to prevent it (even if it never happened with AirPods, it probably happened with iPhones). Asking for the credit card hold upfront is a little unfriendly, but a lot better than dealing with a bunch of anti-fraud/collections work. It’s also much more friendly than requiring the customer to send in the broken AirPods first to get a replacement (this is the most common repair service I’ve experienced from other manufacturers, and it’s painful enough that I usually just try to fix the thing myself or throw it away).
I’d say the credit card/mailing method is also not Apple’s preferred means of exchange - it’s the backup for when the Apple Store is unavailable. At the store you hand them the AirPods when you get your replacement so there’s no need to provide a deposit.
Does anyone know a workaround for having to switch microphone to Internal on MacBook Pro every time you connect AirPods Pro to avoid terrible sound quality?
Bluetooth has many modes. The regular audio one is A2DP which sounds good but has no mic support. Then there is HSP which sounds like a tin can microphone broadcast over AM radio. I imagine apple has something proprietary to do 2 way audio on the airpods tho.
Oh boy, at least it's only annoying. Not sure if this is just because I use 3rd-party bluetooth headphones (bose QC35) and inadequate Apple software testing, but if I try to use headphones for audio and switch to the internal macbook mic, Facetime either freezes or crashes every time.
OK, they did BSOD every Windows 10 machine I've tried them on after a few minutes. But when I only have them paired to my iPhone (and only my iPhone), they're perfect.
That's just Bluetooth being Bluetooth. You can either have good sound quality but no mic or shit sound quality and mic.
I'm surprised and disappointed that Apple, despite the proprietary W1 chip in the AirPods didn't build a custom protocol to work around this limitation.
1. Open Utilities -> Audio Midi Setup
2. In the left pane click + and add a new aggregate device
3. Add your internal mic to the aggregate device
4. Go to System Preferences -> Sound and select the aggregate device as your input
Unlike the 'raw' internal mic device this one should stay active when you disconnect / connect your headphones.
I've never found a better solution than this :( Kind of shocking that this is required - but it works.
For me this issue persists even in all the other "modes". The support chat advised me to take off the rubber tips and try them without for testing and it didn't make any rattle noises then. I don't really understand how that can be the reason.
Is there a hardware piece physically rattling inside? Or is this a software issue?
I have the new airpods but haven't had any issues (besides a single airpod sometimes not syncing with my phone at first). For what it's worth, I rarely ever use the mic.
EDIT: other sources are saying it is actually a hardware problem. But there's nothing actually "loose" that's physically rattling as far as people can tell (specially since noise cancellation off minimizes the problem)
It's hardware 100%. I had that thing on my left one first only in noise cancellation and close to max volume. But then I dropped it onto asphalt and that thing became loud af in any mode on any volume. Doubt that the drop affected the software.
Aren't the AirPods pretty tightly packed and full of glue? You'd think there'd be very little tolerance for something to rattle about in there (not that I know what it sounds like).
I don't think it was something physically coming dislodged, at least in my case. When in noise cancelling or transparency, and I spoke I would get static in the right AirPod. If I wasn't speaking or hearing any other external sounds coming in, the speaker was fine.
There is a middle option? I've only been able to find out about the 'NC' mode or transparency, switching between them is holding the 'stick' of the Airpod for a few seconds.
Apple will replace your AirPod Pros if you have this problem. You can submit the request online and they will just send you a new pair. Most likely you fall under the support warranty period, and it will be at no cost to yourself.
In the article the writer says that they've had to do multiple replacements so far, and having to get replacement AirPods every several months isn't sustainable or convenient.
Writer here: Yes, they replaced them twice and currently in the process of replacement number 3. I'll just see if I can get a refund though. I'll wait for the next generation.
I contacted apple support and got a new pair. Free (with credit card hold until I sent the defective pair back).
So far so good.
But if it happens again... yeah not sustainable.
My guess is that the damage to Apple's brand name that occurs with each replacement is larger than the cost of replacing the product.
I once had an expensive brand of computer mouse. After eight months the mouse failed. Later I bought another mouse from the same brand. The mouse failed after 14 months. I stopped buying from the brand. The same thing can happen to Apple, and they need to be careful about the quality of the products they sale when they charge premium prices.
You'd be very wrong. Component cost (not including any assembly cost) for any modern flagship smart phone is well north of $100. North of $300 on most phones.
Had this issue on AirPods Pro, first with the left ear approx. 2 months after purchase and then with the right ear approx. 6 months after purchase. In both cases Apple replaced at no cost.
I've gotten both my left and my right Airpod pro replaced on different occasions. My right one after 4 months and my left one 1 month later. So far, all of my friends/coworkers that own the pro's also got them replaced at some point within 6 months, or are dealing with the 'Rattlegate' issue.
I am blown away by the quality of the pro, both positive and negative. How is it that we are all paying $280 and still have to replace them every year.
One good point is, Apple is sending replacements out without any questions asked other than 'is it making that sound?'. The replacement flow is really smooth too:
Call or chat -> CreditCard got charged -> Left or right replacement is send via UPS -> You replace the specific side that isn't working correctly -> You pack the broken one in the bag that is included -> You return it for free at a UPS point. Obviously, this won't work anymore after a year of use because after that they are out of warranty. (At least in The Netherlands)
I don’t know about the Netherlands specifically, but most countries in the EEA have extremely strong consumer protection laws. It’s probably the case that you have many years of guaranteed freedom from manufacturing flaws under your local laws. In the U.K. it’s almost pointless to purchase extended warranties as most items are guaranteed by law to be free from manufacturing defects for 6 years after purchase.
I have been through this exact process as well. Mine started to make the rattle noise and I used the chat support to get a replacement sent. Your credit card is "charged" in the event you don't send the broken headphone back. The charge is reversed upon Apple receiving the broken headphone. My replacement was free.
And also sucks as a warranty experience. Every other large company I've dealt with similarly (Amazon, Dish, Comcast, to name some) ship your replacement, and say that the return is due back to them within 30 days.
They don't charge (or even pre-auth) your card for you initiating a warranty replacement. I'm mind-blown (or maybe not, this is Apple) that people find this acceptable.
Atleast where I live I would just have the charge cancelled by my credit card provider. Risk of shipping in cases of warranty is on the seller/manufacturer, Apple shouldn't be abusing customers like this.
Sucks if you dont have a phone.
Sucks if you cant read..
etc.. There are some requirements you are expected to meet.
Buying a product online and replacing online requires some kind of wiretransfer. Creditcard or Payment card is the solution for all your woes. Don't fret.
> There are some requirements you are expected to meet.
> Buying a product online and replacing online requires some kind of wiretransfer.
Except it entirely doesn't: I've exchanged a faulty $3,000 camera on Amazon and they overnighted the replacement, and said that if I didn't return the faulty one within 30 days they'd charge me. They didn't pre-auth or hold funds.
Dish waits a month after I send back their DVR before even attempting to charge me for non return.
On warranty goods, when you are close to the richest company on the planet, "holding" customer funds on faulty warranty replacements is asinine and not at all "customer-centric".
Personally, I am unaffected. It makes this no less satisfactory.
for sure, and it is a minimum. Not sure how it works exactly, but if a device fails prematurely (within some reasonably determined expected lifetime) due to manufacturing errors you can claim warrant for longer. You might need legal counsel to actually get it though.
Warranty is 2 years minimum but manufacturers tend to add a voluntary 1 year warranty on top. The hope (often successfully) seems to be that customers "forget" that they still can claim warranty after more than one year.
When I was trying to replace or return my 1 year and 2 week old Macbook Pro to Apple due to what turned out to be a faulty logic board, Apple said it was too late as their 1 year warranty had passed. But here in Australia we cannot just sign our consumer rights away. I explained this very clearly, that I was not seeking a return based on Apple's warranty but rather seeking a return based on the consumer rights that govern my country and any businesses that wish to do business here.
Many large companies have tried to skirt around these consumer rights, like Steam and E.A who both rejected the notion that they even do business in Australia, all to prevent issuing refunds. It's absurd. Telling a consumer they have no right to a refund when they do is even against the law here, yet Apple do it all the time.
Eventually I got to a senior representitve and they openly stated to me while denying my claim "I don't know why you expect me to know the laws in Australia". They bloody well should, though. Australia's consumer rights watchdog even forced Apple to display a notice on their website to prevent people being misled by Apple.
I've had two replacements on my AirPods Pro so far because of this issue.
First time the issue started after 6 months of use. The second time was within a week of the original replacement. All good so far after the second replacement (about a month).
Fortunately Apple makes the replacement process easy.
I've had my pair replaced for this too. It seems to be an issue with the NC mics. When neither NC nor Transparency are on, I didn't get the issue. Apple will do an Express Replacement (2-day new pair, _then_ you mail old pair back) which is nice.
Possibly. It started out with just the "rattle" in noise cancellation or transparency mode. Then I started noticing it any time I talked on the phone/zoom/etc... (I have a deeper voice) then it started without the mic being used at all (NC completely off, just music or podcasts) ... Now the other pod is doing the same thing.
My regular airpods, which are now three years old, are tanks. I use them now exclusively for running/exercising and they won't die. My new ones are better for the sound isolation/listening to music, but they rattle now and do migrate out of my ears when I talk too much, so the latter part of meetings is usually a little annoying with me needing to constantly re-adjust them.
My old AirPods went through the washer on accident and wouldn't power on. After dunking them in some rubbing alcohol and charging them, they still work flawlessly to this day.
Same here. The battery is obviously not what it was (I get about 90mins of phone calls before I have to start the 1-in-ear-1-charging dance), but apart from that, and despite my typically abusive treatment (fell on tarmac and tiles multiple times), they still work great. I was considering a switch to the Pro but after this post I'll have to reconsider...
I had this problem; Apple just replaced the affected earbud. Hasn't recurred, it's been a few months.
But, I mean, I've had problems with most of the IEMs I've ever bought at one point or another. It's just that you don't get to the top of HN with a post about a pattern of Shure product defects.
Never need to worry about charging them, soft replacable rubber cups fit into my asymmetrically-sized earholes, they're always there waiting in my bag on the rare occasion I want to use them, I am gonna be so sad when my 6s breaks and I have to replace it with either an Android phone or an iPhone with no audio jack, maybe I'll just get one of those lightning⟷audio adaptors and keep it on the earbuds forever.
I still do not see how the Airpods are an improvement in any way.
I've always been curious of picking up a pair of bluetooth B&O buds, but as an Apple user - the W1/H1 chip for constant pairing with no interference in high traffic areas (subway, city streets) is huge
Cables. It's fair if they are not a problem for you, but they are for me and getting rid of them is a gamechanger. I move around a lot all day, most days. They were constantly getting caught in things throughout my day and pulling at my ear in a very unpleasant way, or got caught snagged on something like ladder I'm climbing and would go flying out of my ears. Hatred.
Airpods (not pro) are fantastic for what they are. They last for hours, charge in minutes, pair reliably with my iphone 11 and sound very ok. Not great, but not bad. Ok. Perfect for podcasts, audiobooks, lectures, and calls I have to take throughout the day.
The famous photography advice "the best camera in the world is the one you have on you when you need to take a picture" definitely applies. It lets me listen to spoken word and a little music very comfortability throughout the day, and I have big cans at home for everything else.
Chiming in to agree -- the original AirPods made a serious difference to how much I listened to things. I was skeptical before I tried them, but the subtle inconvenience of cables turned out to be a huge subconscious factor to me. The convenient case (and not having to deal with wrapping cables up to put them away in it...) also helped, of course.
I'm luckily one of the people that isn't suffering from this rattling issue and I own both the AirPods and AirPods Pro and I think both of them are fantastic. Based on what I'm seeing online, it's gotta be a small percentage of people that are experiencing this. My family and friends have about 6 pairs of the Pros between us and none of us are having this issue.
Just grab a regular Bluetooth earphones then. Those $20 ones may seem to be too good to be true, but they work and sound great, and you can replace them on a whim if they do die.
I worked for an electronics testing lab for several years and used about, um, maybe 20 pairs of different headphones. Bluetooth sucks and most people’s implementation of it sucks even more. Maybe I have bad luck but almost all Bluetooth devices I have used have been absolute garbage without apple’a OOB pairing.
I've had the same issue. And another, more important one: the noise-cancelling/passthrough features have gradually ceased to work entirely. I replaced one bud when this started happening and was making things asymmetrical (super annoying), then noticed the new one was noise-cancelling more than the "still good" one, indicating that the other one had started degrading too. Eventually both of them stopped working for anything but basic playback.
I've heard theories that the outer mics can get clogged with ear wax over time, and I tried several different strategies for cleaning them. I even bought entirely new rubber caps, just in case that contributed. Nothing I did worked. Eventually I just gave up and bought another pair of the regular AirPods, which had always worked reliably (I gave away my first pair as a gift when I got the Pros).
It's honestly shameful that such an expensive product can be so problematic, but I got weary of being upset about it and just wanted to get on with my life.
I had connectivity issues on mine. One or the other would stubbornly not go into NC mode, or you’d see iOS say “Noise Cancelling” but it would actually be transparency mode, and had not fully shifted. Haven’t had too many issues since I had the entire set replaced, but it was multiple calls and a fair amount of headache when juggling returning each of the AirPods shipments and returns. Two of the boxes, the case and left AirPod Pro arrived one day, the right AirPod Pro was stuck at FedEx and would ship the next day. Why couldn’t they be replaced in one box the way I bought them, I wondered... Overall, the AirPods Pro are impressive but hardly foolproof... yet?
This happened to me four times in four months. Every time, it appeared one of the microphones was broken, because I would hear a buzzing, rattling, or clicking noise when in transparency or noise-canceling mode. The current set have both been good for a two or three months.
At least Apple has great service. When the Apple store was open I could just walk over there and get the broken AirPod swapped in minutes. After lockdown I needed to call Apple support and get them to mail me one, which would take a few days to show up.
Wow, so thats what it is? My Siri hasnt been working well and I just assumed the two were unrelated. Roughly every other sentence I dictate to Siri has the word 'Play' at the start of it as well, which must be related. I can wait 5 seconds after triggering siri to begin speaking and it is still prefixed with 'play'. No idea why but all these together sound like a support call is in order.
My left AirPod pro began rattling. It's obviously annoying/upsetting that this is an issue, but AppleCare+ support was awesome. I chatted with Apple on a Thursday and on Friday I had a new left AirPod Pro via overnight mail. No cost to me.
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[ 3.1 ms ] story [ 347 ms ] threadOne thing I've noticed is that the rattling noise goes away if I disable noise cancellation. It seems to be an issue with the NC microphones.
Hope they offer you it too!
Better hope you have a credit card, I guess.
My list of questions that begin with “no idea why Apple, one of the richest companies in the world...” is quite long.
Most recently posed here https://jborichevskiy.com/posts/spending-electronics/
I’d say the credit card/mailing method is also not Apple’s preferred means of exchange - it’s the backup for when the Apple Store is unavailable. At the store you hand them the AirPods when you get your replacement so there’s no need to provide a deposit.
I'm surprised and disappointed that Apple, despite the proprietary W1 chip in the AirPods didn't build a custom protocol to work around this limitation.
1. Open Utilities -> Audio Midi Setup 2. In the left pane click + and add a new aggregate device 3. Add your internal mic to the aggregate device 4. Go to System Preferences -> Sound and select the aggregate device as your input
Unlike the 'raw' internal mic device this one should stay active when you disconnect / connect your headphones.
I've never found a better solution than this :( Kind of shocking that this is required - but it works.
The “fix” was to never use either NC or transparency. Just park it on the middle option.
I really dislike this product.
It’s a mess.
I have the new airpods but haven't had any issues (besides a single airpod sometimes not syncing with my phone at first). For what it's worth, I rarely ever use the mic.
EDIT: other sources are saying it is actually a hardware problem. But there's nothing actually "loose" that's physically rattling as far as people can tell (specially since noise cancellation off minimizes the problem)
They worked fine for a month or so...
Seems like it is a hardware failure and should be replaceable under warranty
I once had an expensive brand of computer mouse. After eight months the mouse failed. Later I bought another mouse from the same brand. The mouse failed after 14 months. I stopped buying from the brand. The same thing can happen to Apple, and they need to be careful about the quality of the products they sale when they charge premium prices.
Take a look at the cost estimates that most folks do on smartphones (Ex. https://www.techinsights.com/blog/samsung-galaxy-s10-teardow...). Apple isn't undercutting other companies by $300+.
Pretty sure that's on the low side. Plus, logistics cost of dealing with replacements and such adds far more than just absolute BOM cost.
I am blown away by the quality of the pro, both positive and negative. How is it that we are all paying $280 and still have to replace them every year.
One good point is, Apple is sending replacements out without any questions asked other than 'is it making that sound?'. The replacement flow is really smooth too: Call or chat -> CreditCard got charged -> Left or right replacement is send via UPS -> You replace the specific side that isn't working correctly -> You pack the broken one in the bag that is included -> You return it for free at a UPS point. Obviously, this won't work anymore after a year of use because after that they are out of warranty. (At least in The Netherlands)
https://www.apple.com/uk/legal/statutory-warranty/
I somehow misunderstood this part. Do you have to pay for warranty replacement?
And also sucks as a warranty experience. Every other large company I've dealt with similarly (Amazon, Dish, Comcast, to name some) ship your replacement, and say that the return is due back to them within 30 days.
They don't charge (or even pre-auth) your card for you initiating a warranty replacement. I'm mind-blown (or maybe not, this is Apple) that people find this acceptable.
Buying a product online and replacing online requires some kind of wiretransfer. Creditcard or Payment card is the solution for all your woes. Don't fret.
> Buying a product online and replacing online requires some kind of wiretransfer.
Except it entirely doesn't: I've exchanged a faulty $3,000 camera on Amazon and they overnighted the replacement, and said that if I didn't return the faulty one within 30 days they'd charge me. They didn't pre-auth or hold funds.
Dish waits a month after I send back their DVR before even attempting to charge me for non return.
On warranty goods, when you are close to the richest company on the planet, "holding" customer funds on faulty warranty replacements is asinine and not at all "customer-centric".
Personally, I am unaffected. It makes this no less satisfactory.
Many large companies have tried to skirt around these consumer rights, like Steam and E.A who both rejected the notion that they even do business in Australia, all to prevent issuing refunds. It's absurd. Telling a consumer they have no right to a refund when they do is even against the law here, yet Apple do it all the time.
Eventually I got to a senior representitve and they openly stated to me while denying my claim "I don't know why you expect me to know the laws in Australia". They bloody well should, though. Australia's consumer rights watchdog even forced Apple to display a notice on their website to prevent people being misled by Apple.
https://www.apple.com/au/legal/statutory-warranty/
That was always the deal; the non-serviceable li-on cells degrade significantly after a year of constant use.
First time the issue started after 6 months of use. The second time was within a week of the original replacement. All good so far after the second replacement (about a month).
Fortunately Apple makes the replacement process easy.
Meanwhile my regular Airpods are still working like a charm.
But, I mean, I've had problems with most of the IEMs I've ever bought at one point or another. It's just that you don't get to the top of HN with a post about a pattern of Shure product defects.
Never need to worry about charging them, soft replacable rubber cups fit into my asymmetrically-sized earholes, they're always there waiting in my bag on the rare occasion I want to use them, I am gonna be so sad when my 6s breaks and I have to replace it with either an Android phone or an iPhone with no audio jack, maybe I'll just get one of those lightning⟷audio adaptors and keep it on the earbuds forever.
I still do not see how the Airpods are an improvement in any way.
Airpods (not pro) are fantastic for what they are. They last for hours, charge in minutes, pair reliably with my iphone 11 and sound very ok. Not great, but not bad. Ok. Perfect for podcasts, audiobooks, lectures, and calls I have to take throughout the day.
The famous photography advice "the best camera in the world is the one you have on you when you need to take a picture" definitely applies. It lets me listen to spoken word and a little music very comfortability throughout the day, and I have big cans at home for everything else.
Source: owns a cheapass Soundpeat.
I've heard theories that the outer mics can get clogged with ear wax over time, and I tried several different strategies for cleaning them. I even bought entirely new rubber caps, just in case that contributed. Nothing I did worked. Eventually I just gave up and bought another pair of the regular AirPods, which had always worked reliably (I gave away my first pair as a gift when I got the Pros).
It's honestly shameful that such an expensive product can be so problematic, but I got weary of being upset about it and just wanted to get on with my life.
At least Apple has great service. When the Apple store was open I could just walk over there and get the broken AirPod swapped in minutes. After lockdown I needed to call Apple support and get them to mail me one, which would take a few days to show up.