Tuesday, September 12, 2023

11.12 Complaint - The Saga of the Ear Buds

Bestest Friend and I are doing a blog project. Each day we will write a blog post on a pre-determined theme chosen by a random noun generator. The theme for the twelfth day of the month is "Complaint."

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My complaint of the day is absolutely a first world problem. Feel free to ignore me and focus on the bigger, actually important issues of the day.

In October of last year, I purchased some earbuds at Costco. They were a Bose QuietComfort model and I ADORED them. The sound quality was amazing, it was easy to switch from noise cancelling mode to ambient sound mode with just a simple tap of the earbud itself. It was SEAMLESS with my Android phone. They stayed charged for almost ten hours and you could get almost forty hours of charge in the case, which meant I was only charging my earbuds once a week or so. The biggest problem was that the fit wasn't awesome, so I was always fiddling with them to get them to stay in my ears. 

And then one day the right earbud stopped working.

We returned them to Costco and I'd sort of hoped that they'd still have Bose earbuds available, but they didn't, so we replaced them with some Galaxy Earbuds Pro. The good news is that the fit is a million times better and once they're in, I never touch them again. I didn't have to change the tips or order extras in different sizes. 

The bad news is basically in every other way, they are inferior to the Bose earbuds. I have to charge them every two or three days, there's a separate app that has to be on my phone to switch from noise cancelling to ambient sound, the sound quality is not as sharp, there's an annoying "feature" that if you talk while you're listening, it drops the sound down for ten seconds. This is helpful if you're having a conversation with someone, but is less helpful when all you've done is told your dog on a walk that she is a good girl. Also, it actually rarely works when you're a having a conversation with someone, so it's a bug as far as I'm concerned, not a feature. 

That's my complaint. I'm grumpy about a perfectly good pair of earbuds. What I really wish for is all the features of the Bose with the fit of the Samsung earbuds and then I would really celebrate. 

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Do you have any minor complaints today?

27 comments:

  1. I love my Apple Airpod Pros, but my husband also has a set and has had tons of issues (now he uses some other brand and loves them - can't remember which). It feels like hit-and-miss with headphones.

    Minor complaints. Hmm. It's very humid and I'm tired of feeling sweaty in my own house, but if I turn the AC on it gets too cold. But given everything happening in the world and my life right now...I guess I can handle some sweat.

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    1. Airpods are a no-go for me because the fit is atrocious, the sound quality is miserable, and it doesn't play well my Android. I'm jealous of everyone for whom they are an easy solution!

      It's actually kind of cool here and I'm wearing a hoodie! You'll get some fall weather soon, I promise!

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  2. Both Sue and granddaughter have had to replace their earbuds, which Apple did without a problem.

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    1. Boo to the Apple ecosystem! I refuse to engage.

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  3. Oh, ear buds. I'm always afraid to use good ear buds for running because I'm afraid I'll get caught in a rainstorm, or one will fall out or something. So I go to Target and get a cheap pair of wireless sports ear buds, which (not surprisingly) work great for a while and then stop working, or one ear stops working (that's what usually happens.) I get that this isn't a major catastrophe, but I can see how this is a really annoying problem for you- you listen to a lot of podcasts and audiobooks, right? So you can complain about it!

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    1. Yes, I probably have my earbuds in anywhere from two to six hours a day. I wear them when walking the dog, exercising, doing chores, and sometimes just to block out noise when I'm in public places. Right now I'm in a car dealership lobby and the television is on full blast and I'm wearing them just to not lose my mind. So this isn't the BIGGEST deal in the world, but it is definitely a large part of my life. I wish I had a *perfect* earbud, but I guess that's not meant to be.

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  4. This complaint is legit! I wish they made your right fit in the Bose earbuds too! Minor complaints - just that I am tired LOL

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  5. I get it. I rarely use earbuds because I can never get any that fit. Ever. I must have weird or very small ears. Apple buds especially DO NOT EVEN COME CLOSE to fitting. Hate them.

    Right now my snotty complaint is with the weather. Where is my crisp, dry fall air? Why is it still so darn humid at 64 degrees? Will I ever have a Good Hair Day again?

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    1. Yes, I have problematically small/difficult to fit ears, as well. These Samsung Galaxy earbuds are actually quite a good fit. I wish they had some better features, though!

      Oh, wow! It's crisp and cool here (I'm wearing a hoodie!). I promise you that you'll get that gorgeous fall weather soon!

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  6. That volume dropping feature certainly does not have the dog owners of the world in mind!
    Not my complaint, but my Husband's current complaint is how bad of a nurse I am - he's recovering from knee surgery and I find waiting on him... tedious. Not his fault at all - just my own irrational annoyance at having to take care of him. And he doesn't actually need that much - just some food, water, coffee, and ice once in a while. And probably some company. I should just embrace it and sit and watch movies with him all day - but it just seems like a waste of sunshine...

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    1. Caretaking is such a hard job. It's a hard balance between hovering and the patient feeling like they're being abandoned! I don't envy you your job, but I bet he's very appreciative of all you're doing for him.

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  7. I have Aftershockz because I can't stand having a thing in my ear. But I wear them regularly for a while and then stop and then forget how to work them and put off using them, so they're perfect but I'm not.

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    1. I'm vaguely interested in the open ear headphones, but I wonder about how much the sound quality is affected (effected? I'm not looking it up) and how much sound bleeds through so other people can hear it. What's your experience?

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  8. I've got a list of minor stuff going on...work is boring, it's a gloomy day, yada, yada, yada. On the bright side the dog is hanging out with me in my office and my airpods worked perfectly on our lunchtime walk. Most of the time they do exactly what I need them to do, but when they don't...

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    1. The minor things build up and become major. *sigh* Here's to things looking up for you with your work soon!

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  9. I still have an old over-the-head earphones thing, because I have such trouble getting in-ear things to stay in my ears! I don't know how I am not standard fit in those, but I am not. I hope you find something that works better for you.

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    1. I would 100% be on board with the over the head things if they were wireless and wouldn't get sweaty when I was running. I mean, I don't run often, but when I do, I need music!

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  10. No complaints from me today, minor or otherwise! My parents are coming for a visit tomorrow, which is so exciting and makes this week feel like a holiday. Then next week I am going on a whirlwind trip to Calgary for my husband's retirement party, we are staying with my very dear friends, and then the four of us (friends and husband and I) are going to Banff for the night. Then, driving home and that night we get home, I have tickets to the community theatre which is showing Rocket Man and Piano Man! So I have such an exciting couple of weeks ahead of me, that I can't even complain about going to apply for my BC driver's license today - the licensing office can't even bring me down! And once I get my license I can FINALLY GET A LIBRARY CARD. So, all is rosy around here!

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    1. A NEW LIBRARY CARD!! Your life is about to be amazing!

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  11. It doesn't sound like a minor complaint at all. I think you listen to podcasts and books and whatnot so clearly the pods must be a crucial part of your day. Nothing to offer as pods have never fit on my ears and I wear headphones that look like they were made in the 1980s.

    I don't have any minor complaints today... trying to figure out why I'm feeling sad (I can't pinpoint WHY!).

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    1. September is the beginning of SAD season for me, so it might be that for you, too? I'm already feeling myself super sluggish to get going in the morning and I think things are only going to get worse.

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  12. I rarely wear earbuds, although I do have a nice pair of the apple ones. I do remember years ago wearing the old school wired ones for exercise and if they didn't fit right, it was terrible. I think I have petite ear holes, so you might too. 😜😳

    I feel as though you wear yours a lot, so this IS a big part of your day/life, so complain away.

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    1. I do wear mine a lot, but it's still a small problem compared with what others deal with. I'm just trying to keep some perspective!

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  13. I am using Jon's old Airpods and I am happy with them, but Jon has new Bose ear buds and he loves them (for all the reason you listed). I am sorry the new ear buds are not up to par.

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    1. They fit so well. That in and of itself makes me hesitate to trash them too much. But the ambient noise filter is trash. LOL.

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  14. So, have you looked elsewhere for the Bose ones? Or just Costco? I guess I'm wondering why you aren't pursuing the new version of what worked so well?

    So many minor complaints. The first of which is, I will apparently never catch up on blogs. This is an unattainable goal. Sigh.

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    1. Well, I would probably have looked for Bose earbuds elsewhere if they'd fit better. As it was, I did NOT want to go to another store, so we just bought what else Costco had that was compatible with my phone. Call me lazy if you will!

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