I may write about technology for a living, but even if I didn't, I wouldn't always be so quick to embrace new technologies and products that are sweeping the nation A good example of this is Apple's AirPods

Apple first introduced its wireless earbuds in 2016, at which point the AirPods were in the ears of almost everyone but me, and seemingly ubiquitous 'What a stupid fad,' I thought 'Those stems hanging from people's ears look ridiculous,' I scoffed 'Why do they cost $159? - Apple bundles wired EarPods with the iPhone I thought to myself These people are idiots," I concluded

I'm here to tell you, my friends, that the real fool is me

I now own AirPods and use them regularly At this point, I doubt I will ever use wired earbuds with my smartphone in the future And I would say that anyone who was skeptical of AirPods, as I was, should reconsider their position now

I started down the path to AirPods enlightenment because Apple had my back First, Apple eliminated the headphone jack from the iPhone 7 This meant that you could either plug Lightning-based headphones into the only port on the bottom of the iPhone or charge your phone, but not both at the same time I am up for the challenge I insisted on using wireless earbuds

In the meantime, Apple continued to fine-tune its AirPods lineup, replacing the original model They also introduced the AirPods Pro and brought active noise cancellation to the party Still, I was unmoved

Of course, at the same time, my attachment to Apple's wired earbuds was beginning to fray, which was fitting given that the EarPods frayed easily with normal wear and tear taking the iPhone out of my pocket or pulling the headphone jack or Lightning port, or pulling the EarPods out of the port are routine acts that pull and distort the EarPods' cables Eventually, permanent damage will occur and sound quality will be compromised

My previous EarPods suffered such damage that I could hear a whirring noise when I shifted my weight, took a step, or made any kind of movement, sudden or otherwise However, if I remained motionless, as I do when listening to music or podcasts, the sound quality was fine

I would say that was the reason I upgraded to AirPods Or because I didn't want to spend $19 a pop to replace my damaged, wired EarPods every so often Or even that cruel Apple's refusal to include new earbuds with the iPhone 12 finally forced my hand But it was none of those things [It was my wife who bought me the AirPods for Father's Day She was apparently disgusted by the sight of me working in the kitchen with the earphone cable caught on something and pulling the EarPods out of my ears I never knew that a cry of pain and outrage could be such a thoughtful gift

A month into using the AirPods, I'm loving most of what I've seen and heard Pairing the earbuds with my iPhone is surprisingly easy, and switching to my Mac requires minimal effort I certainly haven't missed any hissing, popping, or unbalanced audio from the EarPods, whose cables are damaged from overuse

However, I still have concerns I have a bad habit of leaving things like headphones in my pocket and only remembering their existence when I put them in the washer or dryer; in the case of the $19 EarPods, I greet that discovery with a sign and an "easy come, easy go" attitude (In the case of the $159 wireless earbuds, I wouldn't be so sanguine

I have yet to misplace my AirPods and their cases Apple will add this feature to the AirPods Pro and AirPods Max in iOS 15 And of course, the addition of AirPods to my life means one more thing: I have to remember to charge them

In short, life is much better now that I've cut the wires on my headphones Now, if only I could get rid of the muscle memory I've trained to grab the no more cables of my iPhone, things would be really great