AirPods 1

My new AirPods Pro 3 seem incredible, and everyone seems to agree. If you’ve got Apple gear they make a lot of sense. Now, on the topic of whether they’ll last for a long time, anecdotally, my first generation AirPods and first generation AirPods Pro both still work absolutely fine. I use the previous pros in bed and the regular ones at home sometimes when I don’t need ANC and want to give my ear canals a rest. That said, their battery lives are maybe 80% and 60% of what they used to be, so I’m not sure if I’d ever class any earbuds as something for life.

This is an easy upgrade for me given I'm still rocking the Gen 1's lol

Just bought a pair, my 1s are going strong as I had them replaced (not the case) due to the crackling about a year ago.

OP’s got first gen and idk if they’re even pros or not cuz they go back and forth. First gen AirPods are ass. First gen pros are too. Anything after that is way better.

I upgraded from the first gen model and holy shit these things are amazing. They sound better, have dramatically better anc, and for tv watching they can’t be beat. They are not nearly as comfortable though and even downsizing the ear piece still hurts my ears. Overall I like them but will buy aftermarket ear pieces as soon as possible.

My AirPods Gen 1 sound better than my power Beats Pro 1st gen but the pros have buttons, battery lasts longer and they stay in my ear and are more comfortable. so I don’t care about the audio quality. music and podcasts and calls sound fine.

I'll be honest. I agree with all your points. The case is so scratchy I gave up trying to protect mine. When my airpods pro 2 arrived, I wrap it right away in a dbrand skin. A couple months later when I wanted to use case instead of skin, I peel it and it's scratched. How it got scratched I have zero idea. Since then I treat the charging case like my phone case, it's there to protect my airpods not to get protected. Since 2017 alone, I've used OG Airpods, Airpods 2, Jabra Elite 65t, Sony WF XM3, Airpods Pro 1, Sony WF XM4, and now Airpods Pro 2. I know the pros and cons of those earbuds because I don't just try them and return them to shop. In most cases, I wear them for months until they either break or lost. And of all those earbuds, my favorite is still Airpods Pro 2. I know it doesn't have custom EQ. I know it doesn't have custom EQ and it's not the cheapest or best sounding or best looking, or the one with the longest battery life. But I preferred it because of one thing. Comfort In terms of ergonomic, Airpods Pro 2 is perfect for me. And that is what made me worry about Airpods Pro 3. I wanted to try them to see if it would be as comfortable as the Pro 2 because if they aren't then I'm gonna have to buy the late batch Pro 2 that would hopefully last me another 3 years until the Pro 4 came out. When I wear my Pro 2 with transparency mode, sometimes I simply forgot that they're there. Discussions about Pro 3 seemed to be centered around their improved ANC, or polarizing sound signature. But I honestly don't care about those. I need ANC that's just enough to drown my gym poor taste in music when I'm exercising. If I need stronger ANC for flight, I'd take my Sonos Ace. And I don't care about sound quality because I hardly listen to any music. I use my airpods to either watch something, listen to podcast, or ambient sound when I'm working, so as long as it doesn't sound like a $10 earbud, I'm good. The increased battery life got me hyped because I always want my airpods pro to last an entire work day. But the issue of comfort really got me worried. More and more reviewers are coming out to say that they are not as comfortable as the Pro 2 and that really got me worried.

In my ears, they stay in perfectly fine. Despite really liking Apple earbuds (the wired ones) for years and never having problems with them, it wasn't until a few years ago I took the plunge to buy the wireless AirPods, even if I was worried about them falling out. I haven't had a problem with them falling out in regular, normal usage.

Im confused. I have the 1s the 2s and now the 3s. I dont think its anything insane? Happy with my purchase, but im not mind blown over the 2s or anything

I have the original gen ones from release day. Other than the mic they are Ok. Worth the upgrade?