WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:15.920 Hey Jonathan, do you think you can help me out with these? 00:00:15.920 --> 00:00:23.640 Sarah? These are fully- earwax. 00:00:23.640 --> 00:00:27.760 I've noticed this myself when using my old ear pods over the years. 00:00:27.760 --> 00:00:32.360 They clog up in the mesh of these headphones, and at points it got so bad that I couldn't 00:00:32.360 --> 00:00:38.160 even hear out of them. In fact, these are Sarah's second pair after clogging up her last set. 00:00:38.160 --> 00:00:42.320 So I think this is probably a pretty common problem. 00:00:42.320 --> 00:00:46.440 Being a bit of an earwax producer myself, I've often wondered if seeing a bunch of earwax 00:00:46.440 --> 00:00:49.520 on my ear pods meant that I'm ruining my ears. 00:00:49.520 --> 00:00:54.440 But after reaching out to a local hearing specialist, he told me in an email that, 00:00:54.560 --> 00:00:59.720 Everyone has different earwax, some softer, some harder. 00:00:59.720 --> 00:01:03.560 Having no earwax is a genetic anomaly. 2. 00:01:03.560 --> 00:01:08.960 I always worry that I'm pushing earwax further in my ear, but he said that oftentimes you're 00:01:08.960 --> 00:01:13.520 actually helping remove earwax from your ears, hence this mess. 00:01:13.520 --> 00:01:19.400 3. Also, if you are someone who cleans their ears frequently, that could be causing your earwax 00:01:19.400 --> 00:01:23.800 to become softer, making it all the more easy to clog your ear buds. 00:01:24.160 --> 00:01:27.960 4. If you're seeing lots of earwax, you don't need to worry about your health, just the 00:01:27.960 --> 00:01:34.640 health of your ear pods. Obviously, the easiest and most wasteful solution to the problem is to just buy a new set of 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:39.520 ear pods, which is what Sarah did the first time hers got clogged, but that's untenable. 00:01:39.520 --> 00:01:45.560 Apple does service ear pods, but it's $70 each for a repair or replacement. 00:01:45.560 --> 00:01:49.040 Or it's $50 just to get a battery service. 00:01:49.040 --> 00:01:52.240 From what I can tell, it's the same service, just one's cheaper. 00:01:52.240 --> 00:01:56.040 So make sure to say battery service to save $20. 00:01:56.040 --> 00:02:02.840 So between $100 and $140 to deal with a naturally occurring body excretion, it all seems steep. 00:02:02.840 --> 00:02:07.080 There have got to be better ways. 00:02:07.080 --> 00:02:11.520 In doing this research, I came across a little startup called PodSwap. 00:02:11.520 --> 00:02:16.560 Founded by Florida entrepreneurs Emily Alpert and Emma Stritsinger, the company swaps your 00:02:16.560 --> 00:02:21.040 old AirPods with refurbished ones, and then they refurbish yours. 00:02:21.040 --> 00:02:25.160 Remarkably, they've worked out how to replace the battery and clean ear pods. 00:02:25.160 --> 00:02:31.000 At $50 to swap a pair of first gen AirPods and 60 for a second gen set, they're certainly 00:02:31.000 --> 00:02:35.560 a compelling option. 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:44.800 So I got this pair of AirPods from a colleague, I can just show you what they look like. 00:02:44.800 --> 00:02:49.080 How often do you deal with ear pods like this? 00:02:49.840 --> 00:02:59.200 It's nothing we haven't seen before. Yeah, I mean, it's no secret that AirPods are pretty gross, so this is something we 00:02:59.200 --> 00:03:02.200 deal with every day at PodSwap. 00:03:02.200 --> 00:03:06.520 Like it's no surprise that people have sound issues when they send their AirPods to us 00:03:06.520 --> 00:03:12.040 because they're so filled with earwax, so this actually is one of the reasons why you 00:03:12.040 --> 00:03:18.320 made experience issues with sound on your AirPods. Does the earwax get really smushed through the mesh? 00:03:18.320 --> 00:03:25.280 Yeah. We've seen ear pods that were shocked people can even hear out of because they're so 00:03:25.280 --> 00:03:32.080 caught up. Like from the back through the front, it's just unbelievable, but they've been out since 00:03:32.080 --> 00:03:37.840 2016, so it makes sense that someone's using them for the past four years and it just builds 00:03:37.840 --> 00:03:42.560 up. We have to open them up and really get in there. Let's just say that. 00:03:42.560 --> 00:03:49.000 So then, what does it mean for me as I embark and try and clean these ear pods? 00:03:49.000 --> 00:03:53.000 Oftentimes when you attempt to clean them yourself, like we have a lot of people who 00:03:53.000 --> 00:03:57.320 damage them ultimately, so careful out there. 00:03:57.320 --> 00:04:00.840 Yeah. Well, thanks for all the help. 00:04:00.840 --> 00:04:09.400 Okay, so let's see what these PodSwap ear pods look like and how clean they are. 00:04:10.400 --> 00:04:15.120 Oh yeah, okay, let's see this other one. 00:04:15.120 --> 00:04:22.600 Okay, these are pretty clean, so I wonder what's going on behind the mesh. 00:04:22.600 --> 00:04:26.720 Let's find out. 00:04:26.720 --> 00:04:31.480 So one of the concerns I have with cleaning AirPods is that the earwax has been pushed 00:04:31.480 --> 00:04:35.600 through the mesh and so all I'm going to be doing is cleaning the surface and not actually 00:04:35.600 --> 00:04:40.800 addressing the problem. So I want to know how bad it can get behind the mesh. 00:04:40.800 --> 00:04:46.240 So I'm going to sacrifice these old ear pods that I've had since my iPhone 5 and see what's 00:04:46.240 --> 00:04:52.400 what. Cue the music. I have no idea what I'm doing. 00:04:52.400 --> 00:04:58.040 So there's a seam here and I want to get into it. 00:04:58.040 --> 00:05:03.240 Looking at, I fix it, they use a knife. 00:05:03.240 --> 00:05:10.240 I believe that these are glued together and with a bit of heat and a bit of pressure, 00:05:10.240 --> 00:05:13.480 maybe I can pry these apart. Let's just see. 00:05:17.480 --> 00:05:20.480 It's warm. Oh yeah, it's warm. 00:05:20.480 --> 00:05:24.960 Oh yes, yes, it worked. 00:05:24.960 --> 00:05:31.480 Hey, oh, okay, but I do need to get the speaker off now. 00:05:32.480 --> 00:05:35.480 Yes. Oh, I got it. Okay. 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:45.120 Here we go. Interesting. It's not full of earwax, but it has gone through ever so lightly. 00:05:45.120 --> 00:05:48.680 When the light goes through it, it's orange. 00:05:48.680 --> 00:05:54.480 So that's delicious. 00:05:54.480 --> 00:05:58.360 All right, so I think this is a design issue. 00:05:58.360 --> 00:06:02.960 With the release of the AirPods in 2012, Apple made a big deal about how these headphones 00:06:02.960 --> 00:06:06.040 could fit comfortably in more people's ears. 00:06:06.040 --> 00:06:11.320 They use this funnel shape to help, but what doesn't help is where the mesh is placed right 00:06:11.320 --> 00:06:18.240 near the tip. So if you're a waxy individual, you can probably see the problem. 00:06:18.240 --> 00:06:24.360 So what about cleaning them? Well, I discovered this cute little thing recently. 00:06:24.360 --> 00:06:28.920 It's an earbuds washing machine from a company called CardLax, who also make a portable 00:06:28.920 --> 00:06:36.640 muscle stimulator, no matter. Now, this is a Kickstarter, and they kindly sent over a prototype to try cleaning one 00:06:36.640 --> 00:06:40.360 of these AirPods. So let's see what it can do. 00:06:40.360 --> 00:06:45.360 And if you want to pre-order one, they're currently going for about $50 on Kickstarter. 00:06:45.360 --> 00:06:48.360 All right, gloves. 00:06:54.360 --> 00:07:19.160 Not bad. 00:07:19.160 --> 00:07:23.000 Still some residue here and there. It looks like it was used. 00:07:23.000 --> 00:07:28.760 It's probably good for maintenance. But what if you want to try it the manual way? 00:07:28.760 --> 00:07:34.560 Looking at some videos on YouTube, I also learned of a Irish phone repair shop called 00:07:34.560 --> 00:07:39.600 Phone FixCraft that's been posting very gross microscopic videos of AirPods being cleaned. 00:07:39.600 --> 00:07:42.960 It looks like he has a thin pick he uses to clear the wax and then scrubs it with some 00:07:42.960 --> 00:07:47.440 sort of liquid and brush and sucks it out with a vacuum if it's really bad. 00:07:47.440 --> 00:07:51.000 Oh God, I can't watch this anymore. 00:07:51.000 --> 00:07:55.240 So when in my interaction with the ear specialists he mentioned, hearing aid cleaning tools, 00:07:55.240 --> 00:07:59.880 which is interesting, so we ordered a set off Amazon for about $12. 00:07:59.880 --> 00:08:19.720 Look at these fine picks and brushes. It might be a big help. 00:08:19.720 --> 00:08:23.400 Oh my gosh, it's really coming out. 00:08:23.400 --> 00:08:31.080 All right, let's go up to Sarah and get her to see how well I've done. 00:08:31.080 --> 00:08:37.080 Sarah, I think I've cleaned them. 00:08:37.080 --> 00:08:40.080 Oh my gosh. 00:08:40.080 --> 00:08:44.080 Let's see if you can guess which one I cleaned manually and which one I cleaned with the 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:47.320 earbuds washing machine. All right. What do you think of how they look? 00:08:47.320 --> 00:08:51.000 This one looks way cleaner than this one for sure. 00:08:51.000 --> 00:08:54.520 I guess the real test is by trying them out. 00:08:54.520 --> 00:08:57.520 Yeah, let's see if you can actually hear music. 00:08:57.520 --> 00:09:00.680 Okay, let's try this side first. 00:09:00.680 --> 00:09:08.440 Okay, so I still have to like turn it up a fair bit to see what it sounds like. 00:09:08.440 --> 00:09:16.640 It does sound better. Okay, let me try the other side. 00:09:16.640 --> 00:09:24.600 I don't know if they sound better. Okay, here's the thing is I have to still turn my audio up to like more than halfway 00:09:24.600 --> 00:09:28.120 to hear something. Right, now put them both in. Okay. 00:09:28.120 --> 00:09:33.120 This one sounds better than the other. This one does sound a little better. 00:09:33.120 --> 00:09:38.200 Okay. But they're still not like they were when they were brand new. 00:09:38.200 --> 00:09:41.320 So I hope these are charged up enough. These are from PodSwap. 00:09:41.320 --> 00:09:46.880 Let's see if we can... Oh wow, it's way louder already. 00:09:46.880 --> 00:09:50.880 Oh really? Yeah, insane difference. 00:09:50.880 --> 00:09:54.440 Oh, this one's way better. 00:09:54.440 --> 00:09:58.680 Like I can turn it down to here and it sounds loud enough. 00:09:58.680 --> 00:10:04.240 Clearly I've failed, haven't I? Yeah, I'd say so. 00:10:04.240 --> 00:10:10.480 Okay. Well, we have a conclusion. 00:10:10.480 --> 00:10:17.160 Very sad one. 00:10:17.160 --> 00:10:21.600 So I wasn't able to do it myself. I'm quite surprised and disappointed. 00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:25.040 Emma and Emily at PodSwap certainly know what they're doing. 00:10:25.040 --> 00:10:32.720 Me on the other hand, don't. God, this makes me want to keep on trying until I get it. 00:10:32.720 --> 00:10:37.560 The disposability of AirPods has been an issue since they came out almost five years ago. 00:10:37.560 --> 00:10:41.160 So it's no surprise that we'd want to keep them running as long as possible. 00:10:41.160 --> 00:10:45.360 And as annoying as it may seem, I think maintenance is an important way to reduce the likelihood 00:10:45.360 --> 00:10:52.600 of your AirPods getting filled with earwax. So if things do get bad and your batteries thin, PodSwap offers what seems to be the 00:10:52.600 --> 00:10:57.840 most cost-effective and environmentally friendly way of breathing new life into older AirPods. 00:10:57.840 --> 00:11:06.160 Which is remarkable considering how tightly these things are glued together. 00:11:06.160 --> 00:11:11.720 Thank you for listening into this Mac Address. If you too are a producer of earwax, give us a like. 00:11:11.720 --> 00:11:15.320 And if you've clogged up a set of earbuds before, might as well subscribe. 00:11:15.320 --> 00:11:20.400 I'm also curious if any of you have found a really great working solution to this problem. 00:11:20.400 --> 00:11:23.280 Let me know in the comments below because I'm desperate to figure this thing out.