- iFixit gives the Beoplay Eleven one out of ten
- Says the batteries are no more replaceable than the AirPods’
- Beoplay Eleven is “way behind” Apple in terms of technology
One of the big selling points of Bang & Olufsen’s beautiful Beoplay Eleven earphones was their replaceable batteries, which promised a longer lifespan.
As we noted at the time, that replacement was only via service technicians, and now iFixit has looked and concluded that they will need to be very special service technicians.
Giving the earphones a “dismal” one out of 10 for repairability, iFixit says “these earphones are so unrepairable, in fact, we don’t even think they’ll meet the upcoming 2027 EU battery regulation” – and B&O gave the meeting sustainability regulations as a key reason it offered the battery replacement service.
So what’s the problem?
Look at
Why iFixit slams B&O’s “replaceable” batteries
According to iFixit’s Shahram Mokhtari, you won’t be able to just take your Buds down to the local electronics store to get the batteries changed. And you certainly won’t be able to do it yourself.
“The batteries can only be serviced at B&O centers and the design makes DIY repair almost impossible,” says iFixit. Replacement requires “specialized jigs, heating, prying, and tackling of soldered and welded components.”
Not only that, but “our breakdown shows that the Beoplay Eleven is almost identical to the three-year-old Beoplay EX with minor microphone and software updates”. Some internal components are even labeled ‘Beoplay EX’.
To say the iFixit article is scathing would be an understatement. And there’s one bit in particular that B&O will be really unhappy about: iFixit suggests that the Beoplay Eleven aren’t premium earphones. “From the control panel to the wires, a side-by-side comparison of the Beoplay Eleven buds and AirPods 4 buds shows just how far behind the Beoplay Eleven is in terms of hardware design.”
TechRadar has reached out to Bang & Olufsen for comment, and we’ll update the story when we hear back.
