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Once a new Apple product hits the market, it doesn't take long for someone to disassemble the unit to see what makes it tick. In classic fashion, iFixit did just that to the EarPods, even though they are not designed to be opened or repaired. Despite this drawback, there are several design improvements beyond just acoustics.

The EarPods are the first Apple earbud headphones to utilize paper cones in the speaker diaphragms as opposed to all plastic. Not only should this improve frequency response, but it results in a more durable speaker that will better resist tearing. Other durability improvements were also spotted in the teardown.

Connector details continue to surface ahead of the iPhone 5 arrival next Friday. One of the biggest questions facing Apple was how to implement a smaller dock connector to replace the aging 30-pin design in service since 2003. We already know the Lightning 8-pin dock connector will be 80 percent smaller and completely reversible.

As it turns out, Apple decided to go with the Lightning proprietary design over micro-USB because the USB cables lack functionality. Engineers believed the disadvantages of losing the standard cable format would be outweighed by additional connectivity made possible by the Lightning cable, giving third-party devices more possibilities.

Apple announced new in-ear headphones called EarPods at its keynote on Wednesday. The EarPods will begin shipping with every iPod touch, iPod nano and iPhone after the iPhone 5 is released on September 21. Apple spent three years redesigning the old in-ear headphones that previously came with older Apple devices.

Apple uploaded a video to YouTube explaining why the new EarPods are better. Jonny Ive, Apple’s head of industrial design explains in the clip that making one headphone to fit everbody’s ear would be impossible, but that's exactly what Apple set out to do.

With the unrelenting flood of iPhone 5 rumors over the past few months, it's a wonder that Apple even had a keynote event to announce their latest smartphone. Despite all of the leaked details, there were still some surprises that Apple fans were treated to, even if the rest of the presentation was just confirming what we already knew.

Some of the common rumors that were confirmed included a hybrid metal and glass back, LTE network support and a larger 16:9 ratio in-cell touch display. And of course, Apple made the iPhone 5 thinner and lighter than its predecessor, without sacrificing battery life. Still, there were a few surprises that were mentioned in the rumor mill little or not at all.

The iPhone 5 is 18 percent thinner and 20 percent lighter than the other iPhones, but the price has remained the same. Apple will offer the iPhone 5 for $199 (16GB), $299 (32GB), and $399 (64GB) on September 21. Pre-orders for the next-generation iPhone open on September 14. If you're looking to upgrade from the now discontinued iPhone 3GS, but $200 is out of your price range, you can now nab an iPhone 4S for $99, or receive a free iPhone 4 with a new contract.