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ToggleAMPWhen Apple first released the Apple headphones Max in late 2020, the eye-watering £549 asking price seemed exceptionally high compared to the product’s main competitors. Right now, the mesh headband, extendable armbands, and elegant aluminum cups of the AirPods Max give them many style points.
The available colors, including space gray, silver, sky blue, green, and pink, also appeal to us. Rumor has said that Apple will release updated colors for the current generation of AirPods Max before releasing the second generation of the device.
Next, let’s talk about design. How to do Apple headphones Max? Slick, to put it simply. As one might anticipate, the stainless-steel mesh headband and the aluminum outer shell of the rounded-off square cups are padded for comfort (the earpieces feature cushions wrapped in soft fabric). They are available in silver, gray, blue, pink, and green, among other colors.
The only controls are a digital crown on one cup that may change the music or level and a button that toggles between noise reduction and transparency mode. This little dial, which you can push to summon Siri or answer calls, is familiar to those who own an Apple Watch. To charge the headphones in two hours, another Lightning port is located at the bottom of the second cup. You can connect the AirPods Max to your phone, iPad, or MacBook using this connector, but purchasing an Apple Jack will cost an additional £40.
The design is controversial since it deviates from the typical oval or round aesthetics of other headphones at this price point. Although we appreciate certain style aspects, we probably find them too delicate and heavy for daily use. Additionally, because they are much bigger than other models, they are less practical for travel.
Regarding sound quality, the Apple Max headphones provide a superior choice within the Bluetooth domain. They clearly won’t match the fidelity of the finest wired headphones, but they are on par with the major competitors from Sony, Bose, Sennheiser, and Bang & Olufsen. They have an excellent sound signature that is reasonably balanced, distortion-free, and has a good degree of soundstage breadth.
After comparing the two directly, we concluded that it would please most people with the performance, mainly how Apple’s “Adaptive EQ” detects the type of music you’re listening to and automatically adjusts the levels to provide a better experience.
However, comfort is an area where the AirPods Max excels. These are far better than many over-ear headphones on weight distribution and clamping force, so we wouldn’t have any trouble wearing them all day. Compared to certain leather earcups, the fabric ones are more comfortable, and you won’t experience overheating. However, their passive isolation could be better than a leather design. Nevertheless, that’s not a huge concern since these are powerful noise-cancellers.
Apple is renowned for having the best Active Noise-Canceling (ANC) technology available, and this is also the case in this instance.
The AirPods Max’s battery life was on par with the other leading competitors when they were first released. They lag slightly behind the rest of the pack in 2024. While the AirPods Max have a 20-hour battery life when you turn on the active noise cancellation, some models now have a 30-hour battery life, and others have a 50-hour battery life or beyond. We don’t know about you, but given that we rarely have a charger for that long, 20 to 30 hours is more than sufficient. Nevertheless, it’s a noteworthy feature of the cans.
On the other hand, the Apple headphones Max is undeniably a fantastic set of headphones. It is helpful since clever features like transparency mode and auto-pause exist. It features a strong battery life, a well-built construction, and fantastic sound. However, to fully benefit from this, you must commit to the Apple ecosystem. Although the AirPods Max are now the greatest noise-canceling headphones available, they could be more comfortable and user-friendly. The “smart” casing isn’t clever, and the absence of a headphone port is annoying. You will adore the AirPods Max if none of those things annoy you.