Are AirPods Max 1st gen owners feeling like champions right now?

[thadoggfather]

new lame colors and a usb-c port and no price drop or acoustic / tech improvements :O

I haven't even tried AirPods Max on all this time, but I would be psyched if I were an owner of a pair

 

[lordhamster]

I wanted a pair of these for a while... I debated waiting for the USB-C update, but caved in when Amazon had a great discount a while back.

Now I'm feeling better about my decision. The only real thing I missed out on is the USB-C, but for what I saved... I can deal with schlepping along an old lightning cable.

 

[Jackbequickly]

The new 4's with ANC are at a good price point. Can't wait till they arrive as my 3's are getting tired.

 

[Zest28]

new lame colors and a usb-c port and no price drop or acoustic / tech improvements :O

I haven't even tried AirPods Max on all this time, but I would be psyched if I were an owner of a pair

Why would you be psyched that your 1st gen is still the latest and greatest?

As a 1st gen owner, I feel disappointed that there is no Apple AirPods Max 2 as an upgrade. I was ready to buy one.

 

[Ralfi]

The new 4's with ANC are at a good price point. Can't wait till they arrive as my 3's are getting tired.

But they’re not the Max 🤔

Why would you be psyched that your 1st gen is still the latest and greatest?

As a 1st gen owner, I feel disappointed that there is no Apple AirPods Max 2 as an upgrade. I was ready to buy one.

I’d say they were inferring that those with the 1st Gen who weren‘t planning to upgrade, will get more years out of their OG Max.

 

[thadoggfather]

But they’re not the Max 🤔

I’d say they were inferring that those with the 1st Gen who weren‘t planning to upgrade, will get more years out of their OG Max.

exactly people on the fence about upgrading or not at all interested

the decision has been made much easier with such an incremental update

 

[deadspider187]

At least before this week, I could pretend that my poor, early adopter purchase decision, would go towards updated product versions with better features, but clearly that's not where the extra money for these products went to.

I was hoping for a significantly lighter version, with the H2 chip, improved audio and ANC, for maybe $300-350, you know, like other, actually competitive wireless headphones in the market. Between these and a pair of OG HomePods I bought, I'm starting to be wary of any product releases in new product categories from Apple going forward (even though my OG HomePods still work great and sound awesome!).

 

[Mackilroy]

What would the H2 chip give you that you really need?

 

[deadspider187]

At least according to soundguys.com (https://www.soundguys.com/how-does-apple-h1-chip-work-21049/):

The benefits of the H2 chip include all those of the H1, plus some added computational audio features. Specifically, the new chip brings notably improved active noise cancellation (ANC), a new, adaptive transparency mode, and a longer battery life. Apple states that the H2 chip in the ‌AirPods Pro (2nd generation) cancels twice as much noise compared to the original ‌AirPods Pro‌.

EDIT: Heck, I don't really care, shove an H3 in there. Just give us an improvement if you want us to buy updated products.

 

[GMShadow]

But they’re not the Max 🤔

I’d say they were inferring that those with the 1st Gen who weren‘t planning to upgrade, will get more years out of their OG Max.

I was actually ready for a real update as mine have seen a lot of use, now I'm stuck with the suspicion that we'll get an actual second gen in 12-18 months, so I'll have to keep using mine longer than intended and may end up going with another product instead.

Brilliant move on Apple's part. /s

 

[seggy]

new lame colors and a usb-c port and no price drop or acoustic / tech improvements :O

I haven't even tried AirPods Max on all this time, but I would be psyched if I were an owner of a pair

They wer pretty lame to start off with, so not so much champions, just left behind less than they thought

 

[sunapple]

I bought mine in May last year when people already were waiting on gen 2 so, yes, I'm glad I bought it when I needed it. In fact, if gen 2 had come out late September carrying a 50% increase in sound quality, H2 chip, lighter build, etc, I would still have survived because I'm quite pleased with these headphones. Also I believe I like Sky Blue better than that new blue.

The one thing that annoys me, I don't hear this a lot, but the button on the top often doesn't register a press.

 

[Mackilroy]

At least according to soundguys.com (https://www.soundguys.com/how-does-apple-h1-chip-work-21049/):



EDIT: Heck, I don't really care, shove an H3 in there. Just give us an improvement if you want us to buy updated products.

I ask because I’ve owned both, and the Maxes have superior noise cancelation, to me; they already have much longer battery life; and superb transparency. What I think possible benefits might be are conversation awareness, voice isolation, and personalized volume. I suspect Apple didn’t add those because they’re implicitly positioning the Pros for active use around other people, and the Maxes for quieter, more individual use.

 

[tranceking26]

I love mine, wear them almost daily.

Even since day 1 they have been the perfect weight and once they were adjusted, fit just fine.

ANC is as good as day 1.

Only downside is I haven't been able to force firmware updates, but that doesn't bother me.

 

[Ev0d3vil]

Well i got mine for 190 USD a couple of days back used, so I'm happy.

 

[deadspider187]

I ask because I’ve owned both, and the Maxes have superior noise cancelation, to me; they already have much longer battery life; and superb transparency. What I think possible benefits might be are conversation awareness, voice isolation, and personalized volume. I suspect Apple didn’t add those because they’re implicitly positioning the Pros for active use around other people, and the Maxes for quieter, more individual use.

A redesign with the H2 chip would have provided an increase in noise cancellation, an improvement in battery, and more, compared to the existing design with the H1 chip. The source I cited compares the APP and APP2's, citing that a lot of the improvement came from upgrading to the H2 chip, so in theory, upgrading the APM to the H2 chip would have yielded similar results.

 

[Mackilroy]

What I'm getting at is that just because the H2 chip provided those improvements for the AirPods Pro doesn't mean they automatically would for the Max, given their different designs, constraints, and available hardware. Yes, theoretically it might result in an improvement, but as (in my opinion) the Max is already superior, it theoretically might not result in any change in those areas.

 

[deadspider187]

What I'm getting at is that just because the H2 chip provided those improvements for the AirPods Pro doesn't mean they automatically would for the Max, given their different designs, constraints, and available hardware. Yes, theoretically it might result in an improvement, but as (in my opinion) the Max is already superior, it theoretically might not result in any change in those areas.

I agree that upgrading to the H2 chip doesn't mean that the Max's would benefit greatly, but certainly doing nearly nothing didn't improve the product.

 

[Mackilroy]

Indeed. I listed some things in my earlier comment that I would be interested in. There’s plenty of competition in the headphone space, but Apple evidently is focused more on earbuds.

 

[ArchEtech]

Id like a pair but I can't believe the price on the max. I have notice the costs on refurbished and used tell me they are overpriced to begin with. You can find them for $200-250 all day.

Basically $600 after taxes, I mean damn!

 

[CharlesShaw]

If Airpods Max had been released in 2019, I would jumped to buy them on day one, but by December 2020 the pandemic had taught me how much money I could save, and that big chunk of money was spent on more essential Apple gear.

 

[Mackilroy]

Id like a pair but I can't believe the price on the max. I have notice the costs on refurbished and used tell me they are overpriced to begin with. You can find them for $200-250 all day.

Basically $600 after taxes, I mean damn!

You should take a look at the B&O H100, Dali IO-12, Focal Bathys, Mark Levinson No. 5909, and more. The Max starts to look positively cheap by comparison.

 

[jagooch]

Well i got mine for 190 USD a couple of days back used, so I'm happy.

In the end that is all that matters - are you happy with your purchase?

Anything else , like the lack of upgrades, is just noise. As long as the product does what you bought it for, you’re good.

 

[anshuvorty]

Here’s my conspiracy theory: the reason the AirPods Max didn’t receive a more significant update is because Apple is working on a complete redesign of the product to support true lossless audio when connected via a 3.5mm headphone jack.

 

[ArchEtech]

Here’s my conspiracy theory: the reason the AirPods Max didn’t receive a more significant update is because Apple is working on a complete redesign of the product to support true lossless audio when connected via a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Its fairly likely with how long they have been out they are working on a much larger update for the next year or two yes. Maybe something that works with the goggles better.