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Yeah, they're overpriced, but I thought they sounded better than any pair of headphones I've ever had. If only the headband wasn't so tight. I got a migraine after like 45 minutes of wearing them. If they fix this or offer different size headbands in the future, I'll be first in line to buy another pair.
 
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Here's a prediction. Apple will throw in some headphones for "free" for a back to school promo this summer. People will be able to purchase the Max for like $100 more. Shortly thereafter, many Maxes will end up on eBay, that will end up selling for around $350 - $400 NIB. That seems to be the sweetspot where the masses actually start dishing out money for higher end wireless cans.
When they did that with AirPods, you could pay $90 (IIRC) to upgrade to the AirPods Pro. No chance on this earth students would be able to buy a Mac and get AirPods Max for $100. You’d simply get a $160 discount off them like with the AirPods Pro, so closer to $389.
 
For everyone comparing HomePod and AirPods Max, the second one was launched when the decision to discontinue the first one was surely taken, so I’m fairly confident Apple set the right price.

Homepod maxi had undergone a price cut by Apple, and also double discounted by retailers ($199 for long periods of time). It languished at its price point even then (otherwise Apple would have kept both)

I think the Air Max is just too expensive for what it does. A guy like me will happily spend $500-1000 on a set of good audiophile quality headphones and I don't deny that the Airpods Max has good technical capabilities, but it rubs me the wrong way in various aspects. I will buy the Airpods Pro happily but I have no use for the Max myself so it's not for me unless it comes down in price a lot and then I might give them a run.

I have the feeling, after its initial launch excitement, that the Max will sell in consistent but *relatively* small quantities (for an Apple product)....much like the Homepod Max. My guess is that it will undergo a price cut eventually.
 
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Just as an example. If you just want decent sounding wireless headphones. Macrumors already compared the Drop Panda (I own these) to the AP max. Pandas are $400 and do the job of high grade headphones tailored toward sound quality. Also comparisons to the Bose and Sony ANC headphones are considerations for people looking at the APM. You can often get those on sale from $200-300 or so. Most people love the sound quality of the XM4 (I don't, but they are popular for a reason). They are good enough for most people. And of course, the Airpods Pro are easy to carry and work well in almost all situations (except battery life)...I have these and they go with me everywhere.

If Apple is still selling these $550 USD Airpods Max in 5 years, I will be surprised. I'm expecting them to be discounted or discontinued or both. Maybe a cheaper version like Airpods Mid will replace them?
 
I'm expecting them to be discounted or discontinued or both.

I think they are replaced with a revised model at $479 at some point.

(still too expensive, but getting closer to palatable if bought through a 3rd party at a discount...assuming some fixes to the issues and niggles with gen 1 that's out right now)
 
I waited years on rumours of these Apple ones, I bought the Sony XM4s after the price annoucement. No way im paying that much for generic heavy headphones. They don't sound twice as good as Sony XM4s.
They don’t even sound better than XM4s and Apple being known for great design could have blown our minds with how it should collapsed into a travel case!
 
I had AirPods Pro but they kept falling out of my ears. My wife now uses them. So I did buy the AirPods Max since I am an early adopter :)

However, as I did with my HomePods, I waited about a month before buying some from an earlier adopter than me at about a 40% discount. I guess he needed the cash.

I really love them, yes even the silly looking case. The integration with everything in the  ecosystem is flawless. The sound quality is great but you should not buy them just based on that. Sound cancelling is great and transparency mode is just very good. I keep them in the case at all times. Would and on / off switch be welcomed? Probably.

I travel a lot for business but obviously not at all in the last 14 months. When I do get on a plane I will probably find it annoying that, contrary to my Bose QC35, they do not fold neatly into a case. I think I will do maybe one or two business trips before deciding if I invest in a better case.

So, to conclude, was it a good buy? At 40% discount, yes. At full price, no. Search the sites where they are sold used and you may find a gem.
 
I would probably buy some at $350-400
Guessing all the early adopters have bought them and now they're easy to get.
 
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I would probably buy some at $350-400
Guessing all the early adopters have bought them and now they're easy to get.

It's really nice when a product like this has been out for a bit and all the smoke filled chest pumping hypberole about "BEST EVER!!!" fades away and we can get some more relaxed and balanced opinions about things.
 
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For people whining about the excessive price, these are $1000 in New Zealand ($717 USD). Really sickening.
 
I have them and enjoy them very much, but that is me. Sound is nice and crisp, subjective of course. I imagine the naysayers or negative comments based on nothing empirical are not the folks they made these for.

I also have multiple HomePods, them being discontinued by Apple doesn't stop them from working. Again the sound on them is very good and it integrates well throughout the house.
 
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