Five Reasons Why You Might Want to Consider AirPods Max

[deevey]

Yesssss. All those that think the Airpod Max are the greatest wireless headphones ever created are stating fact. Anyone who disagrees is simply offering opinion. I like it.

You can be my second in command as supreme leader. I like the way you follow

 

[Macaday]

Not really. If we are going to compare them to Sony and Bose then we also have to compare them to the Bang and Olufsen H95 headphones. They honestly make the Airpods Pro look feel like bargain bin headphones. Its a much better build quality in every single way. They are liighter and way more comfortable, have a superior sound, ANC that is equal to or better than the APM, physcial controls on the headphones that are truly awesome, and the easiest device switching I've used outside of the APM. Not to mention magnetic removable ear cups, USB-C, adjustable on the fly ANC/Transparency. Oh and an off button.

I would give a very slight edge to the APM on transparency mode though. Outside of that, the H95's are in a different league than the APM headphones and are superior to them in nearly every way. Not to mention the fact that they come with a case and accessories that actually make you feel like you are getting your money's worth. That being said they are $800 but from a price/quality standpoint the APM can't even be on the same stage as them.

I don’t really follow your point. every review compares APM to ANC headphones half their price by Sony etc... and that is what I was referring to.
It’s very possible and quite right that the H95’s work out better than the APM but that is what you would expect for an extra £150. Just as you would expect the APM to be better than the XM4’s, which they are.

 

[trip1ex]

6. You live in a cold climate.

 

[Plutonius]

Hmmm.

Over $100 cost / reason.

Doesn't sound like something I would ever get.

 

[Red Viking]

Since the launch of the AirPods Max last week, we've done a couple of videos sharing a brief hands-on with Apple's new over-ear headphones and a comparison of them to other popular noise-cancelling headphones from Bose, Sony, and Sennheiser.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.​

There's been a lot of debate about whether the AirPods Max are worth their $550 price tag, and value is always going to be something of a personal decision, so in our latest video we decided to look at five reasons why you might think about purchasing the new AirPods Max.

Build/Comfort

For people who are going to spend quite a bit of time using headphones, comfort and build quality are obviously key factors in determining whether they're going to have a good experience with a particular set. Comfort is going to vary from person to person based on head shape, head size, and other factors, but we've found the AirPods Max to be incredibly comfortable.

The mesh ear cups offer a good seal while still allowing for some breathability that helps reduce sweating sometimes experience with other materials like leather. And if your ear cups wear out, the magnetic attachment system of the AirPods Max makes them incredibly easy to swap out.

AirPods Max are made largely of metal, with aluminum ear cups and stainless steel telescoping arms, which gives them a quality feel that is pleasantly cool to the touch. Those metal part do mean, however, that the AirPods Max come in significantly heavier than many competing headphones, which may be an issue for some users. But we've found that the mesh headband does an excellent job of distributing that weight across the head for maximum comfort.

Noise Cancellation

One of the main reasons people buy over-ear headphones is for active noise cancellation (ANC), and we've found that the AirPods Max offer excellent capabilities in that regard. In our experience, it's difficult to hear anything from our surroundings while wearing the AirPods Max with ANC turned on.

You can of course turn off ANC if you want to be able to hear more around you, but there's also Transparency mode which keeps ANC on but pipes surrounding sound in, and we've found that it lets us hear just enough without being too much of a distraction.

Audio Quality

While the AirPods Max won't match high-quality wired headphones, we've been impressed with the sound the AirPods Max can deliver over Bluetooth. The sound profile of the AirPods Max is well-balanced and not overly aggressive toward either the highs or lows.

With H1 chips in each ear cup, the AirPods Max use computational audio to adjust what you're hearing in real-time, customizing it for the fit on your head and other factors. And while we don't recommend turning the volume up too high, we found that sound quality remains solid even at higher volume levels, offering a clear, distortionless sound.

H1 Chip

Speaking of those H1 chips, they deliver more than just good audio quality. They're also the key component that integrates the AirPods Max into the Apple ecosystem. Just like with AirPods and recent Beats headphones, the H1 chip supports easy pairing and seamless audio switching among devices linked to your iCloud account. If you're listening to music from your iPhone and then pick up your iPad to start watching a video, the AirPods Max can automatically switch over to begin playing the audio from your iPad.

This is all customizable, of course, so you can select which devices you want to be able to take over as audio sources automatically, and even if you turn off automatic switching for a device, it takes just a couple of taps to manually switch over.

Spatial Audio

Finally, there's Spatial Audio, a new feature Apple recently rolled out to AirPods Pro and which is also included on AirPods Max. Spatial Audio offers an immersive, 3D audio experience with compatible content, and while we initially thought it would be rather gimmicky, we were quickly proven wrong. It really has to be experienced to be believed, but it makes it feel like the audio is coming from all around you, yet anchored by the device you're watching the content on.

So if you're watching a show on Apple TV+ on your iPad, for example, you'll get a surround-sound experience which is very nice on its own, but then if you turn your head or move your iPad, the audio adjusts on the fly to match the relative orientation of your head and the iPad. It's a remarkably good experience that will make you think your headphones have stopped working and that your iPad is blasting audio out of its own speakers.

Wrap-up

Those are our top five reasons why you might want to invest in AirPods Max. Yes, their $550 price tag can be a bit hard to swallow when competitors are coming in at $350 or less, but if you're heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, the combination of comfort, build quality, and features might be enough to tip the balance in favor of the AirPods Max.

Were you able to get your hands on the AirPods Max before shipping dates slipped well into next year? Have you recently opted for a competing set of headphones after seeing what the AirPods Max had to offer? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Article Link: Five Reasons Why You Might Want to Consider AirPods Max

Top 5 Reasons:

1. You don't know what to do with your billions
2. You want to build up your neck muscles
3. (If you are a man) You want to show that you're confident in your sexuality with a purse-like accessory
4. Want to wear a metal static and lightning magnet on your head
5. You think a 2 Trillion market cap looks good on Apple

 

[LeonPro]

You don't like the fit? Cool. I don't think it's the greatest fit either FOR MY HEAD.

You don't like the sound? Sure. Audio hearing is subjective and comes with personal taste. In my opinion tt doesn't hold a candle to my lower priced and higher priced studio monitor / audiophile-grade wired headphones.

You don't like the weight? Yes. It's obviously heavier than any plastic headphones. My metal and leather headphones are heavier than these AirPods Max.

You don't like the price? Check. You're not the target market. Apple and every other luxury/lifestyle brands don't price their products obviously high and wonder why not everyone is buying it.

What's funny is people come here to specifically knock the brand and knock their products (and again this headphone) like it was created specifically created for them. It only makes them appear like an idiot that's jaded because they can't accept that it's not for them and/or they can't afford the product. Real talk.

I have been an Apple user for decades since I was a kid down to their own LaserWriter printer. I don't agree on some of their product offerings and pricing at times, but I don't throw a fit here or in any other forum bashing them and their users. If I don't like the product, I share my personal opinion and then move on. If others like it, awesome. I then look for something else that I like. Period.

 

[Lucca2]

5 reasons to consider it huh?

Well I have 550 reasons not to.

More like 600 after taxes

 

[rodriguise]

Since the launch of the AirPods Max last week, we've done a couple of videos sharing a brief hands-on with Apple's new over-ear headphones and a comparison of them to other popular noise-cancelling headphones from Bose, Sony, and Sennheiser.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.​

There's been a lot of debate about whether the AirPods Max are worth their $550 price tag, and value is always going to be something of a personal decision, so in our latest video we decided to look at five reasons why you might think about purchasing the new AirPods Max.

Build/Comfort

For people who are going to spend quite a bit of time using headphones, comfort and build quality are obviously key factors in determining whether they're going to have a good experience with a particular set. Comfort is going to vary from person to person based on head shape, head size, and other factors, but we've found the AirPods Max to be incredibly comfortable.

The mesh ear cups offer a good seal while still allowing for some breathability that helps reduce sweating sometimes experience with other materials like leather. And if your ear cups wear out, the magnetic attachment system of the AirPods Max makes them incredibly easy to swap out.

AirPods Max are made largely of metal, with aluminum ear cups and stainless steel telescoping arms, which gives them a quality feel that is pleasantly cool to the touch. Those metal part do mean, however, that the AirPods Max come in significantly heavier than many competing headphones, which may be an issue for some users. But we've found that the mesh headband does an excellent job of distributing that weight across the head for maximum comfort.

Noise Cancellation

One of the main reasons people buy over-ear headphones is for active noise cancellation (ANC), and we've found that the AirPods Max offer excellent capabilities in that regard. In our experience, it's difficult to hear anything from our surroundings while wearing the AirPods Max with ANC turned on.

You can of course turn off ANC if you want to be able to hear more around you, but there's also Transparency mode which keeps ANC on but pipes surrounding sound in, and we've found that it lets us hear just enough without being too much of a distraction.

Audio Quality

While the AirPods Max won't match high-quality wired headphones, we've been impressed with the sound the AirPods Max can deliver over Bluetooth. The sound profile of the AirPods Max is well-balanced and not overly aggressive toward either the highs or lows.

With H1 chips in each ear cup, the AirPods Max use computational audio to adjust what you're hearing in real-time, customizing it for the fit on your head and other factors. And while we don't recommend turning the volume up too high, we found that sound quality remains solid even at higher volume levels, offering a clear, distortionless sound.

H1 Chip

Speaking of those H1 chips, they deliver more than just good audio quality. They're also the key component that integrates the AirPods Max into the Apple ecosystem. Just like with AirPods and recent Beats headphones, the H1 chip supports easy pairing and seamless audio switching among devices linked to your iCloud account. If you're listening to music from your iPhone and then pick up your iPad to start watching a video, the AirPods Max can automatically switch over to begin playing the audio from your iPad.

This is all customizable, of course, so you can select which devices you want to be able to take over as audio sources automatically, and even if you turn off automatic switching for a device, it takes just a couple of taps to manually switch over.

Spatial Audio

Finally, there's Spatial Audio, a new feature Apple recently rolled out to AirPods Pro and which is also included on AirPods Max. Spatial Audio offers an immersive, 3D audio experience with compatible content, and while we initially thought it would be rather gimmicky, we were quickly proven wrong. It really has to be experienced to be believed, but it makes it feel like the audio is coming from all around you, yet anchored by the device you're watching the content on.

So if you're watching a show on Apple TV+ on your iPad, for example, you'll get a surround-sound experience which is very nice on its own, but then if you turn your head or move your iPad, the audio adjusts on the fly to match the relative orientation of your head and the iPad. It's a remarkably good experience that will make you think your headphones have stopped working and that your iPad is blasting audio out of its own speakers.

Wrap-up

Those are our top five reasons why you might want to invest in AirPods Max. Yes, their $550 price tag can be a bit hard to swallow when competitors are coming in at $350 or less, but if you're heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, the combination of comfort, build quality, and features might be enough to tip the balance in favor of the AirPods Max.

Were you able to get your hands on the AirPods Max before shipping dates slipped well into next year? Have you recently opted for a competing set of headphones after seeing what the AirPods Max had to offer? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Article Link: Five Reasons Why You Might Want to Consider

redeemable for 1 stimulus check.

 

[kirk.vino]

After using them for 10 days, I gotta say I love them! I think I’ve broken them in as well and the pressure that I had in the first couple of days is gone now.
There has not been a single dropout, so people saying that they experience those are most likely trolling and don’t even have the headphones to begin with.
The case is controversial, but I’ll get just a simple 3rd party one for travel. There are already some options available on Amazon. The transparency mode is a killer. I’ve already used it at the airport and on a plane. It’s convenient that you can just press the button and everything sounds as if you didn’t even have them on your head. There’s no need to move or adjust them.
The sound quality is so sweet: very balanced and nuanced. I don’t think I can use anything sounding flatter after using these headphones.
The comments are hysterical though. Keep up the good work! It’s always amusing to read an expert opinion from someone who has not even touched the product LOL

 

[Maconplasma]

I love all the hate posts about these cans. They think they are screwing over Apple with these posts and are going to stop people buying them based on all the hate. The truth of the matter is the hate posts are helping Apple by constantly talking about their cans and the sales will skyrocket. The joke is on all of you who are hating on these cans. You're helping Apple make more money.

Also I just love how nobody compares these to a pair of cans in the same price point like the B&O Play cans. Of course nobody will compare. It defeats their argument and ruins their plans to screw Apple's sales....which will never happen. Good job guys, keep it going. Apple is gonna love you even more for putting more money in their pockets. 😂

 

[Maconplasma]

After using them for 10 days, I gotta say I love them! I think I’ve broken them in as well and the pressure that I had in the first couple of days is gone now.
There has not been a single dropout, so people saying that they experience those are most likely trolling and don’t even have the headphones to begin with.
The case is controversial, but I’ll get just a simple 3rd party one for travel. There are already some options available on Amazon. The transparency mode is a killer. I’ve already used it at the airport and on a plane. It’s convenient that you can just press the button and everything sounds as if you didn’t even have them on your head. There’s no need to move or adjust them.
The sound quality is so sweet: very balanced and nuanced. I don’t think I can use anything sounding flatter after using these headphones.
The comments are hysterical though. Keep up the good work! It’s always amusing to read an expert opinion from someone who has not even touched the product LOL

No worries. Keep enjoying them. The hate comments are people trying to lose sales for Apple. Haha. Some people here think they have so much power with their comments. They are 100% powerless. LOL. The majority of hate posts are from people who have never touched a finger on these cans. Their posts are completely irrelevant, null and void. They can't stand to see Apple successful. Also keep in mind there are perhaps more than 50% of people here paid by Apple's competitors to trash these cans because it's Christmas and they don't want to lose headphones sales to Apple.

 

[The Game 161]

no doubt they produce great sound and that ecosystem syncing with all devices but but very expensive. at least 200 more than what I would be willing to spend on headphones.

 

[zoomp]

Solid review. Best of the ANC, or best of the worst.

 

[DocerZ]

Since the launch of the AirPods Max last week, we've done a couple of videos sharing a brief hands-on with Apple's new over-ear headphones and a comparison of them to other popular noise-cancelling headphones from Bose, Sony, and Sennheiser.

Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.​

There's been a lot of debate about whether the AirPods Max are worth their $550 price tag, and value is always going to be something of a personal decision, so in our latest video we decided to look at five reasons why you might think about purchasing the new AirPods Max.

Build/Comfort

For people who are going to spend quite a bit of time using headphones, comfort and build quality are obviously key factors in determining whether they're going to have a good experience with a particular set. Comfort is going to vary from person to person based on head shape, head size, and other factors, but we've found the AirPods Max to be incredibly comfortable.

The mesh ear cups offer a good seal while still allowing for some breathability that helps reduce sweating sometimes experience with other materials like leather. And if your ear cups wear out, the magnetic attachment system of the AirPods Max makes them incredibly easy to swap out.

AirPods Max are made largely of metal, with aluminum ear cups and stainless steel telescoping arms, which gives them a quality feel that is pleasantly cool to the touch. Those metal part do mean, however, that the AirPods Max come in significantly heavier than many competing headphones, which may be an issue for some users. But we've found that the mesh headband does an excellent job of distributing that weight across the head for maximum comfort.

Noise Cancellation

One of the main reasons people buy over-ear headphones is for active noise cancellation (ANC), and we've found that the AirPods Max offer excellent capabilities in that regard. In our experience, it's difficult to hear anything from our surroundings while wearing the AirPods Max with ANC turned on.

You can of course turn off ANC if you want to be able to hear more around you, but there's also Transparency mode which keeps ANC on but pipes surrounding sound in, and we've found that it lets us hear just enough without being too much of a distraction.

Audio Quality

While the AirPods Max won't match high-quality wired headphones, we've been impressed with the sound the AirPods Max can deliver over Bluetooth. The sound profile of the AirPods Max is well-balanced and not overly aggressive toward either the highs or lows.

With H1 chips in each ear cup, the AirPods Max use computational audio to adjust what you're hearing in real-time, customizing it for the fit on your head and other factors. And while we don't recommend turning the volume up too high, we found that sound quality remains solid even at higher volume levels, offering a clear, distortionless sound.

H1 Chip

Speaking of those H1 chips, they deliver more than just good audio quality. They're also the key component that integrates the AirPods Max into the Apple ecosystem. Just like with AirPods and recent Beats headphones, the H1 chip supports easy pairing and seamless audio switching among devices linked to your iCloud account. If you're listening to music from your iPhone and then pick up your iPad to start watching a video, the AirPods Max can automatically switch over to begin playing the audio from your iPad.

This is all customizable, of course, so you can select which devices you want to be able to take over as audio sources automatically, and even if you turn off automatic switching for a device, it takes just a couple of taps to manually switch over.

Spatial Audio

Finally, there's Spatial Audio, a new feature Apple recently rolled out to AirPods Pro and which is also included on AirPods Max. Spatial Audio offers an immersive, 3D audio experience with compatible content, and while we initially thought it would be rather gimmicky, we were quickly proven wrong. It really has to be experienced to be believed, but it makes it feel like the audio is coming from all around you, yet anchored by the device you're watching the content on.

So if you're watching a show on Apple TV+ on your iPad, for example, you'll get a surround-sound experience which is very nice on its own, but then if you turn your head or move your iPad, the audio adjusts on the fly to match the relative orientation of your head and the iPad. It's a remarkably good experience that will make you think your headphones have stopped working and that your iPad is blasting audio out of its own speakers.

Wrap-up

Those are our top five reasons why you might want to invest in AirPods Max. Yes, their $550 price tag can be a bit hard to swallow when competitors are coming in at $350 or less, but if you're heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, the combination of comfort, build quality, and features might be enough to tip the balance in favor of the AirPods Max.

Were you able to get your hands on the AirPods Max before shipping dates slipped well into next year? Have you recently opted for a competing set of headphones after seeing what the AirPods Max had to offer? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.

Article Link: Five Reasons Why You Might Want to Consider AirPods Max

If you can't afford them or are not interested in them...fine. Shut up and move on- they are just not for you.

 

[jimbobb24]

And what would be the response when women wear them?

Probably make a bad wife because she is bad with money.

Was that what you wanted to hear?

 

[Maconplasma]

no doubt they produce great sound and that ecosystem syncing with all devices but but very expensive. at least 200 more than what I would be willing to spend on headphones.

That's rich! This from a person in their signature shows they own an iPhone 12 Pro Max w/256GB, iPad Pro 2020. MacBook Air M1, Watch Series 6, AirPods Pro and an TV 4K which to many people is way overpriced when you can get a lot of the same content and more with a Roku Ultra for half the price and you can add as much external storage as possible.

 

[The Game 161]

That's rich! This from a person in their signature shows they own an iPhone 12 Pro Max w/256GB, iPad Pro 2020. MacBook Air M1, Watch Series 6, AirPods Pro and an TV 4K which to many people is way overpriced when you can get a lot of the same content and more with a Roku Ultra for half the price and you can add as much external storage as possible.

Yes which tells you something does it not?

All those devices I get ALOT of usage out of. headphones? I barely touch my xm3 and I only use them for the gym. So why would I pay £550 for headphones I wouldn't get much usage out of? I got my xm3 for £200 which was a good deal at the time and is still a great deal compared to these.

air pods pro are more practical for work when in the office and for walks. I don't need some beefy headphones certainly not when I'm at home at present.

the use case I would have for these wouldn't apply to me as they aren't suitable for workouts.

I spend ALOT on tech so for me to say these headphones wouldn't be worth my time is correct as they wouldn't. For the right person they likely are but even for somebody who buys alot of apple products and even got the magsafe duo charger but these? will pass.

 

[Maconplasma]

air pods pro are more practical for work when in the office and for walks. I don't need some beefy headphones certainly not when I'm at home at present.

the use case I would have for these wouldn't apply to me as they aren't suitable for workouts.

I spend ALOT on tech so for me to say these headphones wouldn't be worth my time is correct as they wouldn't. For the right person they likely are but even for somebody who buys alot of apple products and even got the magsafe duo charger but these? will pass.

So what is the point of your post? To express an opinion on a product you don't own and have never even touched? There are plenty enough of these types of posts. You're regurgitating what others hating on the product has already said. I'll take the opinion of an actual owner over someone sitting on the sidelines joining the rest of the crowd trashing the product site unseen. SMH.

 

[The Game 161]

So what is the point of your post? To express an opinion on a product you don't own and have never even touched? There are plenty enough these types of posts. You're regurgitating what others hating on the product has already said. I'll take the opinion of an actual owner over someone sitting on the sidelines joining the rest of the crowd trashing the product site unseen. SMH.

because this is a public forum? I can post where I want and state my opinion.

this topic is about reasons why people would buy these and I stated why people would. Suddenly people can't post an opinion? you need to buy these products to state an opinion?

so are you going to reply to every single person in this thread who thinks they are a waste of time?

These are obvious great headphones but most people wouldn't recommend these due to the price mainly due to the fact there are similar sounding headphones for less.

im sure the people who are fine paying these prices will be very happy with these headphones. they tick all the boxes for those in the apple ecosystem. ANC from reviews seem excellent and could argue is the best out there.

 

[Maconplasma]

so are you going to reply to every single person in this thread who thinks they are a waste of time?

Yep, just like you feel there aren't enough hate posts about these cans.

. These are obvious great headphones but most people wouldn't recommend these due to the price mainly due to the fact there are similar sounding headphones for less.

The truth is people who are hating on these cans have chosen to compare them to cheaper products rather than compare them to products in similar price categories like the B&O Play. I know doing so will defeat their argument and yours which is why you and the rest refuse to do so.

 

[The Game 161]

Yep, just like you feel there aren't enough hate posts about these cans.



The truth is people who are hating on these cans have chosen to compare them to cheaper products rather than compare them to products in similar price categories like the B&O Play. I know doing so will defeat their argument and yours which is why you and the rest refuse to do so.

I haven't even hated on these headphones. they are great headphones and will work very well if you have apple products. however for many the price is too high.

I would have no issue buying these headphones if they were in that 200-300 range. The reason I won't at for the current price I simply would not get value for money based on my usage. not point spending £550 on headphones only to get used a couple of times a week or every few weeks if that.

 

[DevNull0]

Ah thanks for this. For a moment there I thought MacRumors decided to give a fair review rather than looking for constant reasons to trash Apple's products. You brought everything back to "normal" now. 🙄👎

You have a very strange definition of fair.

Anyway, these are the first headphones from Apple that I'd actually like to use. But that price...When Bose QC25's (wired) can be had for $130 and QC35's (wireless) for $200, there is just no way these Apple ones are worth $550.

I'm not saying the Bose are better than the Apple product, and they're certainly not the best headphones out there, but when $200 gets you something that good, $550 to "upgrade" to Apple's version just doesn't make any sense.

These Apple headphones are purely a fashion choice. People will spend $800 on a mont blanc pen when a $250 waterman or parker does an objectively better job as a writing instrument. That's also purely a fashion choice.

 

[richard371]

I still get dropouts from time to time and when the happen sometimes several in a row. It seems to only happens when playing with my phone. if I don't touch the phone its ok. My Sonys dont have this issue. Ive reset, repaired etc.

 

[koa]

Literally the 5th time for this “joke”. Do people not read threads before commenting? Such a waste of time wading through the inanity on this forum.

Seriously, no one has to buy these and believe it or not, it is possible to simply ignore their existence and not make useless comments.

You criticize a person for not reading the comments and then say it’s a waste of time to wade though the comments?

 

[UrbanJoe1]

With Apple products, you are paying for design (ie: Apple’s unique spin on existing ideas and implementation). That’s their whole value proposition right there.

EXACTLY! Apple’s (not so) unofficial mantra is “anything you can do Apple can do it better.” And furthermore CEO likes to add ... and NOBODY but Apple could have done it this well. Definitely somewhat arrogant and elitist but they do usually make unusually good products.