Hands-On With the AirPods Max Shield Case From WaterField Designs

[kerr]

If Apple had made a case like that and included it, people would lose their **** over how big, bulky and un-travelable it is and given Apple **** for that.

Or maybe Apple could have designed the AirPods Max better such that the arms fold properly allowing for a smaller case

Why do you need to turn them off? Do you turn off your phone?

Is your phone always awake?

 

[roland.g]

Having headphones on all the time is GREAT! I am using mine loads because of the simplicity of just putting them on my head with no dumb long button presses etc.. And the battery life I find Is great. Mine just hang on the wall ( not in their weird case ) just naked, next to my Mac and they go thru 10 percent a day maybe with use. NO complaints here at all. I also thing the Waterfield case is rather ugly but premium. Not sure what to do if travelling yet with them though.

One downside to always on with or without low power mode is that they drain and have to be recharged which will result in more frequent power cycles. I’m sure you don’t mind the batteries lifespan getting used up in a $550 pair of headphones. If they are totally fried in 18-30 months....

 

[FHoff]

Sorry, but that case is just hideous.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

As long as a case protects my headphones for when I am travelling I can’t say I care what the case looks like. Admittedly the Apple one looks truly dreadful and cheap, but my main criticism of that is the lack of protection it provides. This case does a much better job .

 

[Freeangel1]

Add $99 to the cost of your $550 dollar headphones and you get $649 dollar headphones.
What a bargain.
$99 just for a case

 

[Edsel]

Fifty-cent solution: Use a pair of old socks and a cheap magnet to protect and power-down.

 

[jacg]

Waterfield products are well designed and produced. Just wish shipping to Canada was cheaper.

Agreed on quality. Shipped to me in Scotland and I never had any regrets.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

One problem I see with the case is that the cans inside the case are not protected from the zipper. It looks to me like the cans are going to get scratched from the case.

Based on my experience with other Waterfield bags such as the Zip Laptop Brief and the Switch Pack, that should not be an issue. They carefully measure things so there should be enough space between the zipper pulls and the AirPods.

 

[Mac Fly (film)]

Here's what's wrong. I said this earlier on Youtube.

WaterField made classic mistake: try please everyone. Forgo bra-purse. Case should hug Max. No room between soft-back zippers and Max, reducing overall diameter. No pockets, reducing bulk. Central area should have soft circular wall to hold headband snug while doubling to provide discrete compartment for charger and cables. Highlight of wasted space and proposed circular/oval velvet wall support location:

 

[Apple_Robert]

Based on my experience with other Waterfield bags such as the Zip Laptop Brief and the Switch Pack, that should not be an issue. They carefully measure things so there should be enough space between the zipper pulls and the AirPods.

Hopefully, I am wrong and no one ends up with scratched cans due to the case.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

Do I care for this particular Waterfield case? Not really. I think its aesthetic is at odds with the design of the object it encloses, but different strokes for different folks, right?

That is one of the key themes with Waterfield Designs. Many of their bags have been described as being “Indiana Jones” themed.

I really like this personally but others may prefer a more modern look. That’s why they offer most of their bags in either waxed canvas (the old world look) or ballistic nylon.

They really nailed the old world look with the Staad Laptop Backpack. Unfortunately it’s no longer in production but they still have other well designed backpacks to choose from such as the Bolt, etc.

 

[AxiomaticRubric]

Hopefully, I am wrong and no one ends up with scratched cans due to the case.

Waterfield’s designers are very attentive to detail, but I can see the potential for scratching if the user doesn’t place the AirPods in the case correctly, or another object pushes an earpiece to one side. I would recommend a bit of care just to be safe.

 

[alee]

Love how everyone's a critic, but nobody tries to make their own. If you think they all suck, don't buy them, and go try and make your own from scratch. Manufacturing and industrial design are not easy.

It's the first of probably hundreds of 3rd party cases to come - nobody said you have to buy any of this stuff.

 

[ninetyCent]

Apple peeps: Always looking for a case for their case for their devices.

 

[Ds6778]

Jesus, can we have a thread for this who only buy 1$ or less accessories? Every time there’s any accessory over like 10$ the Amazon and AliExpress users come out in full force. I’ve never seen such disingenuous comparisons, like, no, your 67 cents case ain’t 99% close to the authentic one.

 

[Herrpod]

You’ve clearly never owned any kind of AirPods then, whether they be original, version 2, Pro, or Max. They all work exactly the same way with the only difference being that the Max has only one battery and the others two. But combined, all of them have similar battery life of 20’ish hours. None of them have an off switch and all of them deplete battery slowly, even when the AirPods read 100% charge when in their case. But that 100% reading fools people into forgetting the case for those older AirPods is depleting its charge roughly at the same rate the Max does. I’ve never heard a single complaint from anyone that the AirPods or AirPods Pro have no off switch. If no one complains for those, why complain about the Max?

The benefit of having AirPods being always on is that they connect instantly (or don’t actually disconnect) and also allow Find My to work. Find My saved my wife’s pair of AirPods Pro. One fell out of her ear in my car and we couldn’t find it. Find My’s alert sound showed us it had fallen into a small hole under the driver’s seat where the power seat plug connected to the car’s power supply. Without Find My, we’d have never found it. As it was, it still took an hour and many scraped away skin layers to extract that AirPod from the tiny hole. That feature saved us a lot of money. The same could happen with the Max if you happen to accidentally leave it behind somewhere or can‘t figure out where you left them in your house. Have you ever forgotten where your phone is? I’ll bet you were happy you could ping it with Find My.

I own two pair of AirPods. They don't need to be always on either. There's no reason for them to be sitting in their case constantly losing battery life. For a company that claims to be green, their decision making when it comes to actually fulfilling that promise is complete and utter BS.

 

[Herrpod]

Jesus, can we have a thread for this who only buy 1$ or less accessories? Every time there’s any accessory over like 10$ the Amazon and AliExpress users come out in full force. I’ve never seen such disingenuous comparisons, like, no, your 67 cents case ain’t 99% close to the authentic one.

I'll put my 9 dollar spigen cases up against any Apple produced "authentic" case any single day of the week.

 

[Jeff Kirvin]

That's a ridiculous comparison. Most TVs continue to display a picture whether someone is watching or not. AirPods Max do not continue to play music after they are removed from your head.

Might as well have asked if he turns off his car after parking it.

In point of fact I don’t turn off my TV. When I’m done I go back to the Apple TV Home Screen and walk away. The screen saver kicks in shortly thereafter and in another five minutes or so my Samsung TV goes into “ultra low power mode.”

None of this is new.

 

[Jeff Kirvin]

It’s a completely equal comparison. They should go to the lowest power setting possible, OFF. Just like your TV, on when you need it, off when you don’t. It shouldn’t be a timed out 2-stage process.

If your TV is completely off, how does it know when the IR remote wants it to power up? Because it’s never OFF. Just waiting. Same as the AirPods Max.

 

[Jeff Kirvin]

I hope I am not the only one who only found out about these headphones like 2 weeks ago and thinks they are utterly overpriced!

Then please refrain from buying them. I love mine, think they are worth every penny and bought a second set for my wife. To each their own.

 

[Ken88]

Fifty-cent solution: Use a pair of old socks and a cheap magnet to protect and power-down.

I got a better idea and it’s actually FREE, we’ll sort of, remember the box that came with APM you can use it as protective case..Since you already paid for the box, why not use it rather throwing away or on the corner of your room. Yes, it’s a bit inconvenience to take out and put in but saving is ALWAYS a good idea.

 

[SAIRUS]

I get helping the company out, but one can find cheaper options on Amazon for AirPods Max,

 

[Toratek]

“Always on” just about guarantees death of the batteries within three years. Unacceptable.

 

[SAIRUS]

“Always on” just about guarantees death of the batteries within three years. Unacceptable.

Somewhere the board members don’t mind this.

 

[LeonPro]

Do you turn off your TV?

Do you carry your TV around like your portable devices that are convenient to be always on? Let us know what case or strap you use and show us a pic on your self.