Apple unveils long-awaited AirPods Max headphones
Apple has just announced its first over-ear headphones with the AirPods Max. With features such as high fidelity audio, an adaptive equalizer, active noise cancellation and spatial audio, it is quite premium and high-end. You can see that in the price: the headphones cost € 629.
AirPods Max
The AirPods Max can be ordered directly from the Apple Store. If you are quick, you will receive it in a week (Tuesday December 15). The headphones combine a retro look with modern elements that we know from Apple’s current products. It is available in five colors: space gray, silver, sky blue, green and pink.
These are the main points:
- High-fidelity Audio
- Active noise cancellation
- Transparency mode
- Spatial audio
- Adaptive EQ
- Colors: space gray, silver, sky blue, green and pink
- Available from today for € 629
The over-ear headphones have a stainless steel frame. The floating headband is made of ventilating mesh and distributes the weight over your head, so that you feel less pressure. Furthermore, the arms are adjustable and they stay exactly how you set them.
Apple calls the ear pads “velvety soft”. They are made of acoustic memory foam that has been developed to isolate sound. A specially developed mesh fabric covers the ear cushions so that they close gently around the ears.
There is a Digital Crown on the ear cushion – we already know this from the Apple Watch. With this you adjust the volume, go to the previous or next song, take phone calls and activate Siri. Direct volume adjustment, in particular, was a common complaint among AirPods tip users, and we’re happy that the AirPods Max can finally do this without asking Siri.
Sound
At € 629, the AirPods Max is considerably on the price and that creates expectations for the audio quality. Apple writes that the AirPods Max are equipped with a speaker driver designed by Apple. It should provide “deep, dark bass, full mids and crystal clear highs”.
Each ear cup is equipped with Apple’s H1 chip for “computational audio” to deliver the “ultimate personalized listening experience.” On the outside, the AirPods Max has no less than six microphones that register the ambient sound. On the inside, two microphones measure what the user hears.
Battery
The battery life of the AirPods Max is 20 hours. You charge it with the Lightning cable that you also use for the iPhone. That goes pretty quickly; after 5 minutes of charging you can go forward 1.5 hours again. The weight is 384 grams, which is relatively heavy for over-ear headphones. It is also 168.6 mm wide and 83.4 mm high.
You buy it now from Apple, but soon also from, for example Coolblue. In addition to the AirPods Max, you also receive a Smart Case and Lightning-to-USB-C cable in the package.