AirPods Pro vs. AirPods Max: Which one is better?
The modern technology company, Apple, is internationally recognized for selling products that take the world in a whirlwind. Recently, the product that has taken over are the AirPods Max's. Many say that Apple is infamous for revamping products that to the common person have no need to be fixed. Today, I'll be comparing the AirPods Pro to the AirPods Max and discussing the true differences and deciding if the price increase is worth it.
AirPods Pro (2nd generation) - $249 - https://www.apple.com/airpods-pro/
My experience with the AirPods Pro have been positive for the most part. The small size of the earbuds have served as a great convenience as they are not uncomfortable to wear for long periods of time. The small size contributes to the almost nonexistent weight, making them a breeze to take or store anywhere. The AirPods Pro's come with two modes: Noise Cancellation and Transparency, both of which work wonderfully. The earbud stems act as invisible buttons as well and allow the user to skip, pause, or change the mode of the audio, by using different tapping patterns. One thing that should be noted is the battery life of the AirPod Pro's. After first purchasing, the earbuds would last around 2 days after being fully charged. Now, after passing a year of owning them, they will last about 4-8 hours after being charged... sometimes less. That is a huge inconvenience for anyone like myself who relies on the battery life to last the full day. The noise cancellation was an innovative feature for Apple earbuds, which is why I purchased the AirPod Pros in the first place.
AirPod Max - $549 - https://www.apple.com/airpods-max/
Overall, my experience with the AirPods Max's has been fine. The futuristic spin on retro headphones is aesthetically pleasing, which is something I value. The AirPods Max come in 5 different colors and offer the same audio modes as the AirPods Pro: noise cancellation and transparency. The noise cancellation on these is a lot more powerful, yet causes less damage to the eardrum. After being fully charged, the AirPods Max last around 2 days. The chunkiness of the headphones is a big reason I do not utilize them a lot, and if I do it's not for long periods. They are not the easiest headphone to bring along, especially in the city. At this point, it's only the battery life that keeps these AirPods Max in my possession.
In conclusion, both products share the similarity of noise cancellation. This is an amazing feature that comes in handy in noisy places such as the subway. Initially, both devices have decent battery life, but after a few months the AirPods Pro will begin to die frequently, while the Max's will not. There are only a few drastic differences between the AirPods Pro and Max. The AirPods Max offer 5 different colorways and have more buttons on the actual device. Another important difference that should be noted is that the AirPods Pro can lead to damage in the eardrum, while the Max's prevent that due to the over-ear shape of the speaker. Overall, the AirPods Max are over double the price of the Pro's, and at the end of the day I do not believe it is worth it. There are a handful of great and more inexpensive headphones in the market. If I had to pick between the two for daily usage, it would be the AirPods Pro.
