Best earbuds on the market. Hands-down.
The ‘magic’ of Apple announcements has sort of been lacking lately for me. Maybe it’s due to all of the leaks and rumors that come out weeks and months beforehand, but hey, it is what it is. Even though I saw the images and leaks of the new AirPods Pro, I really felt the magic when they dropped on Apple’s website. In fact, it’s the first time since the first Apple Watch was released that I have been super excited to place an order.
DETAILS & FEATURES
The AirPods Pro are the next generation wireless earphones offered by Apple. They join the 1st and 2nd generation AirPods as part of that product family. The AirPods Pro feature Active Noise Cancellation and immersive sound with a brand new design.
“AirPods are the best-selling headphones in the world. The one-tap setup experience, incredible sound and iconic design have made them a beloved Apple product, and with AirPods Pro, we’re taking the magic even further,” said Phil Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.
The AirPods Pro come with three different sizes of soft, flexible silicone ear tips that conform to the contours of each individual ear. The ear tips play a critical part in the earbuds being able to deliver immersive sound. In addition to the ear tips and shorter, lighter design, the AirPods Pro also feature a vent system, which acts to equalize pressure and therefore, minimizes discomfort. The AirPods Pro are sweat and water resistant and they have up to three and a half hours of talk time on a single charge. Paired with its charging case, the AirPods Pro deliver more than 24 hours of listening time (or 18 hours talk time). The charging case is Qi-certified for wireless charging. Users also have the option to charge using a Lighting cable.
Additional Features
- The Ear Tip Fit Test helps ensure users get the best audio experience from AirPods Pro by testing the quality of the seal and identifying the best ear tip size for them. After placing AirPods Pro in each ear, advanced algorithms work together with the microphones in each AirPod to measure the sound level in the ear and compare it to what is coming from the speaker driver. In just seconds, the algorithm detects whether the ear tip is the right size and has a good fit, or should be adjusted to create a better seal.
- Voice-activated Siri uses the H1 chip to enable hands-free “Hey Siri” to play a song, increase the volume, make a call or get directions.
- Audio Sharing makes it easy to listen to the same song or watch the same movie with a friend by simply bringing a second pair of AirPods close to iPhone or iPad.
- Announce Messages automatically and conveniently speaks incoming messages as soon as they arrive, and when on a phone call or sharing media via Audio Sharing, Siri knows not to interrupt.
USER IMPRESSIONS
To be completely honest, I was shocked at how excited I actually got about the AirPods Pro. After the love-hate relationship I’ve had with the first generation AirPods, I didn’t think I would get hyped about a next-generation model of that device. I happen to be one of those people who have trouble with the original AirPods staying in my ears. Because of this, I rarely used my AirPods. I loved how they were designed to work with all my Apple devices, but I hated how they fit — or rather didn’t fit — in my ears. Not only would the AirPods fall out of my ears, but they would also cause my ears to become sore due to how I would try to force them to fit. I was constantly fighting with them and as much as I despised them, I wanted to love them. It was a weird feeling to have about an Apple product.
Apparently, I was not the only Apple fan who had this ‘fit’ problem since the AirPods Pro earbuds now have a silicon tip included. Apple also changed the design by making the shaft of the AirPods Pro shorter and adjusted the earpiece so that it’s curved, which helps the earbuds to fit inside my ears comfortably. One of the innovative features that really make these noise-canceling earbuds better than other earbuds in the market (including the original AirPods) is the venting feature that helps to “equalize pressure, you feel like there’s nothing in your ears.” With other in-ear headphones, I feel pressure to the point where I could feel my heartbeat in my ears along with my breathing. In-ear headphones have a suction-effect that cuts off the sound, similar to the way a noise-canceling feature works, but it’s not true noise-canceling. The AirPods Pro headphones have real noise-canceling without that vacuum effect.
The packaging is standard for Apple and inside the box, you will find the AirPods Pro, small and medium ear gels, a USB-C to Lightning cable, and a small quick start guide. I’m glad to see that a specialized cable was provided, but wish that Apple would have gone ahead and made the AirPods Pro USB-C instead of Lightning. There were no Apple stickers included in my box so that was disappointing, but the quality of the AirPods Pro makes up for the lack of stickers.
The touch controls from the first-generation AirPods have been replaced by a click-based control on the stem of the AirPods Pro. These controls are customizable. I have my right stem set to activate Siri and my left stem set to switch from Noise cancellation mode to transparency mode.
CONCLUSION
Even though I’ve only had a little over 24 hours of use with these amazing headphones, I can tell you they are so much better than the first-generation version of the AirPods. I fell in love with them quickly and think that the AirPods Pro are what the original AirPods should have been from the beginning. The sound is amazing and the headphones work with all my Apple products without any issues. Even though the price is extravagant ($249), it’s actually in-line with other premium wireless earbuds I’ve seen. I can recommend these — wholeheartedly.
