AirPods Max 2 review: High-end adds modern features at last

After a five-year wait, AirPods Max 2 have officially arrived. They aren’t a dramatic rethink of the product or the form factor, but they bring some much-needed modernization courtesy of the new H2 chip inside.

I’ve been wearing AirPods Max for the last 6 days, here’s what I think.

What hasn’t changed

Before diving into what has changed with AirPods Max 2, it’s important to first highlight what hasn’t changed.

First and foremost, the design of AirPods Max 2 is identical to their predecessors. The weight and dimensions have not changed:

• Height: 7.37 inches (187.3 mm)
• Width: 6.64 inches (168.6 mm)
• Depth: 3.28 inches (83.4 mm)
• Weight: 13.6 ounces (386.2 grams)

Personally, I have used AirPods Max almost every day since they were released in December 2020, for multiple hours most days. I’ll be the first to admit, I have a big head and perhaps that is why their weight doesn’t bother me as much as it does other people.

From a visual perspective, I think AirPods Max are gorgeous. The aluminum ear cups blend in seamlessly with the broader Apple ecosystem, and the stainless steel arms feel premium and make it easy to adjust the size and fit of AirPods Max 2.

One thing is blatantly clear, though: if you didn’t like how the original AirPods Max fit, then you won’t like these. There are no changes at all in response to common criticisms of things like the weight and size.

The one aspect of the AirPods Max that I don’t like, however, is that they can’t be folded up, unlike virtually every other pair of over-ear headphones. This means they take up an astronomical amount of space in your backpack. I’ve literally been on planes where AirPods Max are the sole thing making my backpack too big to fit under the seat in front of me.

AirPods Max, instead, are meant to be put in their “Smart Case” when not in use, which puts them into an “ultra-low-power-state.” Technically, this is fine. The Smart Case technically protects the aluminum ear cups and it technically preserves battery life.

In real-world use, though, I wish AirPods Max had a more flexible design that could enable a better case and better backpack storage.

AirPods Max 2 feature the same interactivity mechanisms with the Digital Crown and top button. Connectivity is also unchanged with a USB-C port, but no 3.5mm audio jack. You can, however, listen to 24-bit, 48 kHz lossless audio when connected with the included USB-C cable.

As someone coming from the original version of AirPods Max, finally being able to ditch the Lightning cable is a big bonus in my book.

AirPods Max 2: What’s new?

There are three key hardware changes inside AirPods Max:

• The H2 chip replaces the H1 chip
• A new high dynamic range amplifier
• A new 5GHz wireless chip for improved wireless audio latency

Apple says that the H2 chip paired with “new computational audio algorithms” means AirPods Max 2 offer “up to 1.5x more effective” Active Noise Cancellation.

I think this is an incredibly hard feature to quantifier, but I’ve found ANC to be noticeably better on AirPods Max 2 than on my original version. Is it “1.5x more effective” than before? I have no idea, but when I wear AirPods Max 2 they absolutely block out more noise than their predecessor.

For example, I had some landscaping work done on my house last week. While wearing my original AirPods Max, I could still clearly hear the hum of the equipment while it was running. AirPods Max 2, meanwhile, did a much better job at blocking out almost all of it.

I’m looking forward to trying AirPods Max 2 on my next flight. I’ve always felt the original version doesn’t do a very good job blocking out the constant hum of the plane engine. On my more recent flights, in fact, I think AirPods Pro 3 have done a better job than AirPods Max. Hopefully, that won’t be the case with AirPods Max 2.

Interestingly, though, I think the jump in ANC from AirPods Max 1 with H1 to AirPods Max 2 with H2 is not as big as the jump from AirPods Pro 1 with H1 to AirPods Pro with H2. My guess is that this is due to the inherent differences in the passive noise cancellation provided by the in-ear design of AirPods Pro vs the over-ear design of AirPods Max.

Because of the H2 chip, AirPods Max 2 also offer a bunch of new features compared to their predecessors:

• Adaptive Audio adjusts the levels of ANC and Transparency in response to the environment automatically to optimize the audio experience.
• Conversation Awareness helps lower content volume and reduce background noise when a user starts speaking to someone nearby.
• Live Translation, powered by Apple Intelligence, helps users communicate across languages in person.
• Voice Isolation uses advanced computational audio powered by H2 to prioritize the voice during calls, while blocking out ambient noise.
• Camera remote: Users can capture content at a distance by pressing the Digital Crown to take a photo and start or stop video recording while using the Camera app or compatible third-party camera apps on iPhone or iPad..
• Studio-quality audio recording allows interviewers, podcasters, singers, and other creators to record their content with higher-quality audio and more natural vocal texture.
• Loud Sound Reduction helps users prevent exposure to loud environmental noise while preserving the sound signature of what they’re listening to.
• Personalized Volume automatically fine-tunes the listening experience for users based on their preferences over time.
• Siri Interactions allow users to conveniently and privately respond to Siri announcements by simply nodding their head yes or gently shaking their head no.

All of these features will be familiar to you if you’ve used AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3. This, however, is the first time they’ve come to the over-ear AirPods Max.

Adaptive Audio is the feature I really missed when I’d use my original AirPods Max instead of my AirPods Pro 3. The feature intelligently adjusts the levels of ANC and Transparency based on your surrounding environment. Finally having this feature is one of the biggest upgrades I’ve noticed using AirPods Max 2 over the last week.

The H2 also brings general performance and reliability improvements to AirPods Max 2. They are quicker to connect and switch audio between devices, overall connection stability is better, Siri interactions are faster, and more.

Finally, the new high dynamic range amplifier, meanwhile, powers what Apple says is “even cleaner audio while maintaining the incredible sound signature of AirPods Max.”

I notice a slight improvement in audio quality on certain tracks, particularly hearing more of a distinct space between the different layers of a song. It was specifically noticeable at the low-end. Ultimately, though, it is far from a major change. I wouldn’t recommend buying AirPods Max 2 on the promise of improved sound quality alone — but AirPods Max already offered fantastic sound anyways.

9to5Mac’s Take

As someone who wears AirPods Max everyday, I’m pleased with this AirPods Max 2 revision. Much like the Mac Pro, I think Apple needed to make a decision to either properly update AirPods Max or to discontinue them. To continue selling them at $549 with the same H1 chip that debuted in 2019 was a black eye on the otherwise stellar AirPods lineup.

What we got with AirPods Max 2 doesn’t reinvent the wheel. It doesn’t even address the biggest criticisms of the product, like design, comfort, and price.

For that reason, AirPods Max 2 won’t convince anyone who didn’t like the original version to update. If you’ve been on the fence, though, they are a better product now than they were last week. And if you were holding off, hoping that AirPods Max 2 might be a dramatic redesign — now you know you should shop elsewhere.

I also now feel comfortable recommending them to people, so long as those people like the design and are willing to spend the money on a premium pair of over-ear headphones. Prior to this update, I simply couldn’t recommend anyone buy a $549 pair of headphones with a 2019 chip inside.

For me, however, AirPods Max 2 are excellent and this is a meaningful update. With better ANC, Adaptive Audio support, and the general quality-of-life improvements offered by the H2 chip, AirPods Max 2 tick a lot of the long-overdue update boxes.

AirPods Max 2 are available to order now for $529 on Amazon, with the first deliveries arriving this week. If you’ve decided AirPods Max aren’t for you, AirPods Pro 3 are also on sale for $199 right now.

Follow Chance: Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, and Mastodon.