Do you want the best headset? 
Whenever you hear that a new product is being released by Apple, people generally take notice. In particular, Apple evangelists. But even if you don't consider yourself to be one, a lot of people still have a healthy curiosity about new Apple products.
One of the reasons why interest and curiosity exists on new Apple releases comes down to the quality of their products, and innovative features, not to mention it being an iconic brand. That alone garners attention whenever a new product launches.
In this blog, I’m going to do a review on the new Apple Airpods Max, and provide you with a video review that gives you examples of how these headphones sound when confronted with background noise.
You can decide for yourself how the Apple Airpods Max sounds, and whether it's good enough to use on your important calls or meetings.
Read Or Watch, Your Choice
A lot of us would rather watch a video rather than read a blog. If that sounds like you, then watch our review video below that provides a product overview and sound quality tests.
So many makes and models of headsets are coming into the market with almost alarming speed. How do you sort through them all and decide which is best for you? The first thing is you need to determine what your needs are, and then eliminate those that don’t meet those needs.
The Apple Airpods Max is designed for work and play. And though you can use these for business calls, I'd argue that its ideal environment is more aligned with entertainment rather than business.
Let’s take a look at what makes the Apple Airpods Max a compelling choice, and where it may be lacking.
What Makes These Headphones Appealing?
Design
As with other Apple products, the Airpods Max are designed elegantly, and with attention to detail that you’d expect in an Apple device. It’s easy to see that Apple used high quality materials on the outside, but according to the specifications, it's easy to see they didn’t skimp on the inside as well.
The Airpods Max have a clean, almost minimalist design that screams Apple when you see it.
Nice appointments abound including the unique mesh canopy headband, smooth telescoping action on the earcups, which can be adjusted individually, and of course the overall look and feel makes it easy to tell it's an Apple product.
So, from a visual, and first impression perspective, the Apple Airpods Max scores well in the area of design as one would expect.
Listening Experience
The Apple Airpods Max provides you with a truly immersive experience when watching movies or listening to your favorite music. The Airpods Max is utilizes technology specifically designed to minimize distortion across the entire audio spectrum.
The result is crisp highs, warm mid-ranges, and a very pleasing low end bass. Easily, this is one of The strongest qualities in the Airpods Max.
Comfort
The Apple Airpods Max were designed to be comfortable, and they are comfortable to wear though the weight of these headphones can cause discomfort if they're worn for and extended period of time.
The unique knit mesh wrapped around the steel frame headband, gives you a gentle rebound when worn over the head. This is a unique design that you don't find on other headsets and is far better when compared to other headsets that have a steel or hard plastic headband that can become uncomfortable when worn for longer periods of time.
Another comfort feature Is the mesh textile wrapped memory foam ear cushions. Not only do these cushions wrap around the ear, versus being up against them, they form an acoustical seal that passively helps to reduce unwanted background noise. In The end, you hear better while being treated to a very soft wearing experience.
Where Do The Apple Airpods Max Fall Short?
Weight
Though these headphones are designed well, and geared to be comfortable, they are a bit on the heavy side at 13.6 ounces. To date, this is one of the heaviest wireless headsets we've tested. And when it comes to headsets and weight, lighter is typically better.
The Apple Airpods Max weigh about the same as a can of soup while other headsets are compared to the weight of several sheets of paper.
The Airpods Max shouldn't be your first choice if long term wearing comfort is high on your list. It's fine for shorter stretches, but compared to other available headset choices, it's not the most comfortable during prolonged use.
Battery Life
The stated battery life on the Apple Airpods Max is 20 hours. When compared to other premium business headsets, it's a bit less. For example, the Yealink HA64 Pro has a battery that provides up to 26 hours of talk time, and the Jabra Evolve3 85 offers 25.
While 20 hours is passable, it falls short for a premium product, especially when compared to many other models that provide greater battery life. It is nice though that the Airpods Max gives you 1.5 hours of listening time when placed on the charger for a short 5 minutes.
Charging Limitation
The Apple Airpods Max can only be used as a wireless headset. If the battery is dead, you cannot use the headset while it’s recharging. Some premium brands like the EPOS Impact 1000, or Yealink HA64 Pro allow you to plug in the included USB charging cable and use the headset while the battery is being refreshed. In my view, that puts the Apple Airpods Max at a disadvantage when other, more versatile options exist.
Not The Best For Business Calls
I think most would agree that the Apple Airpods Max headphones are primarily targeted for media use rather than business applications.
Though these headphones can be used for Softphone and video conferencing calls, the audio quality, in my opinion, is lacking when compared to other options, For example, the EPOS Impact 1000 delivers exceptional call clarity, making it an ideal, and better choice for business environments where audio quality is paramount.
To me, the Apple Airpods Max don't provide the level of call quality that you need when making important business calls. For personal calls and business calls without background noise, it may be fine. But, when there are other well-known business grade headset options available that deliver superior sound quality, why settle?
In all fairness though, Apple doesn't promote the Airpods Max as a go-to product for business calls.
Game Changer
If you're determined to use Airpod Max headphones on your calls in spite of the shortcomings, here's a recommendation that can help level the audio playing field.
neep ai noise canceling software. Funny name, but all business. neep is an affordable software application that removes background noise so your callers aren't distracted by what's going on around you. But, neep takes noise reduction to another level, because it removes noise on both ends of the call. That's something no headset can do!
Besides removing unwanted background noise, neep also learns your voice, enhances it, and then isolates it from other voices, and noise. That helps you to come across loud, clear and consistently professional. neep works with any audio device, including Airpods Max, to deliver a better audio experience for both parties.
To learn more about neep, or to request your free trial, go to neep.com
More Max Features
- Siri voice prompting
- Active Noise Cancellation for a more secluded listening experience
- Transparency mode for hearing your surroundings with the headphones on
- Digital Crown to control volume, tracks, access phone calls, and activate Siri
The bottom line is the new Apple Airpods Max are a quality pair of headphones that will serve your needs well for music and movies and other forms of entertainment.
Though you can use these headphones for calls successfully, they don’t perform as well as other headphones. So whether these headphones are worth the $549.00 comes down to your degree of faithfulness to the brand and your specific needs.
For some, it may not come down to needs because if it’s an Apple product, they simply want it. But, for others, matching the right product to the need will no doubt play a larger role in the decision process.
Final Thoughts
Are the new Apple Airpods Max worth the $549.00 price tag? That’s a question only you can answer. Some Apple evangelists would pay even more because they simply love Apple products. So, if you’re a brand loyalist, then you may feel the Airpods Max are worth the money.
For everyone else, I think it really comes down to your needs and environment.
- Do you want a new pair of headphones mostly for media?
- Do you want them for business calls?
- Do you want them for both business and entertainment?
- Do you have loud background noise?
- Are you frequently on very long calls or video meetings?
If your need is mostly for entertainment with a sprinkliing of business calls, but you don't have much noise going on around you, then the Airpods Max may be a good fit.
On the other hand, if you said you want a new headset for your office phone and video calls with periodic music, podcasts etc., and you deal with background noise, then I’d say you may want to consider a different model. The business space isn’t where Apple headphones shine, and because of that, your better options lie elsewhere. The alternative, as mentioned earlier, is to pair neep ai noise canceling software with the Apple Airpods Max, which may serve your business needs just fine.
The Apple Airpods are truly stylish, well designed and manufactured, minimalistic in their look, and quality in their feel. They’ll blow you away when listening to music and your favorite movies, and you even have the choice of several colors; Silver, Gray, Blue, Pink and Green. That alone is unique when compared to other brands that generally come in one color only.
The Smart Case, to some, might appear to be gimmicky as it doesn’t fit the mold of other headset case designs. Though it looks different, it does have a secondary purpose besides protecting the ear speakers.
Once the headset is placed into the case, the Airpods Max enter into an ultra-low power state which in turn helps to preserve the battery life. Outside of the case, the battery would drain at a faster rate. So in a sense, it's a smart case.
Do I Like The Apple Airpods Max? Absolutely!
Would I personally choose them as my main, go to product for my daily business needs? Absolutely not. In my particular case, I use headphones mostly for business purposes, and secondarily for casual listening.
With that in mind, the Apple Airpods Max wouldn’t fit my needs the best. Whether we’re talking about an Apple product or not, and brand loyalty aside, it should always come down to matching a product to your particular needs. And, if that solution costs $549.00, then so be it.
Have Questions Or Need Some Help?
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