Over the previous couple of years, Apple has gone from promoting one AirPods mannequin to 4. You’ll be able to at the moment purchase the 2nd-gen AirPods, Third-gen AirPods, and 2nd-gen AirPods Professional with USB-C, and the AirPods Max over-the-ear headphones.
Let’s set that final possibility apart for a second. If you happen to’re prepared to spend $500 or extra on a pair of cans, you’re making a complete totally different shopping for choice than if you would like true wi-fi earbuds. You may like to check out our round-up of the very best over-ear headphones the place we examine the AirPods Max to the competitors.
However that also leaves three comparatively similar-seeming earbuds to select from. So which is best for you?
AirPods and AirPods Professional options in contrast
Right here is how the three in-ear AirPods stack up side-by-side. Word there are two variations of the Third gen AirPods as indicated, one has a MagSafe charging case the opposite doesn’t cost wirelessly.
| AirPods (2nd gen) | AirPods (Third gen) | AirPods Professional (2nd gen) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $129/£129 | Lightning mannequin: $169/£169 MagSafe mannequin: $179/£179 |
$249/£229 |
| Weight (earbuds) | 0.14 oz (4 grams) | 0.15 oz (4.3 grams) | 0.19 oz (5.3 grams) |
| Weight (case) | 1.35 oz (38 grams) | 1.34 oz (38 grams) | 1.79 oz (50.8 grams) |
| Battery Life | 5 hrs + 19 from case | 6 hrs + 24 from case | 6 hrs + 24 from case |
| Charging | Lightning charging case, no wi-fi charging | Wirelessly cost with MagSafe. The cheaper Lightning mannequin doesn’t cost wirelessly | Wirelessly cost with MagSafe. 2023 2nd-gen mannequin gives USB-C, 2021 2nd-gen mannequin featured Lightning |
| Noise-cancellation | No | No | Sure |
| Dialog Consciousness | No | No | Sure |
| Spatial Audio | No | Customized Spatial Audio with head monitoring | Customized Spatial Audio with head monitoring |
| Controls | Faucet on earbuds | Pressure sensor on stem | Pressure sensor on stem, swipe on stem |
| Water/sweat-resistant | No | Sure (IPX4) | Sure (IPX4 Lightning mannequin, IP54 in USB C mannequin included mud resistance) |
AirPods and AirPods Professional design
The obvious distinction between the three fashions is their design. The 2nd-gen AirPods have the unique design from 2016, with lengthy white stems and earbuds that resemble the wired earpods that used to return with iPhones, simply with out the wire.
The newer Third-generation AirPods have shorter stems and a extra bulbous, rounded earpiece. Regardless of the shorter stems, they very comparable in weight to the older AirPods. The charging case appears to be like similar to that of the AirPods Professional–shorter and wider.
The AirPods Professional take the short-stem design and provides rubberized eartips to the earbuds, to create extra of a seal that blocks out noise and improves sound high quality.
Irrespective of which AirPods you select, you possibly can solely get them in shiny white.
AirPods and AirPods Professional noise cancelling
That is the place the AirPods Professional distinguish themselves, and is the only function almost definitely to get you to decide on them over the Third-gen AirPods. Not solely do the rubberized suggestions assist block out extra outdoors noise, the energetic noise cancelling provides you an actual sense of a extra personal listening house.
Whereas we’re at it, we should always point out that solely the AirPods Professional help the Dialog Enhance accessibility function.
AirPods and AirPods Professional Spatial Audio and sound high quality
All AirPods help Dolby Atmos spatial audio in Apple Music. Actually, you possibly can power it on for any pair of headphones. However spatial audio for video within the TV and different supported apps, with head monitoring, will not be supported on the 2nd-generation AirPods. You want the Third-generation or the AirPods Professional to try this.
The Third-gen AirPods have higher sound than the 2nd-gen in different methods, too. Apple has a brand new redesigned low-distortion driver that it says delivers higher sound high quality, and so they help Adaptive EQ just like the AirPods Professional. AirPods Professional (2nd-gen) sound considerably higher than common AirPods, even with out energetic noise canceling. The 2nd-generation model, launched in September 2022 (and up to date with USB-C in September 2023), provided a giant step up in sound high quality over the unique AirPods Professional.
AirPods and AirPods Professional options and controls
You management the 2nd-gen AirPods by tapping on them, whereas the Third-gen AirPods and AirPods Professional have just a little cutout space on the stem that’s delicate to stress. Squeeze the stem (there’s a fake “click on” sensation) to play/pause, skip ahead, again, or summon Siri. The AirPods Professional can even detect a swipe up or down alongside the stem to alter quantity (that’s new within the 2nd-gen mannequin). All AirPods fashions help hands-free “Hey Siri” management.
Each AirPods Professional and Third-gen AirPods are water- and sweat-resistant, and possibly higher suited to figuring out, although you wouldn’t wish to dunk any of them within the pool. The 2nd-gen AirPods don’t have any water resistance.
The Third-gen AirPods help expanded Discover My help for monitoring down misplaced earbuds and setting separation alerts. The AirPods Professional, because the launch of the 2nd-gen model, even have a speaker on the charging case to play a loud tone when utilizing Discover My, and have the U1 chip so you possibly can guided on to them. The Third-gen AirPods and AirPods Professional additionally help Announce Notifications, which lets Siri dictate necessary messages and alerts as they arrive.
Foundry
AirPods and AirPods Professional battery life
The 2nd-gen AirPods final 5 hours, and you’ll cost roughly 4 occasions with the charging case for a complete of 24 hours of listening time.
The Third-gen AirPods and AirPods Professional lengthen that listening time by an hour for six hours of listening time, and with 4 extra expenses within the case, you get a complete of 30 hours. With AirPods Professional, turning noise canceling off will add about an hour of listening time. Examine how one can lengthen AirPods battery life.
AirPods and AirPods Professional wi-fi charging
Apple solely sells the 2nd-generation AirPods with a wired case, however you should purchase a wi-fi charging case for $79 / £79 individually. There’s a cheaper model of the Third-gen AirPods that doesn’t supply wi-fi charging, that mannequin, which is $10/£10 cheaper, ships with a case for charging by way of Lightning.
The Third-gen AirPods with MagSafe and AirPods Professional include a wi-fi cost case that allows you to cost any Qi wi-fi charger, or Apple’s MagSafe wi-fi charging.
You may as well use the case to cost the Third-gen AirPods by way of Lightning and the AirPods Professional by way of USB-C (an older mannequin provided Lightning).
You’ll be able to cost the AirPods Professional utilizing your Apple Watch charger, and, when you’ve got an iPhone 15-series cellphone you possibly can cost your AirPods Professional by plugging the cable into the USB-C port in your iPhone.
Apple
Conclusion
Every of the three AirPods fashions Apple gives are very totally different. If you happen to don’t care about wi-fi charging, the 2nd-gen AirPods is an honest purchase. They gained’t sound fairly nearly as good or final fairly so long as the Third-gen AirPods, however they’re a great inexpensive possibility.
If wi-fi charging issues, positively get the Third-gen AirPods, since shopping for the charging case with the 2nd-gen AirPods will really price greater than the Third-gen AirPods.
The AirPods Professional had been up to date to a second-gen mannequin in September 2022 and once more in September 2023 (after they gained USB-C help), and whereas they price much more than the usual AirPods, they provide a lot better sound high quality and distinctive options like energetic noise canceling, adaptive transparency, and dialog enhance.
We predict the Third-gen AirPods are the very best purchase for many. They’re technically cheaper than the 2nd-gen AirPods with a wi-fi charging case and include a slew of recent options. They’ve higher battery life and sound higher than the older mannequin.
The second-generation AirPods Professional are clearly the superior selection, however you’ll pay greater than 40% extra for them. If noise canceling issues to you, it’s price the additional expense.
For extra recommendation about the entire vary of Apple’s AirPods, together with the Max, Professional and the usual AirPods fashions learn: Greatest AirPods – Which AirPods are greatest? and New AirPods 2023: What to anticipate from the next-gen AirPods.
