Apple’s AirPods Max came out 5 years ago. Feeling old? I do, but maybe that’s because, as my doctor explained, I’m deficient in vitamin D. Me being old doesn’t help, but, hey, who cares? (I, I count.) Enough of the deafening roar of my death; let’s talk AirPods Max.
When Apple’s AirPods Max was launched for the first time five years ago on December 15, 2020, it marked a big step for the company. Sure, it’s been releasing AirPods since 2016, but AirPods Max was its first pair of wireless headphones (besides Beats) that set expectations for sound quality and an unprecedented weight in your bag along with it. In true Apple fashion, the sealed cans are priced at $549, the most expensive of any AirPods product to date and more than half of what you’d buy for the brand new iPhone 17. I’ll give you a guess as to what it costs now. If you guessed $549, congratulations, because the price hasn’t changed at all.
To be fair, Apple updated AirPods Max last year, adding USB-C (thank God) and lossless audio support. It also added a few new colors. But I think we can all agree, no matter what a game-changer being able to charge your headphones via USB-C is, a major update this wasn’t.
See AirPods Max at Amazon
It’s amazing to think that Apple could still sell the 5-year-old AirPods Max for $549 in the mature year of 2025, but if you put on a pair right now, I think most would agree: overpriced or not, they’re still standing. Thanks to the size and form factor of wireless headphones, AirPods Max brought several important features of AirPods to the next level. One of those features is active noise cancellation (ANC). AirPods Max, like other wireless headphones, are good at noise cancellation, which is due to a few things.
Another reason is the software. In AirPods Max, Apple has included its own H1 chip, which was originally introduced in Apple’s second-generation AirPods wireless earbuds. The H1 brought more advanced “computer audio” to the party, which is Apple’s way of saying better algorithms for ANC and other features. Computing is only part of the picture, however; on top of the H1, there’s also the fact that the AirPods Max are, well, headphones, which means they have noise cancellation, which means the ear cups make a better seal in your ear. That makes all that high-tech computer audio sound (or technically no sound) much better than in their wireless earbuds.
The introduction of AirPods Max and the over-ear factor also opened the door to strengthening another important aspect: transparency. While plenty of wireless headphones and earbuds have obvious ways to hear your surroundings without removing the headphones, Apple’s AirPods Max often get top marks. The truth is, Apple’s transparency feels much better—less artificial, smaller, and often more understated than competitors. Part of that, too, is thanks to the Apple H1 chip and a bevy of high-quality mics in the headphones. AirPods Max’s clarity doesn’t just translate to your surroundings; it also allows you to hear your voice naturally, which is a big part of having an organic conversation.
Like ANC, it is not just H1 that does all the work; it’s just the fact that AirPods Max don’t require you to stick a piece of silicone in your ear. The same can be said for any wireless headphones, obviously, but it’s Apple’s acumen in software and hardware that brings it all home. Good, it can even make the $549 price tag sound a little less outrageous.
As iconic as AirPods Max are (boy, do I see a lot of adventures on the New York City subway), they’re in a weird place in terms of where they might come from next. In theory, the next generation could bring a few things—more battery life, for example. While 20 hours on a single charge isn’t bad, there are plenty of wireless headphones that beat Apple in that department. Nothing’s Headphone 1, for example, gets 35 hours with ANC on, while Bose’s QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen) get 30 hours. again Hit the AirPods Max in the noise canceling department to get started.
The introduction of the Apple H2 chip may help with that, bringing more power efficiency and potentially better ANC and sound quality, but after several years (and counting) without a sequel, will that be enough to justify the number next to the AirPods Max name? On the audio front, Apple seems to be more ambitious than ever. Its AirPods Pro 3, which also took a significant break between numbered generations, improved on the basics (sound quality and ANC), but added boundary-pushing features such as heart rate monitoring and live translation to the mix. Will Apple’s AirPods Max 2 feel the same desire to up the ante? My guess is yes, especially at a price like that.
AirPods may not see a significant update until 2026 (which is consistent with my previous prediction that IR-camera-equipped AirPods will enter mass production in 2026). A lighter version of AirPods Max is expected to enter mass production in 2027.
AirPods may be available until 2026
— 郭明錤 (Ming-Chi Kuo) (@mingchikuo) May 18, 2025
AirPods Max 2 is still the stuff of speculation, but some of the most reliable voices in the Apple rumor mill (Mark Gurman of Bloomberg and supply chain analyst Ming Chi-Kuo) both see 2027 as the final release date, marking all 7 years between possible generations. That’s a long time to wait for the new AirPods Max, but if there’s one thing the AirPods Pro 3 showed us, it’s that we don’t always need a yearly iteration to feel satisfied. Plus, that gives you a few years of savings. If there’s one thing AirPods Max proves, it’s that Apple’s iconic status symbol doesn’t come cheap.
See AirPods Max at Amazon
