Introduction and unboxing
It’s been exactly three years since Apple introduced the AirPods Pro and looking at their successors, it’s obvious that Apple hasn’t gotten tired of the design.
But don’t be fooled – almost everything has improved on the inside and Apple will have yet another winner on their hands.
Compared to 2019, 2022 has a much more saturated and loud TWS market, and the AirPods Pro 2’s ability to actively suppress sound is no longer enough to stand out. Strong offerings from Apple’s famous rivals in the smartphone world, as well as audio bases, mean the AirPods Pro 2 have to work hard to earn their place.
On the other hand, for the many people who have invested heavily in the Apple ecosystem they will only see three alternatives to the € 299 / $ 249 / INR 26,900 AirPods Pro 2: the € 159 / $ 129 / INR 14,900 AirPods 2. 209 / $ 169 / AirPods 3 from INR 19,900 and AirPods Max from € 629 / $ 549 / INR 59,900. This makes the AirPods Pro 2 the cheapest Apple headphones with active noise cancellation, which is an instant win.
The new case, comparison with AirPods Pro
Let’s open these.
The AirPods Pro 2 come with a USB-C to Lightning cable, XS/ S / M / L silicone earphones and the earphones themselves, in their case.
The MagSafe Charging Case is new this year. Got a speaker to play Find Mine doorbells, as well as a metal ring for a lanyard, eliminating one of the main reasons people buy AirPods cases.
But the cycle isn’t just there to ruin third-party retailers’ profits. Cleverly, it serves as an antenna for the Find My service.
You can charge the AirPods Pro 2 using a MagSafe charger, Apple Watch charger, or any standard Qi charger. The outdated Lightning port is the wired option for charging on the new AirPods Pro 2.
The AirPods Pro 2 are almost the same as the original, early rumors indicated that the shorter stems would never materialize. It’s not universally negative, as buyers of the original model will feel confident that these will fit just as well as the old ones.
The new AirPods Pro 2 introduce the smaller XS size, which will help those who find the S size too large. As the earbuds fit older models, this gives the owners of those earbuds another size option.
An almost unchanged design
The only real change on the AirPods themselves is the new skin detection sensor that replaced the old ear sensor. It can distinguish between the ear and any other surface, so the earbuds won’t automatically start ringing when placed on a table or in a pocket – a very welcome change.
The stems of the AirPods Pro 2 have a new swipe feature, in addition to the old pressure and pressure. So now you can swipe on the stem column to adjust the volume – a single swipe up or down allows you to toggle the correction of a step in the respective direction.
You can press with two fingers on the stem to play / pause, while a long press will toggle between Active Noise Cancellation and Adaptive Transparency.
New AirPods Pro 2 on the left, AirPods Pro on the right
Find My has been enhanced with AirPods Pro 2. The case supports precision search, enabled by the U1 chip, and you can play a sound to help you locate the buds more easily. Chance also rings.
There is also a detailed battery indicator, which will give you the reading of the case’s battery and each of the two gems.
Find my battery directions
Sound quality, active noise cancellation, spatial audio, battery life
Okay, let’s get the most important thing out of the way: the AirPods Pro 2 sound great and are vastly improved over their predecessors.
The original AirPods Pro were a big step up from the open AirPods. They had better noise isolation thanks to the in-ear design, which also gave them better bass characteristics. The original pros had a large soundstage with pronounced voices and acute instrument reproduction. Yet their sound was muddled in the middle and became tinny and shrill at higher volumes. Their upper midrange lacked presence, while the sub-bass wasn’t very impressive.
The AirPods Pro 2 address each of these problems. For starters, the soundstage is just as wide but clearer – the sound is more dynamic, so it fills in the gaps that left the old pair with a messy, mellow sound. The upper midrange has more presence and on the other hand there are more sub-basses. And AirPods Pro 2 can turn up the volume without sacrificing sound quality.
So improvements across the board. If you use AirPods Pro daily and are considering Pro 2 for their sound, you will hear a noticeable improvement.
Ditto for Active Noise Cancellation and Adaptive Transparency mode. Starting with ANC, the first thing you’ll notice is the lack of whirring white noise on quiet backgrounds. This is low-level background noise, which on the original Pros can be heard and felt as a kind of pressure in the ear when you’re not hearing anything. It is inaudible on AirPods Pro 2 and there is no pressure.
The new earphones have better sound insulation. Apple claims a 2-fold improvement but we wouldn’t go that far. It’s better: Constant sounds with the same cadence rate as a motor or fan are filtered out more effectively than before. However, there are better options out there like Sony’s WF-1000XM4 and, subjectively, the much cheaper Samsung Galaxy Buds2.
Then there is the Adaptive Transparency mode. Allows for outside noise but attenuates harsh sounds such as honking or street work. Basically it allows you to listen to music or a podcast / audiobook while staying safe outdoors. You can also have a conversation with someone without the need to remove the buds.
However, don’t expect Adaptive Transparency to look like you’re walking with no tops, it doesn’t.
Active noise cancellation
Spatial audio is great. It’s Apple’s peak, simulating the surround sound you’ll get if you’re sitting in the middle of a large, high-end speaker setup. There are two settings: Fixed increases sound quality without a tangible surround sound experience, while Head Tracked is truly magical. Best used while seated, this mode simulates surround sound based on head movement. Turn left and the right “speaker” will gradually fade away. It feels real and adds a whole new level to your favorite music.
Samsung and others try to simulate the same functionality but cannot match Apple’s implementation expertise.
Spatial audio
The AirPods Pro 2 have two beamforming microphones and one inward-facing microphone, which combine to deliver a good calling experience. People on the other end of the line reported that we sounded almost as good as through a telephone.
Battery life is excellent on AirPods Pro 2. We have nearly 6 and a half hours of phone calls and 6 hours and 20 minutes of music playback with ANC on, both at 50% volume. For context, the older AirPods Pro got 4 and a half hours of playback, while the AirPods 3 offer the same 6 hours of listening and 4 and a half hours of talk time as the Pros.
Wrap
That’s it, the AirPods Pro 2 are great. They sound much better than previous Pros, have significantly better battery life, and excellent active noise cancellation. They’re also better in every way than the open AirPods 3 – more noise isolation, ANC versus no ANC, better bass, wider soundstage, etc.
But really, what did you expect? It is only natural that Apple made the new AirPod Pros superior to their predecessors by three years.
The question of whether to buy the new AirPods Pro 2 or not is also quite easy to answer: if you have the original Pros, getting the new ones will bring a plethora of improvements. This is further amplified if you have an AirPods 2 or 1. Grab the AirPods Pro 2, you won’t regret it.
If you own AirPods 3, the question is more difficult. Upgrade to AirPods Pro 2 if you need active noise cancellation, otherwise keep your existing earbuds.
This will appeal to virtually everyone in the Apple ecosystem. On the other hand, there are few reasons to choose Apple’s AirPods Pro 2 if you are an Android user. You’ll pay a premium on most TWS options on the market and miss out on most of the AirPods Pro 2 benefits outside of iOS: no spatial audio, no Find My support, not even automatic ear detection (seriously, Apple! ?).
These are the absolute best earphones to buy for the iPhone. They are also very good on their own. But the reality is that the AirPods Pro 2 are far from the best buds around. There are better sounding options and definitely a better deal out there.
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