This year, Apple has been actively engaged in the development of fully wireless headphones, first introducing the second generation of AirPods, and later the first Beats model in this form factor – Powerbeats Pro. But this was decided not to stop in Cupertino, and by the New Year sales season they released completely new AirPods Pro headphones, which received an active noise reduction system. Let’s see what the new product has to offer users.

AirPods Pro Package Contents

Like previous AirPods models, the novelty comes in a cardboard box, inside of which, in addition to the headphones themselves, you can find a charging case, two additional sizes of silicone tips, as well as a cable from USB Type-C to Lightning.

The latter, finally, will allow you to charge your headphones from the new MacBook without using an adapter.

Design and Charging Case

New headphones at Apple were developed without much regard for the first and second-generation AirPods, so apparently the Pro version has little in common with them.

This is not surprising, the company needed to accommodate more electronics in a compact case and at the same time change the form factor from the in-ear to the in-ear headphones. Therefore, the AirPods Pro uses a different form of housing, they are larger and now with silicone nozzles.

In addition, the length of the “legs” has changed, into which the body of the emitters smoothly flows, they have become shorter and now look neater. And against the background of the mass of clones of the original AirPods, they also visually highlight a new product.

As before, the headphones are available only in white, which is diluted with larger microphone holes covered with a black mesh.

A big innovation in AirPods Pro is the protection against sweat and water (IPX 4), which allows you to play sports in them. In general, these are Apple’s second fully wireless headphones after Powerbeats Pro, which are waterproof.

Along with the design of the new AirPods, the charging case has also changed; it has become noticeably wider (60.6 mm), but shorter in height (45.2 mm). Its weight has remained quite light and amounts to 45.6 grams.

At the same time, the design of the case has not changed, in the upper part of the case, there is a hinged lid that hides the holes for installing the headphones for charging.

On the back of the case is a button that you need to press to pair the headphones, on the front, LED indicator, and from the bottom, you can find the Lightning connector.

Ease of Use of AirPods Pro

To ensure a comfortable fit for the headphones, Apple used a slightly elongated body with a tight-fitting silicone nozzle.

The weight of one earphone is only 5.4 grams, and it is almost not felt in the auricle. But only if you choose the silicone tips correctly, otherwise a deeper fit can begin to cause discomfort during prolonged use, or the headphones will more likely miss external sounds and simply fall out of your ear. Apple even added a special test to the Bluetooth settings, which allows you to determine whether the AirPods Pro is firmly seated in the auricle.

Thanks to a deeper fit, the “legs” of the headphones no longer touch the body, they are no longer needed in order to support the emitter body. Now they are used, in fact, so as not to further increase the size of the case, and to accommodate a part of the electronics, as well as small panels with pressure sensors for control. The latter allows you to pause playback, switch tracks and enable the transparency mode when the headphones begin to specifically pass external sound through the built-in microphones so that the user can hear what is happening around. Management is implemented much more conveniently than in AirPods of the first and second generation, where it works through an accelerometer and tapping on the body.

In general, AirPods Pro are quite well fixed in the auricle and due to the in-ear fit, they will better stick in the ears of those users who, due to physiological characteristics, could not use conventional AirPods. But in any case, before buying, it is better to try headphones on your own to make sure the choice is correct.

Features and noise reduction

At the heart of AirPods Pro is the same system on the Apple H1 chip that AirPods in the second generation. It is responsible for the operation of all headphone systems from transmitting sound to calling Siri’s voice assistant. Actually, with its help, the headphones are connected via the Bluetooth 5.0 protocol and minimal delays are provided during sound playback. And here it is worth paying tribute to Apple, AirPods Pro is very stable in touch and quickly switch between different devices.

Headphones are also equipped with dual directional microphones, internal microphones, optical sensors, accelerometers and touch sensors.

Traditionally for AirPods, the new model is best sharpened for working with iOS devices. You can see the battery charge level in the operating system interface, enable or disable the noise reduction system and activate the transparency mode. However, AirPodsPro also works well with Android smartphones, allowing you to use the capabilities of the headphones to the maximum, the only thing is that you can switch between working modes only from them yourself, through a touch sensor on one of the “legs”. But this is not a big problem, considering that the management was well implemented.

One of the important innovations in AirPods Pro, in comparison with other headphones of the company, is active noise reduction, which works on the basis of a system from an external and internal microphone. The first one tracks external sounds, after which the H1 chip analyzes data in real-time, adapting the sound 200 times per second, and at the right time creates an anti-noise that damps external noise. The second microphone is directed into the auricle and thanks to it the H1 chip can hear what the user hears and cut off the remaining noise.

In real use, headphones do not remove 100% of external sounds, the noise canceler in them does not try to compete with full-size models. But as for compact and fully wireless in-ear headphones, it works well. For example, a user in the subway will remotely hear the noise of an arriving train, but he will not block the sound of music. If you need to hear what is happening around, then just grab the control panel on the “leg” of one of the headphones and hold it a little, so the “transparency” mode is turned on.

Sound AirPods Pro

AirPods Pro sound different from other models of AirPods, Apple has developed for them a new driver with a wide amplitude and an amplifier with an extended dynamic range. In practice, they sound really better, although first of all this is achieved due to a denser fit and active noise reduction, they allow you to hear more details that eat external sounds in the in-ear headphones.

But besides this, AirPods Pro has a larger volume margin than other AirPods, they create a wider scene and give more bass. The sound is almost always equal, with an easy allocation of high frequencies. Apparently, Apple relied on universal sound and they did it. However, they do not reach the sound of Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless or Sony WF-1000XM3, so the Pro prefix in the name is more an attempt to highlight the headphones against other AirPods than a hint of professional use. But in general, the sound for this form factor in AirPods Pro is not outstanding, but good and the difference for users of the first and second generation of Apple headphones will be noticeable. So the company in this regard falls directly into the top ten.

Audio Sharing

With the most recent version of iOS or iPadOS, you and a friend can listen to audio from your iPhone or iPad using AirPods or Beats wireless headphones.

Apple Support

Apple is offering complete assistance to AirPods consumers.
Do you have access to the AirPods Support website, which contains all of the information you need to maximize the usage of your AirPods.

Autonomy and charging

Apple traditionally does not disclose the detailed characteristics of its devices and AirPods Pro in this regard is no exception. But as it became known thanks to the disassembly of iFixit, each earphone is equipped with a 168 milliwatt-hour battery, which works at 3.7 Volts, which is about 45.4 mAh. According to the manufacturer, this is enough for 4.5 hours of listening to music with active noise reduction, and this is true.

Inside the case, the headphones are charged using magnetic connectors, and only 5 minutes of charging provides about an hour of audio playback.

The case has a built-in AirPod battery life with a capacity of 519 mAh, and it supports wireless charging according to the Qi standard. But it is also possible to recharge it by wire through the Lightning port.