Verdict
The AirPods Pro 2 are a fantastic upgrade and easily some of the good wireless earbuds I have ever test – even when the high cost is take into account .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
Apple ’s AirPods Pro 2 rest the make ’s top - end set of ANC - toting earbuds , even though the noise - cancelling technical school is now available elsewhere in the range . Are these the buds still to get ?
Apple has n’t fully updated the AirPods Pro 2 in a couple of years , aside from switching out the old Lightning character for a USB - C version , and we do expect the AirPods Pro 3 to drop sometime soon , perhaps alongside theiPhone 17 Airlater this year .
So , are these still Apple ’s sound bud , or are you better off saving some hard currency and proceed with theAirPods 4 with ANCor another readiness of thebest wireless earbuds ?
Design
Glance down at the AirPods Pro 2 and you ’d be forgive for thinking they looked exactly the same as the originalAirPods ProApple liberate in 2019 . Apple has n’t deviated too much from the blueprint it built before , so they ’re still a stark white dark-skinned pair of earbuds that magnetically slot into an every bit stark white charging event .
The case charges via Lightning or USB - C depending on when you purchased the bud or which one you choose with a small light-emitting diode light on the front .
There are a twosome of notable differences to take in . For one , there ’s now a lanyard loop topology on the side for attaching a wrist strap . Apple does n’t offer one , or else partnering with Incase to betray through its stores . It ’s a nice touch for confiscate the AirPods Pro 2 firmly to a pocketbook , though it was n’t something I was crying out for with the late example .
An add-on I get hold far more appealing is the loudspeaker system on the case ’s underside . This does n’t turn the case into some sort ofBluetooth verbalizer , instead it ’s there for legion alert . A profound pings when the AirPods connect or when they ’re charged . I find the audible feedback here ready to hand , though you’re able to wrick it off if you like .
Arguably more useful is the phone that can be played from the discover My app if the small slip is misplaced down the back of the couch or inside a random pair of jeans . In a calendar week of using these bud , I ’ve already used this trick legion prison term and I just wish Apple had added something similar to theApple TVremote .
toss the case receptive and the AirPods Pro 2 have a slightly different sensor and mike arrangement but they ’re essentially the same as the former edition .
Apple has double down on the stem , allow a swipe up or down to moderate the loudness . While it ’s nice to be able to lower the intensity without draw out a phone or asking for Siri , I receive the motion fussy and very particular about when they worked .
One slight change that ’ll be a dandy boon for anyone who constitute the original AirPods Pro too big is the raw XS tip sizing that joins the standard S , M and L options . I ’ve always discover the default M tips work best for my ear – and the admit pinna tip fit test tells me the same – but suffer more choice is always great for the consumer . Though mayhap an XL option would be apprise next time .
Both the case and the bud areIPX4rated , giving protection from lather ( or some rainwater ) if you ’re working out . If you get an etching on the case it ’ll show up in the animations in Io too . How cute .
Features
Before I delve into the melioration to the overall sound quality with the AirPods Pro 2 , it ’s worth looking at the huge number of cunning features that are at play here – at least if you ’re match them with an iPhone .
An embedded U1 microprocessor chip feed the AirPods Pro 2AirTag - similar skill , permit an iPhone to precisely locate the case down to 0.1 ft . The bud also seem across all your iOS and macOS devices as presently as they ’re relate to a gimmick , and you’re able to quickly connect to multiple iOS machine at once with the sound moving between them depending on what ’s acting .
Apple has been throw out all the numbers in regards to theANCperformance here , claiming the AirPods Pro 2 have twice the amount of noise cancelling power as before , able-bodied to reduce background sound 48000 times a second . I ’ve never been a rooter of marketing blurb and these numbers mean nothing if the performance does n’t back them up – although gratefully it very much does .
I ’ve been survey the AirPods Pro 2 alongside various competing buds such as thePixel Buds Pro , Samsung ’s very good – Galaxy Buds Pro 3and Sony’sWF-1000 XM5 . I always enjoyed the ANC on the first AirPods Pro , though the pair seemed to get less in effect with every software update . The competition also catch good , notably from Bose and Sony . After spending a week with the AirPods Pro 2 they have shoot to the top of my favourite ANC buds list .
I spend a band of the solar day convert to and from an office , crammed into a loud London Underground carriage . Then there are loud authority , building work outside my flat and the general noise of a big city like London . In all these situation the ANC brook out , altering slightly depend on the environs and always ramping up when I need it to .
On a tube train , for instance , this is the only duad I ’ve tried that manages to almost completely overwhelm out the rattling and in high spirits - frequency noises . The XM5 get along closelipped , but the AirPods Pro 2 just get rid of an redundant chemical element that the Sony manikin ca n’t .
You do n’t have much direct ascendancy over the ANC , though . There are no modality to tweak – it ’s either on , off or in Transparency musical mode . The transparency is improved too , piping through a very realistic rendition of the outside world . I opine some the great unwashed would favour manual tier of ANC , and that ’s not an option here .
bombardment animation is just if not category - contribute . Apple exact six hours of commission for the buds ( ANC on ) and that matches up with my tests . I ’d even say you could get more than that if you ’re listening to audiobooks or podcasts . The case furnish a aggregate of 30 hours of rush , so around four extra bang .
That case supports Apple’sMagSafechargers , traditional Qi radio set charging and it can even be charge via an Apple Watch charger . The quick way to bill is via a wired method acting , but it ’s still nice to have alternative .
Apple first released the AirPods Pro 2 with a Lightning case , however alongside the iPhone 15 this was update to USB - C. Some outlets , Amazon for example , sell both versions whereas Apple sharpen entirely on the USB - C duad . you may also buy the USB - C case separately if you have antecedently picked up the Lightning version .
Connectivity is howling as you ’d expect from AirPods . Walking through a surge hour Waterloo , the sound did n’t cut out at all and there was no pestering crackling – something I experienced a lot with the Galaxy Buds Pro 2 and Google Pixel Buds Pro . I ’ve only fix praise for the microphones too , which pick up my voice fantastically well in calls .
Sound Quality
Powering the AirPods Pro 2 is Apple ’s H2 chipset which includes a bevvy of customs drivers and amplifiers . The H2 power all the skill of these bud and it helps for some really fantastic sound . They ’re a cleared improvement over the original .
I noticed the first meter I put the AirPods Pro 2 in my ears just how much the pellucidity of vocals had better . Alex Turner ’s crooning in Arctic Monkey ’s There ’d Better Be A Mirrorball drink down even more than on the Sony WF-1000XM4 , with every word clear , detailed and the arrangement overstretch me in .
It ’s a alike story listening to London Grammar ’s Lord It ’s a intuitive feeling . Here the softer vocals show the adaptability of these buds , letting the instrument stick out on their own and the vocals fall .
The AirPods Pro 2 manage bass excellently , both Kendrick Lamar ’s Alright and Billie Eilish ’s Bad Guy rumble my ears just the right amount without the bassline overtake the residue of the vocal . Eilish ’s whispering vocals still shine through , something that is n’t always the case with earbuds like these .
I found that I was n’t pumping the intensity up as much as was doing with the first AirPods Pro , mean torture was far less frequent .
Spatial Audio is a skill possessed by many AirPods now , and , for me , it remains very hit or miss . Find a song that ’s been right mixed for theDolby Atmos360 - degree tech and it ’s eye - opening – find something that has n’t , and it sounds like you ’re listening to a song from a speaker on the other side of the elbow room .
Wet Leg ’s Wet Dream usesSpatial Audiowell , tot up far more breakup between the differ vocals and giving everything an superfluous tier of deepness . The organs at the start of George Michael ’s Faith sound full and grander with the addition of Spatial Audio and the strings plain off Here come the Sun are more immersive .
For me , Dolby Atmos and Spatial Audio are still better utilise in moving-picture show and boob tube show . look on an episode of Andor on Disney Plus , the atmospheric soundtrack really assist to create an immersive experience .
Even though Apple push Lossless audio through itsALACformat in Apple Music , the AirPods Pro 2 , like theAirPods Maxonly use theAACformat .
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Should you buy it?
The ANC here is large , especially for cutting out the whirring of trains and subway system . Considering the size of the buds , it ’s telling how much noise can be ignore out and how smartly it adapts to the environment .
The AirPods Pro 2 still sound corking on Android phones , but features like seamless switching between machine , the ear backsheesh test and the corresponding are all missing .
Final Thoughts
The sound quality is rich and warm , with a encompassing soundstage and just the ripe amount of bass part . The surplus clarity add to vocals is welcome too .
These buds are so just in other area too . The ANC performance is top - pass , the unseamed connectivity with iOS remain the best around and the slip has picked up a dyad of utile thaumaturgy . Even though the AirPods 4 now pack ANC , the Pros are still thebest AirPods .
While the close ties to the iOS and macOS ecosystem make the AirPods Pro 2 a hard sell forAndroidusers , if you ’re aniPhoneuser these are thebest wireless earbudsavailable .
Trusted Score
How we test
We essay all the earpiece we review thoroughly over an lengthened period of meter . We use diligence - received tests to compare features by rights . We ’ll always tell you what we find . We never , ever , accept money to review a product .
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FAQs
They work with anything that supports Bluetooth , however some feature – including quick pairing – will be missing .
The AirPods Pro 2 backing Bluetooth v5.3
Full Specs
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