I tried Air Pods Max 2, and they're an upgrade worth waiting five years for — it’s the smarter, more immersive listening experience that stands out | Tech Radar

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I tried Air Pods Max 2, and they're an upgrade worth waiting five years for — it’s the smarter, more immersive listening experience that stands out

H2 chip, Adaptive Audio, and improved ANC are the highlights

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It’s been a long five years of waiting, but Apple has finally unveiled the Air Pods Max 2. In a similar surprise drop to the original Air Pods Max, there was no event for the second version — just a press release announcing the Air Pods Max 2, with shipping beginning in "early April".

Ahead of their launch, I’ve spent a few days putting Air Pods Max 2 through their paces — while the images above and below might have you thinking I'm wearing the Air Pods Max (or the USB-C refresh), these are, indeed, the new model.

The Air Pods Max 2 retain the look that's become a modern icon (just look at how many knock-offs are around for evidence), but under the hood they use Apple's most up-to-date H2 chip to power their features, plus a new high dynamic range amplifier modeled on the one in Air Pods Pro 3. That's paired with 40mm drivers in each earcup.

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The biggest upgrades come in the form of the new features enabled by the H2 chip, with Adaptive Audio, Personalized Volume, and improved Voice Isolation making the move from Apple's earbuds over to its headphones.

Maybe most importantly, Apple is sticking with the

The premium design is the same — aluminum earcups, stainless steel frame, and that satisfying heft — and still feels thoughtfully engineered. The telescoping arms glide smoothly, making it easy to find a comfortable fit.

The headband — or “canopy” as Apple calls it — still uses a breathable mesh that distributes weight well without creating pressure points. The memory foam ear cushions remain plush, and I appreciate that they’re magnetically attached for easy swapping.

Plenty of folks wear their Air Pods Max for walks or even workouts, but it’s worth noting there’s still no official sweat resistance here.

The controls are unchanged, and that’s mostly a good thing. You get a supersized Digital Crown for volume and playback control, alongside the 'Listening Mode button' to toggle between Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency, and Adaptive Audio.

One slight letdown is that there are no new colors. Apple is sticking with the same five introduced with the USB-C refresh — Blue, Orange, Purple, Midnight, and Starlight. My test sample is Blue, which feels a bit more muted than the equivalent color original Air Pods Max came, in but still looks sharp.

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The Smart Case is also unchanged. It still doesn’t look especially protective, but in my experience with the first-generation it does protect the premium headphones well. It also triggers the low-power sleep mode when the headphones are inside. A USB-C to USB-C cable comes in the box.

So visually, not much has changed — but the differences become clear once you start listening.

Bold sound with a wider soundstage, and Spatial Audio still impresses

Just like the previous generation, the Air Pods Max 2 sound excellent across pretty much any genre, and Spatial Audio only raises the bar here. The soundstage feels wider, and each element comes through with impressive clarity and separation.

Creedence Clearwater Revival’s Down On the Corner is a great example — maracas sit distinctly to one side, cymbals and drums to the other, with John Fogerty’s vocals locked-in center stage. Even as the track fills out, it never feels crowded — it’s a personal favorite of mine for testing Spatial Audio.

Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen absolutely springs to life. The Air Pods Max 2 deliver that signature wave of sound with real energy, but crucially without losing detail. You can still pick out the drums, piano, and guitar as they build, and even the final crescendo — in which the elements can blur together on lesser headphones — stays defined and driving.

For a pop track, Miley Cyrus’ Younger You is a strong test for higher-frequency vocals. The Air Pods Max 2 present a detailed, slightly brighter profile, with vocals sitting cleanly front and center before the instrumentation builds around them.

Pretty much any genre sounds great here — and more importantly, everything sounds consistent.

Noise cancellation is improved as well — Apple claims it's up to 1.5x better — and I could hear a difference over the (still impressive) original model. Loud sounds are reduced even further, whether it’s city noise, a crowded cafe, or the hum of an air conditioning system.

It’s not dramatically different at first, but over time you notice just how much quieter your environment becomes. I even tried simulating airplane noise on my speakers at home, and Air Pods Max 2 brought it down to a low, manageable hum.

The Air Pods Max 2's Transparency mode remains among the best, and now sounds slightly more natural. You don't get the artificial hiss you sometimes hear on other headphones, and it does a convincing job of letting the outside world in.

That sets the stage for Adaptive Audio, which blends active noise cancellation and Transparency modes into one smarter option, and it's really the standout addition here. Instead of manually switching modes, Adaptive Audio dynamically balances noise cancellation and audio pass-through in real time.

I wore the Air Pods Max 2 out to grab coffee, and they blocked out most background noise while letting in nearby voices just enough to let me stay aware. It feels less like you're toggling settings, and more like the headphones are actively adjusting to your environment. In my testing, Adaptive Audio performs just as well here as it does on the Air Pods Pro.

After a quick setup — I just had to hold the Air Pods Max 2 near my i Phone — they quickly paired with my Apple Account. From there, it was seamless hopping between devices: i Phone for music and calls, Mac Book Pro for meetings, i Pad for streaming, then over to Apple TV 4K for late-night watching.

That fast switching feels faster than the old model — nearly instant at times — likely thanks to the H2 chip. It’s a small but meaningful upgrade that makes the whole experience feel more fluid.

Call quality also gets a noticeable boost. Voice Isolation, powered by the H2 chip and working across your connected devices — like an i Phone or Mac — does a better job of keeping your voice clear while reducing background noise. In testing, it made a clear difference, especially in busier environments.

Battery life is unchanged on paper at up to 20 hour. I was able to get through a full workday of meetings, calls, and music or podcast playback, then keep the Air Pods Max 2 on for a few TV episodes at night — or while walking the dog — before needing to recharge. Of course, we’ll need to put the Max 2 through more long-term testing.

The Air Pods Max 2 might look nearly identical to their predecessor, but after spending a few days with them it’s clear this is the update they needed. The H2 chip unlocks meaningful improvements across sound, noise control, and everyday usability, while Adaptive Audio helps them feel noticeably smarter.

And given Apple’s track record of adding features to Air Pods with newer chips, there’s a good chance the Max 2 will continue to evolve over time — just as we’ve seen with Adaptive Audio and other software-driven upgrades like Hearing Health on the Air Pods Pro.

If you’ve held onto your original Air Pods Max since the launch in 2020, I think the new model makes a strong case for upgrading — especially if you’ve been waiting for better noise control and smarter features. And if you’re jumping in fresh, these are some of the best over-ear headphones I've heard, now with a feature set that better matches the high price.

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Jacob Krol is the US Managing Editor, News for Tech Radar. He’s been writing about technology since he was 14 when he started his own tech blog. Since then Jacob has worked for a plethora of publications including CNN Underscored, The Street, Parade, Men’s Journal, Mashable, CNET, and CNBC among others.

He specializes in covering companies like Apple, Samsung, and Google and going hands-on with mobile devices, smart home gadgets, TVs, and wearables. In his spare time, you can find Jacob listening to Bruce Springsteen, building a Lego set, or binge-watching the latest from Disney, Marvel, or Star Wars.

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• I tried Air Pods Max 2, and they're an upgrade worth waiting five years for — it’s the smarter, more immersive listening experience that stands out