A year ago I and in the end, I chose AirPods for convenience, although they do not produce the best sound. In November 2019, Apple updated them, or rather, made a “fork” by releasing AirPods Pro earplugs. And I, of course, tested them - I go with them from the start of sales in Russia. In short, the difference of 7,5 thousand rubles between the basic version and the “firmware” is worth it: the noise reduction is fire, the operating time is not worse, and the sound is better.
What is the difference in specs?
I'll answer with a sign.
AirPods 2
AirPods Pro
Color
white
Wired interface
lightning
Quick connection
only for iOS and iPadOS
Total operating time
~30 hours
~28 hours
From one charge
~5,5 hours
~5 hours
Charging from the case
4,5
4,5
fast charging
10 min. → ~1 hour of work
5 min. → ~1,5 hour of work
Wireless charging case
optional (+ 3,5 thousand ₽)
Yes
Cable included
USB Type-A → Lightning
USB Type-C → Lightning
Touch control
touching
touch + hold
Bluetooth
4.h
5.0
Noise suppression
no
active
Water protection
no
IPx4 (rain but not shower)
Headphone weight (in grams)
4
5,4
Case weight (in grams)
38
45,6
Official price (₽)
with normal case
with wireless case
Most importantly: what about noise cancellation?
Very cool even against the background of any headphones with active noise reduction: - earplugs with a snug fit or overhead. Compared to standard AirPods, these are generally space. You press the button, the speakers say "stump!", and you find yourself in a vacuum.
AirPods Pro have a different noise cancellation than most of the competition. At first, everything is as usual: the microphone picks up the noise from the outside, and the reverse sound wave compensates for it. But further on, another microphone directed inside the ear does a sort of fine tuning, and the rest of the noise is suppressed once again.
An example from life. It is impossible to listen to podcasts on the subway in regular AirPods. In the "proshki" - quite, and even the volume does not need to be twisted. Street noise is not audible in principle, background music is almost completely cut off in the Pro store, and in transport the rumble, although distinguishable, is very quiet.
Passive noise cancellation, perhaps, at the level of any other "plugs". Only I see no reason not to turn on the active one, because. it does not noticeably affect the operating time. Although you can still completely disable this feature in the settings: so that neither the noise reduction nor the transparency mode work.
A nice bonus is a valve that relieves excess air pressure between the membrane and the earpiece. Usually my ears “itch” from this, but I haven’t noticed in these yet.
What is transparent mode?
This feature was made in contrast to noise reduction - in this mode, sounds from the outside reach the eardrums not through silicone inserts, but through a microphone and a headphone speaker. The upper and middle frequencies are even slightly amplified. It turns out that the headphones can not be removed. But if the music is turned on, it still clogs all the sounds from the outside - it will not work without pausing it.
And, by the way, in the "proshki" you hear your voice not like from under the water, but as if there are no headphones. They say that Apple worked on this on purpose, setting up microphones.
Sound cooler than regular AirPods?
Generally speaking, yes. To my ear, the Pro is cooler, but the difference with regular AirPods is not that big. The main difference is the presence of silicone inserts and "closeness". The nature of the sound changes because of this.
It also seems that the lower frequencies are twisted a little, but otherwise - the same smooth sound as before. That is, these are headphones “for any kind of music” - they will play everything equally well. And behind the "ears" specifically for drama or classical music - this is to other producers.
How does the automatic equalizer behave?
At the presentation, they said that the sound in this model adjusts 200 times per second, depending on the situation outside. If you don't listen carefully, you won't notice the difference at all. But, according to my observations, AirPods Pro, with noise reduction turned on and loud sounds around, stick out the middle frequencies a little - so that you can hear better. Noticeable not only on music, but also on podcasts, for example. Actually, it is not surprising - we perceive the frequencies of 800–3000 Hz better, and human speech is in the same range.
Falling out or not?
Here, as with ordinary necessarily need to try. Some people fall out, some don't. But the proportion of those who do not keep AirPods Pro in their ears, of course, has become smaller. The kit comes with three pairs of silicone ear tips of different sizes: M is already put on the headphones, and S and L are intricately packaged, as Apple knows how to do.
Separately, it is interesting how fitting will take place in offline Apple Stores. Standard AirPods are sanitized after every fitting, at least in the UK. And silicone nozzles, in theory, are easier to replace as a whole, but whether this is so is not yet clear.
In addition to purely subjective sensations, the fit can be checked programmatically. To do this, in the Bluetooth settings, you need to click on AirPods Pro and select the appropriate item there and click on the Play button - music will play for a few seconds, after which the headphones will issue a verdict on the nozzles. M fit me the first time, and two months later, no matter what size of the ear pads I chose, the “perfect fit” could not be achieved. Although subjectively nothing has changed in two months.
Perfect option
Not ideal option
The attachment of the ear pads is unusual - much wider than the standard one. And they do not gently wrap around the base of the headphones, but noticeably snap into place with a denser, almost solid base in the grooves. At first, the mount seems flimsy, but if you pull on the nozzle, on the contrary, it becomes scary to tear it off with meat - it sits so tightly.
Is the new management convenient?
Previously, you could simply touch the outside of the earpiece and switch the track or pause. Now the control has been transferred to the legs. At the same time, the legs became shorter, and the vibration sensors were replaced with pressure sensors. It is not necessary much, but it is to squeeze the ends of the “prosh” so that they understand what you want from them. The first two or three days it was uncomfortable, and I missed, and then I learned to grab the leg the first time, and it became quite ok - no worse than before.
It is on this flat area that you need to click
- Briefly squeeze once - pause the track or vice versa start it.
- Twice, next song.
- Three times the previous one.
- Long press to switch between transparent mode and noise reduction. If necessary, in the settings you can add a third state, when both are disabled. Then the modes will switch cyclically.
All this, of course, can be controlled from the phone. Tracks switch - as usual, and transparency and noise reduction are hidden in the volume slider. By long pressing it, three corresponding buttons appear.
Does the case still fit in the watch pocket?
Yeah. But there is a nuance: now it only fits in tight across, and when along, it dangles there more freely than we would like. Be careful, my case fell out on the floor at home a couple of times when I put my jeans on the shelf.
Case AirPods Pro: left - across, right - along
On the left is a case from regular AirPods, on the right is from Pro
Are microphones getting better?
I will answer by recording the same passage on AirPods, AirPods Pro and iPhone 11 Pro - decide for yourself. I think it's a little better.
What comes in the kit?
The package is spartan, as before: a charging cable and two pairs of additional ear pads. It is curious that the connector is of the Type-C → Lightning type, but there is no actual charger.
That is, it is assumed that you either have a Qi pad for wireless charging, or have the latest iPhone with the right adapter in the kit, or one of the latest MacBooks. Another option is to take a standard USB → Lightning cable.
So how much does a network adapter for a Type-C → Lightning cable cost?
- In the official Apple store, branded chargers with Type-C "mother" are not sold, as for the latest iPhones. But there are, for example, in Citylink for 2620 ₽.
- On Ya.Market there is something Chinese called Baseus Bojure Series Type-C Baseus Bojure Series Type-C, for 775 ₽.
- If you want to use wireless charging, then Xiaomi sells these from 875 ₽.
- The last option is the classic USB Type-A → Lightning cable. Most likely you will find it somewhere in the bins. And if not, then the branded one costs 1820 ₽. On the Internet, you can find it for at least 890 ₽, and an analogue - generally from 30 ₽.
What about autonomy?
Headphones work in total for more than a day - as before. But still, the operating time has decreased a little, probably due to active noise cancellation. Classic AirPods I kept for 30 hours, and these could only 28. At the same time, the operating time from a single charge decreased by about half an hour, although this is not subjectively noticeable. Plus, Apple has worked on fast charging and now the headphones have five minutes in the case to work for an hour and a half.
In general, if you do not walk with a stopwatch, it turns out that you need to charge the case about once a week.
And do they work with Android?
Yes, of course, just like any other BT headphones. And even the noise reduction will start working - it will cut in and out by long pressing the sensors.
True, AirPods with an android phone will not be able to create a pair simply by opening the cover of the case. First, you will have to put the headphones into detection mode: hold down the button on the back of the case until the white LED starts flashing in front. After that, they will become visible in the Bluetooth menu on the smartphone.
In addition, on gadgets running Android there is no software like on the iPhone, which allows you to remap the buttons on the headphones. That is, a long press on any earphone will always turn noise reduction on or off, and Siri, of course, will not be able to be called - there is nowhere.
What other TWS headphones with active noise cancellation are there?
Available for sale - Sony WF-1000XM3. They cost about 18 ₽, and before the New Year and still come at a discount for 000 ₽. They are more compact, but they also have worse autonomy. The case is visually almost the same as the AirPods Pro, only it comes in different colors. As are the headphones. Noise cancellation is top notch.
Audio-Technica at the beginning of 2020, at CES, showed its vision of such "ears" - the model QuietPoint ANC300TW. Of the distinguishing features - water protection according to the IPX2 standard, and specific noise reduction profiles: in an airplane, on the street, in the office, etc. Theoretically, a more specialized algorithm will do a better job than one generic one, but this is obviously less convenient. The headphones will cost $230 (slightly less than AirPods Pro), but whether they will be sold in Russia is not yet known.
What did not like in the "proshki"?
- The case lid opens more easily than on classic AirPods. And the headphones are not so tightly “sucked in” by magnets into the sockets. Sometimes you will drop the cover, and then the "ears" will fly out to the floor in different directions. With conventional AirPods, this happened less often.
- Sometimes the left earpiece behaves strangely when you take it out of the case. It seems to be 100% charged, but does not cling to the phone. This happens about once out of 10 attempts. You have to put it back in the case, get it out - and then in a second it is already picked up. Perhaps the matter is specifically in my copy, because I have not heard this from other owners of "firmware".
- There is no black version, but I would really like to.
What did you like?
About everything else: bass, noise reduction, battery life, compact case, wireless charging, native work with iPhones and other Apple ecosystem.
Source: habr.com