As you are using an iPhone then there is probably no other choice. I have AirPods Pro (1st gen) and Sony WF-1000XM4 and I prefer AirPods. Sony’s sound quality is IMHO better (better bass, wider stage) despite being a lot less comfy (I can not wear them for more than ~2h). Also call quality is better on AirPods at least for me.

For an iOS user the AirPods are pretty much the best for the claims and price. The beats are good too (basically rebranded AirPods since Apple owns Beats) but there’s not much else that stands out for iOS users.

How is the comfort on the new AirPods Pro?

Sound wise I personally use Bose QCll buds with my 14PM. Tried AirPods Pro and they weren’t for me. Buds are such a personal choice as far as fit, sound and functionality. The ones I personally tried before I settled on Bose QCll. Sony WF1000XM4 AirPods Pro (first gen) Jarbra 85T Bose QC (first gen) Sennheiser MTW3’s

I recommend trying as many as possible if you can or buy from somewhere with a good returns policy.

Me, who just uses Oppo Enco Air 2 and is fine with it: 🥲

They’re great IMO. They’re more comfy than the regular AirPods which start to hurt my ears around the 2 hour mark.

Beats were more comfortable for me and cheaper and as mentioned, since owned by apple, work well with pairing etc

As an airpods pro 2 owner i wouldn’t say that they are “the best” but honestly they are pretty damn good. Specially if you are using ios

I can’t imagine how these responses will lean in an iPhone sub. You can probably find hundreds of comparisons on YouTube and at least ten from well known reviewers.

As a point of comparison to another brand I personally think the Galaxy buds pro 2 sound better, but the Airpods pro have superior ANC (both tried on respective ecosystem). They are good, but there are other excellent brands such as Sony, Sennheiser, Bose, etc. Look at some YouTube reviews for mic and call quality, as well as sound comparisons. In the end nobody can tell you what will fit your ears the best so you'll just have to try some.

I think this would be a question for r/AirPods. But let me answer it in here anyway.

If you have an iPhone or an iPad, probably AirPods are the best choice you could make. It’s not because just of the sound quality. The connectivity is really handy and it makes so much easier to just open the box, plug them into your ears and just to start your meeting, or to listen some music, etc etc etc. And I use the AirPods Pro 1st Gen and they are really comfortable in my opinion. I use them the entire day and don’t even feel them in my ears. But they are more expensive than their real value to be honest. As an example, the Galaxy Ear Buds from Samsung have all these benefits but it’s cheaper…

There are options you could use with your iPhone. The Nothing Ear 1, the Google Pixel Buds and even the Galaxy EarBuds. You should look for YouTube reviews for each one of them. They will all work fine with your iPhone, as a regular Bluetooth ear phone. But if you want convenience too, AirPods is they way to go.

Well, you can use any other Bluetooth earphone… they will work fine… they just won’t have the convenience of AirPods though, but nothing stops you from using a Samsung Ear Buds in your iPhone. The Samsung Ear Buds even has it’s own app…

No one claims that AirPods are the best, they just work well with Apple devices.

Without question there are better sounding earbuds out there. However, I doubt more than one in a thousand people are discerning enough audiophiles to tell the difference without a direct A/B comparison in one listening session.
In other words, the benefits of better sound likely don’t outweigh the other positives of AirPods Pro or Max for most people. But yeah, if you’re an audiophile, you can definitely buy better sound.

Nothing beats the automatic connectivity and convenience of using AirPods over other wireless earbuds, but there are probably others that are either better quality or a better value. Still, I don’t like the feeling of in ear earbuds and was tired of buying and returning ones that would keep falling out, so I ended up getting the 2nd gen AirPods since they’re the same shape of the wired earbuds I was used to. I think fit and comfort is probably the biggest factor so it’s hard to say which is the best since we all have different ears 🤷🏻‍♀️

I think they’re just marketed well

They work really well on Apple products but they are also very good. Ever since Apple bought out Beats by Dre the sound of their headphone have been on par or better than other headphones but to get a better opinion it would be better to go to YouTube and see the reviews as well

They’re great….. when they work. However, lately their latest version of AirPods (AirPods 3) have been awful. I’m on my third replacement and they’ve gone bad.

Honestly at this point, you either go with the pro models or look somewhere else….

The original AirPods were okay in terms of sound quality, but the 2nd gen really made some improvements in that department as well as other quality of life improvements.

1. Sound is much more pleasing and less vanilla. More sub bass, better separation, and clearer vocal.
2. Noise cancellation is better at reducing sounds that aren’t just constant rumbles.
3. Adaptive transparency works.
4. Automatic switching and connecting is much quicker and more reliable.
5. Integrated U1 chip and speaker in the case so you can find it easier.
6. Battery life is incredible. I usually get around 6 hrs with ANC/transparency, which means they can stay on from the moment I leave the house through taxi, airport, plane, and all the way until I check into the hotel.

HOWEVER, YMMV when it comes to all the subjective experiences. In terms of call quality, I just don’t know. You can hear people super well yes, but the microphone is nothing special.

There are 2 universally loved things Apple makes: AirPods Pro and the Apple Watch. Lots of Apple “haters” always say they’re great

I wouldn’t say they’re the best. Maybe the most convenient ones since you’re using a iPhone but surely not the best.

They kinda suck but I still use them …

After researching online I settled on Jabra Elite Active 75t and I love them. You can find refurbished models on Walmart.com for half the price. I even bought my wife a pair.

This is the answer.

They’re good, above average even? But they work well unless you get a dud (get it replaced if you do!)

There are however better sounding options.

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They’re definitely not the best in terms of audio quality, but they work very well in the Apple ecosystem and the Pros are pretty dang decent for an audio ear bud aimed at the mass market. Plus noise canceling is very convenient. If you’re looking for something more hi-if, I’d go on YouTube and research the best bud options from companies like klipsch, sennheiser, beyerdynamic, etc.

The ease of us with iPhone is really nice with phone calls. However, sometimes they disappoint me when it comes to calls. I feel like the microphone doesn’t pick up my voice as well as my iPhone does if I’m in a noisy environment. Mostly if I’m out in the city and it’s loud. Shouldn’t be an issue if you’re at home or in a reasonably normal environment.

I believe this is more-so an issue with how Bluetooth technology handles sending and receiving audio signals simultaneously (sending your voice audio and receiving the voice audio of whoever you’re speaking to) then it being an issue that is specific to AirPods. Hopefully we’ll develop a new standard or version of Bluetooth that isn’t as constrained by this.

Will say I definitely recommend the pros over regular AirPods for sound quality and comfort (and probably better mic quality too). There’s tons of YouTubers who have videos breaking down the difference between different AirPods models and competitors. I’d recommend watching a few of those videos if you’re torn over what to buy. Cheers.

AirPods because of the seamless connection with Apple devices (laptop, tablet, phone and watch).

I used a cheap Xiaomi pair briefly after I lost my first AirPods and they were a pain in terms of pairing (left and right not in sync etc). After a month of trying to live with them I decided to get another pair of AirPods. AirPods are decent for day to day abuse.

I didn’t fork out for the pro cos for noise cancellation I still have my old QC2 headphones.

Just don’t update any firmware of the airpod pros. With each iteration, the noise cancelling gets significantly worst each time without failure

Yeah that person is full of it. I came from the LG phones which were audio focused and I was sorely disappointed by AirPods and the wired earbuds that are available. I think they sound awful. If I’m at home I always opt to play music over the phone speaker or my sound bar through Bluetooth because the audio quality just isn’t there.

This. Let’s be honest here most are on average, average. Convenient connectivity beats a few decibal of sounds when you can’t care to tell the difference. It just fits so well into the Apple ecosystem and adds to the seamlessness of using multiple devices. Quality of life > over quality of product.

I’m partial to the Beats Flex. I have the AirPod pros but I’m always concerned that they may fall out. The noise canceling is an excellent feature. The flex with the neck band feels more secure and cost 25% of the AirPod price. And their sound quality is quite good

If you are talking about the new pros they probably are the best for voice. They are damn good when it comes to noise cancelling too (to me better than the wf-xm4s). I own 6 pairs (4 galaxy buds, a pair of wf-xm4 and a pair of air pods pro) and its the only pair I recommend among these for calls. Not that they are just better than the rest, the rest are absolute shit for calls. The airpods Pro are not the most comfortable though, and excluding calls not even the best. That would be the gaxy buds +. There have been times that I simply forget that I wore them. The battery life is so good that you forget they are even wireless. They are good to the point that I have two pairs and am considering hoarding a couple of more, in case Samsung decides to halt production.

Not the best in the market. But perfect for your apple eco system. AirPods can easy switch from my Apple TV, to my Mac and to my iPhone. No Bluetooth searching.

In terms of AirPods Pro 2nd Gen. Overpriced. Sound quality not impressive for price point.

Functionality on it’s own and with other apple devices? Satisfying and impressive.

Some examples:

With most modern apple devices, macbook or iphone etc if you are listening through external speakers on said device and then put the AirPods in your ear, it automatically switches to output to the AirPods.

Noise cancellation is really cool and great for silencing all white noise and mostly silencing louder sounds. I can still hear say, a tv at an acceptably loud volume, but its very muffled though still there. The feature does mostly work just not 100% noise cancellation. You can also switch to “transparency” mode to let external sounds in. Ive also been told they can work as de facto hearing aids, and will focus on someones voice and silence out other sounds and amplify their voice. (Haven’t tried that out)

All in all the features are great, just wish noise cancellation was 100%.

At the end of the day, for a product that is at its core an audio device, the sound quality is not worth $250.

Everybody is raving about the great connectivity of AirPods. I got the nothing ears, connecting them the first time took 1 minute, and now the are always connecting instantly when I take them out of their case. What is do much better about the AirPods? (Genuinely curious)

Gotta say I’m happy with my AirPods 3 and I used a ton of other brands

Then why did he ask?

I’ve never had any WIRELESS earbuds better than airpods. Wired I’d definitely have to say Apple Earpods with remote mic, but I’m short on cash so I currently use Turtle Beach Earforce Recon 70P

Automatic and seamless switching between Apple devices probably. If you’re on your iPhone and start playing a video on your MacBook or iPad while the AirPods are in your ears, it will detect the AirPods see in and ask you if you want to switch the AirPods over the MacBook or you can set it to automatically do so.

I’ve got a pair of AirPods, a pair of Sony XM4 earbuds and the same XM4 but in headphones. I decided on the buds over AirPods Pro after some comparisons and am going to give the AirPods away to my brother.

I don’t have much to add to what everyone said here - I do like the AirPods, they’re comfortable, sound better than most of their type etc. One point that everyone mentions is instant connectivity but the Sony buds have this as well so it shouldn’t be a selling point for the AirPods. AirPods had instant connectivity when you first connect them and then they connect about as fast once that initial set up is done. I like them all for different reasons but the Sony buds are probably my favourite now.

Me too. Worst of the 5 wireless headphones I’ve had. Easy to lose, they don’t fit snugly in every ear (okay in my right, never stays for long in my left due to slightly different ear canal shape). The charging case is nice, so it has that going for it. Sound is not bad, but not great either. I prefer earbuds that create at least a little bit of a seal to keep outside bleed from coming through.

Quality wise, my AirPods 3’s are fine, quite good for earbuds that aren’t in-ear, but god they have bugs and problems, the right AirPod keeps acting up, but that depends on ur luck ig

Come to think of it besides the galaxy and pixel buds I don’t hear of any talk of wireless headphones. This is including beats but they are known to be worse.

I have Airpods Pro and they suck. I use Sony WF-1000XM4 earbuds now and the Airpods sit around doing nothing.

Obviously they are marketed well. I’ve had 5 pairs of AirPods so far. Two I damaged was my own fault, so no fault to Apple there.

Gen 1 and 2 were fine, were they amazing? No not really. They worked well and were fluid using them. I would say not worth the money if the cost meant something to you even.

I have some weird shaped ear canals and it’s been hard to find something that fits better than AirPods. This is always hit or miss with people.

I decided to take a chance on the new pros, since they are shaped different and have tips, not something that’s worked out well for me.

They are very good, they fit really well and don’t bother me longterm at all. Sound quality is alright, you’re not getting anything insane in this department but it’s fine. Using and connecting etc is to me really good, I don’t have any complaints here.

Now I drive a truck for a living, so normally if I was going to talk on the phone I’d use an actual headset but I’ve been giving these a try lately and they do an incredible job at cancelling noise for the other caller. This to me is probably the best feature so far followed closely by the comfortability of wear.

As for price, definitely not worth it, I’d apply this to just about anything you can buy here so it’s kind of more can you afford this luxury purchase or do you need this? I don’t think they are terribly priced, just wish for the average person, they were more moderately priced ya know. I can buy a $40 headset off amazon for work that will sound fine and does the job, but doesn’t look all that cool or isn’t fancy.

I’ve had all kinds/brands of Bluetooth earbuds.

As far as being the total package, I don’t think there is a better pair than that Apple AirPods Pro 2nd generation.

There may be earbuds that have better sound quality, but as far as form,fit,function,features… I don’t think the AirPods can be topped.

The airpods 2 pro are arguably the very best overall earbuds you can use with an iPhone. I do not think they are the best that can work with Android tho. But they are better with an iphone than the best android earphone is along with the best android phone. The sound quality is out of this world, feels better than a midrange headset.

All great points. I think the call quality is fantastic, much much better than any I have tried.

And the mic is far far better than all the others I’ve tried.

The mic on other earbuds was much more muffled on other earbuds.

I

I can wear mine literally all day, very comfortable… I forget that I have them in.

The only thing I don’t really care for is the “squeezing the stem” function.

I did prefer the “tapping” control over trying to pinch a tiny little stem.

Exactly. One of my favorite and most useful apple products ever.

The beats are good, but they sacrifice clarity for extra base.

I thought I would like them more for this, but when I was testing both…the AirPod pros just sounded better because of the clarity.

And the mic was muffled sounding compared to the pros.

AirPods are excellent if you're using them with a Mac or iPhone, as there's connectivity advantages (and they're the best OF those that have said connectivity advantages). With a Windows machine or an Android phone they're likely not that good of a choice. Nor if you want the best of the best in terms of sound quality, at a professional level (AirPods are great but audiophiles might want even better)

my galaxy buds automatically connect to my iPhone

What about AirPods Pro?

Never tried those, but they look like they’d stay in place much better with the rubber/silicone tips. I’ll try a pair when I get a chance.

Sounds like this is the answer for them honestly.

I think when they came out, not too many had the charging case. The charging case is kind of genius because when you store them, they charge with little effort (having to be plugged in) and by just taking them off for normal day stuff (bathroom breaks, lunch), you could generally get a full days usage without a problem.

Other Bluetooth headphones of the time often needed to be plugged in and had similar battery life so if you weren’t militant about plugging them in, they’d die by the end of the day or when you were in the go away from a plug.

Probably gonna pass some one off but....my galaxy buds pro are acoustically superior to my airpod pros. Much deeper base, highs seem more clear. I know there's more to sound quality, but I prefer my galaxy buds pro.

Personally I like raycon fitness earbuds. Haven’t had a prob with them and sound is good. About $120 versus $250 for AirPod pros.

Airpods are convenient and have apple centric features. Which is why they sell.

There are lot of other products that are better sounding or better value, but between the lack of branding/ awareness and most purchasers prefering to avoid very detailed research, airpods remain the preferred option for apple users

They’re not the best, but they’re the best for me. They just work all the time.

I bought some Bose QC II earbuds which were the best sounding I’ve ever had. But they refused to connect half the time so I returned them. The Sony earbuds (XM4s) had a nice sound signature but I HATED the transparency mode on them.

I opted to just upgrade my APP 1st gens to 2nd gens. I’m much more happy. The Find My feature alone made it worth the upgrade since I always lose my buds

I love mine for the gym. They don’t fall out and the noise canceling is good.

AirPods are not that bad I have the pros and if you do not lose um then they are fine

Honestly, I prefer buying a coverter lighting to jack 3.5mm is so much cheaper and choosing any wired headphone and btw bluetooth is nothing better than wired headphones when compared to mic quality though, it has no delay, mic recording is super nice. I’m having AirPods 3 and the mic is pissing me off real bad, and it’s more convenience bc there’s no wire. So the choice is yours.

Where are they marketed? I’ve never seen more than maybe one ad.

Use mine for work the noise cancellation make it’s to the point I can’t hear a thing

I love my galaxy buds. They’re honestly great and have great battery life (galaxy buds +, never upgraded bc of battery life is the best on those) I’ve had them for years and they still work and sound great and connect pretty seamlessly

I’ve tried a few but not all the options. I liked the 2nd generation of AirPods best. Though I’m sad it no longer has wireless charging.

Two types of people though. Those that like the rubber seal headphones and those that don’t. Rubber seal headphones don’t work for me. 2nd generation fit me so perfectly I could sleep and completely forget they were in my ears. The 3rd gen were a bit too large for me. Which is the same problem I had with most other brands like Samsung which are even larger then the 3rd gen AirPods.

What about Powerbeats pro?

I have airpods the second generation and they are really good, especially with the charging case. Much better than wire headphones & I was surprised at how well they hold in my ears, i was expecting them to fall out all the time but they stay in really well

The max’s are great, just a bit expensive.

The airpods 3 got me scared for a week of listening cause it’s picking up small details in a song I couldn’t hear before and it made me think my family was getting murdered or someone was yelling my name. Not fun

It is an Apple product, so I think it has all these benefits. I cannot argue about this one because I never had one. But it might be an option. Seeing the MKBHD review about Power Beats Pro it seems to have all these AirPods features including the convenience that I mentioned before… worth to check…

They’re the ones who don’t break for me. I’ve owned 3 pairs of Sony WF-1000xm4 earbuds, and somehow they always ended up with static “wind” noice in one of the earbuds. I liked them when they were working though.

Sony and Bose have great earbuds and the Airpods Pro ain't bad either. Samsung's Galaxy Buds Pro are also quite good. Google and One Plus buds are trash.

Is terms or audio quality. It’s not terrible for how light weight they are, the anc isn’t too bad either, they are very comfortable but at least for my ears they constantly fall out, the case is probably also the best out of all other wireless buds, thing is like a bullet, but the main thing that AirPods pods have is the connectivity, which at times makes me choose my AirPods over my Bose qc ii earbuds, AirPods literally connect instantly, the moment you put them in they start playing music which was awesome,

Anyone else have problems with Airpods Pro 2 wind noise? When I'm outside the wind seems to be amplified. Didn't notice it in the first gen ones

Best? Where did you get that from?

Terrible microphone, in my case.

I have the pro 2nd generation.

Got them even replaced. Same thing. People can never hear me on a call and I have to always disconnect them and speak normally.

Otherwise, amazing sound quality.

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YouTube comparisons will give you to best answer to this question. However after my original AirPods died, I got the AirPod pro 2 and love them. They just work well and sound good, which is what I like most about them.

I have AirPods and Powerbeats Pro and use them for different purposes. AirPods for general listening to music, podcasts, and zoom meetings. Powerbeats Pro used for walking, working in the yard, etc.

I love them both. I also have used other brands like Bose and Sony in the past and they are good too...but since I'm an Apple user the AirPods and Powerbeats Pro connect seamlessly between multiple devices.

The AirPods Pro are one of the best for sure.

I like Airpods pro for working out or running. Maybe to watch some videos with spatial audio here and there. But only for less than $200. Sometimes on Amazon you can find them.

Look into Bowers and Wilkins IP7 true wireless. Incredible buds that have been reviewed to have better connectivity over the AirPods. Bluetooth ratings i slightly lower though I believe.

if you have an iPhone, they're ok. Noise cancelling in the pros is really good, but again that's on the pros only. Airpods are notoriously well balanced, which if you're into bassy music, you'll have to mess with an eq to get what you're looking for.

If you have an android, don't get them. Get some beats or JBLs.

I don’t know, I think they’re fantastic personally. Very flat frequency response, I use them to reference all my mixes and just to listen to songs in general. If it sounds good in the AirPods it’ll usually sound good anywhere else.

AirPods Pro’s are 1000x better than regular airpods

Mine died after 2 yrs. I was very disappointed

I have bought quite a few different brands of headphones over the years. Two years ago when I upgraded to iPhone I was in need of wireless headphones so I gave the Air Pods Pro a shot. Well, let me just say they absolutely amazed me with how well they worked. The sound is very decent, the fitment is astounding, the noise canceling is world class. And I am talking about the first Gen devices. I haven’t got to experience the second Gen.

Middle of the road, marketed well and they fit into the ecosystem well.

no they are average sounding but got decent ANC.

but all the other brands sound better from sony, to seinheiser

same, but i have the original galaxy buds. was looking to get the buds+ but they're like 3x the price of buds2 and original buds right now lol

People don't want the "best" they want the easiest. Airpods aren't the best at anything but they're an easy choice, every other pair, people have to do research and figure out what have the best features for them..people don't want to do that work they'd rather just grab the airpods

You could say that for a lot of Apple products.

True

Do you recommend getting a pair? No offense meant, but do you consider yourself someone who is not careful with their tech devices? Or is it just that AirPods are not meant to last long? I am debating between getting the AirPods Pro 2 or some Sony/Bose/Sennheiser

Yup! I got the AirPods Gen 3 and mine were a dud out of the box, right AirPod wouldn’t make contact with the charger so couldn’t even pair them. Got it replaced easily enough though.

They’re good at convenience. Sound quality is passable. The main selling point of AirPods is their convenience, not their sound, quality, or microphone. As earbuds, they are always going to be compromised in these areas. Nothing will beat a good set of over ear headphones or a good headset. I’ve used AirPods. They’re convenient but they pale in comparison to my headphones. I use a set of Sony WH1000-XM4’s for my headphones of choice. They’re some of the best wireless headphones on the market, all things considered. If you go wired things can get better both on the cheaper end and the more expensive end.

Headphone recommendations:

• Sony WH1000-XM4
• Skullcandy Crusher
• Beyerdynamic DT 770 Pro

Others can chime in with more but that’s off the top of my head.

Oh nice!

Yeah, most if not all bluetooth devices do

The AirPod pros 2nd gen have some of the best ANC on the market (NOTE: SOME of the best, you Bose fanboys). They sound decent too but nobody said they are the best. They are just fantastically fit for purpose if you’re in the Apple eco system.

Generally speaking, there are quite a few non apple options out there that will provide a great experience. I enjoy the continuity that comes with the Apple ecosystem. As a stand-alone product, the Airpods provides great sound quality.