The verdict is in for Apple’s new AirPods Max headphones. They are a big step up from the AirPods Pro when it comes to sound quality but they are much larger and heavier.
Hmm, where have I heard that before? This sounds quite familiar to all of the inevitable “DSLR Camera vs iPhone” comparisons which come out every time a new iPhone is launched. I realized this weekend that I feel the same way towards the AirPods Max as I do towards a DSLR camera. I have no urge to own either one. Here’s why.
Despite all of the articles explaining to me how a large DSLR camera beats my iPhone, I never feel the urge to go out and actually buy a DSLR camera. Mainly because I’m not the type of guy who wants to make photography an event. My iPhone pictures are beyond “good enough”. Now they are downright great. I don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on camera equipment and carry around a photography bag just to get a fraction more detail in the trees behind my subjects.
My lack of desire for the AirPods Max stems from the fact that they seem large, heavy, and too big to fit in my pocket. I’m sure they sound great. But unless I can carry them with me everywhere, I’m unlikely to really use them much. Also, I don’t like wearing over-the-ear cans when I’m active. Especially if I’m going to be outside on a warm day. On warm sunny days those over-the-ear headphones are worse than wearing ear muffs.
I do love the superior sound of full over-the-ear cans. I have a pair of Sony XB950-B1’s which I absolutely love. About one hour per month I pull them out and listen to my favorite music in aural bliss. But before I bought them, I didn’t realize that I’d be using them for only one hour per month. And that’s an estimate that I definitely rounded up on.
My Sonys were $200 when I bought them. Which I considered fairly expensive at the time. Now compared to the $550 AirPods Max they look downright cheap. But if someone had told me before I bought them that I would use them for less than an hour per month, I wouldn’t have bought them either.
I am hoping that the AirPods Max drives home one message to those that buy them though. Using musical headphones that don’t go in your ears is a much better experience than the AirPods Pro’s. I use my 2nd generation AirPods way more than my AirPods Pro’s primarily because they don’t go in my ears. I think if I didn’t have my 2nd gen AirPods I actually might go out of my way more often to use my big Sony headphones.
I love Apple’s design and quality ethos but they do sell some products which I have absolutely no interest in. I couldn’t care less what they do with their MacBooks. The laptop is dead to me and it’s for much the same reasons why I don’t care to buy a DSLR or AirPods Max. Compared to an iPad, they are big heavy devices relegated to special events. And all of these big heavy devices have one thing in common. They sell in lower volume than their smaller and lighter counterparts.
Now if someone was to get me a pair of AirPods Max for Christmas I’d genuinely be ecstatic. I’m sure they sound great and I’d love that hour per month I’d use them. It would be the proverbial gift which I’d love but would never buy for myself.
But I have a hard time seeing this as being a product which moves the needle on Apple’s income statement. Over-the-ear headphones are a small and shrinking market as it its. Small portable earphones are getting better every year which eats into market share for the larger versions. And music itself is losing more and more mindshare to podcasts and news. Less music means less reason to get large expensive headphones.
But for me, the AirPods Max joins that list which includes a DSLR camera and MacBook Pro as big heavy devices which I don’t need because I have an excellent alternative that is good enough for what I need.
Despite all of the articles explaining to me how a large DSLR camera beats my iPhone, I never feel the urge to go out and actually buy a DSLR camera. Mainly because I’m not the type of guy who wants to make photography an event. My iPhone pictures are beyond “good enough”. Now they are downright great. I don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on camera equipment and carry around a photography bag just to get a fraction more detail in the trees behind my subjects.
My lack of desire for the AirPods Max stems from the fact that they seem large, heavy, and too big to fit in my pocket. I’m sure they sound great. But unless I can carry them with me everywhere, I’m unlikely to really use them much. Also, I don’t like wearing over-the-ear cans when I’m active. Especially if I’m going to be outside on a warm day. On warm sunny days those over-the-ear headphones are worse than wearing ear muffs.
I do love the superior sound of full over-the-ear cans. I have a pair of Sony XB950-B1’s which I absolutely love. About one hour per month I pull them out and listen to my favorite music in aural bliss. But before I bought them, I didn’t realize that I’d be using them for only one hour per month. And that’s an estimate that I definitely rounded up on.
My Sonys were $200 when I bought them. Which I considered fairly expensive at the time. Now compared to the $550 AirPods Max they look downright cheap. But if someone had told me before I bought them that I would use them for less than an hour per month, I wouldn’t have bought them either.
I am hoping that the AirPods Max drives home one message to those that buy them though. Using musical headphones that don’t go in your ears is a much better experience than the AirPods Pro’s. I use my 2nd generation AirPods way more than my AirPods Pro’s primarily because they don’t go in my ears. I think if I didn’t have my 2nd gen AirPods I actually might go out of my way more often to use my big Sony headphones.
I love Apple’s design and quality ethos but they do sell some products which I have absolutely no interest in. I couldn’t care less what they do with their MacBooks. The laptop is dead to me and it’s for much the same reasons why I don’t care to buy a DSLR or AirPods Max. Compared to an iPad, they are big heavy devices relegated to special events. And all of these big heavy devices have one thing in common. They sell in lower volume than their smaller and lighter counterparts.
Now if someone was to get me a pair of AirPods Max for Christmas I’d genuinely be ecstatic. I’m sure they sound great and I’d love that hour per month I’d use them. It would be the proverbial gift which I’d love but would never buy for myself.
But I have a hard time seeing this as being a product which moves the needle on Apple’s income statement. Over-the-ear headphones are a small and shrinking market as it its. Small portable earphones are getting better every year which eats into market share for the larger versions. And music itself is losing more and more mindshare to podcasts and news. Less music means less reason to get large expensive headphones.
But for me, the AirPods Max joins that list which includes a DSLR camera and MacBook Pro as big heavy devices which I don’t need because I have an excellent alternative that is good enough for what I need.
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