First, let’s go over the basics. The new AirPods Pro headphones do not replace regular AirPods, Apple is diligently expanding the lineup to retain the palm in the market and restful sleep of shareholders. Keep in mind that there is still such a small pocket company, Beats, and there is also a new noise canceling model coming soon, the Beats Solo Pro. By the way, they will cost almost the same as AirPods Pro, 21 rubles.

Second thought: at Apple, as always, they come with their products to the heyday of current trends. The Bose QuietComfort were once the first active noise canceling headphones – and at first they weren’t a niche product for everyone. They went on sale in 2000, in 2003 the second version appeared, well, next year there will be a small anniversary: ​​twenty years of the series. And now the Bose NCH 700 holds the lead among full-size headphones. But no one has yet done good little ears with an active noise reduction. Well, apart from Apple.

Third thought: The increased interest in noise canceling headphones is easy to explain. There is a high level of stress in society. Stress seriously affects health, interferes with life, interferes with rest, interferes with work. And the Pro prefix in the name of these headphones is not accidental: I am now sitting in the office, Kazakov is walking around and saying something, Valya Tunitsky is trying to shout to someone from another room, a DJI robot is driving – do you think it is normal to work in such an atmosphere ? Usually I sit and enjoy Bose, but now I can safely say to you: Apple managed to make a small version of Bose QuietComfort. They are really as comfortable as possible, the active noise cancellation system works great here and there are many more interesting chips. I’ll tell you everything now. Let’s fly!

Unpacking

Lightning to USB Type-C cable, don’t forget, the case can be charged using the iPad Pro (this is useful on an airplane). The attachments here are their own – apparently, Apple will sell them separately. Silicone cushion, mesh, tricky and at the same time simple attachment system. The case is the same as that of regular AirPods, only slightly spread out to the sides. It is convenient to carry it in your pocket, open it too. Headphones are instantly magnetized into grooves, no confusion. And even the packing of the tips deserves a round of applause – and why did none of the manufacturers think of this before?

Setting

I opened the lid, the headphones were defined in iOS, plugged in, watch the introduction to new functions. Everything is a little different here compared to regular AirPods: press harder on the volume bar and you can quickly switch between noise canceling and transparency modes.

Well, or you can traditionally do it in the Bluetooth menu – you can immediately select the purpose of pressing, calibration, change the name. Calibration is a very tricky thing: music is played, the microphone in the earphone compares the level with the level outside, and the AirPods Pro understand how well or poorly the attachment is. Sometimes the system advises to replace it. I advise you to do the calibration, it affects the quality of the music and noise reduction.

Keep in mind, like other Apple products, AirPods Pro will also receive updates, you just won’t know about it. The “Hey Siri” command works great, the chip is here as in the second version of AirPods, Apple H1.

Management

Since the shape of the earphone has changed, the sensors were transferred to the microphone legs: you need to take them with your fingers for an action, the action is confirmed with a click (you hear it, but you don’t feel it). There are also no holes at the ends of the legs. For Play / Pause, you just need to touch, to turn on noise reduction or transparency – touch and hold. Since both headphones are identical, all actions are repeated here, but in the settings you can select actions for long presses. Everything is not entirely obvious, but you can figure it out in a few minutes.

To adjust the volume, you need to take out the phone or ask to make Siri louder. Compression pads are visible in this photo – see these flat surfaces? The black details are the mesh covering the microphone.

Convenience

As soon as I posted a photo of the headphones on Insta, my friends immediately attacked: how they sit is the most popular question. There are two types of people, one cannot wear AirPods, the other can wear them and cannot live without them. I belong to the second category, I can walk with AirPods for hours, they don’t fall out anywhere, nothing hurts, everything is ok. That’s not how AirPods Pro are made. Their shape does not even resemble plug-in headphones, but custom-made “custom” ones: you have an earbud in your ear, there is a driver in it (we are trying to understand, one or two), the driver looks into your ear canal and fixes the whole thing with a silicone nozzle. The attachments are very cool to remove and fix, you need some skill, but it’s easier than with the usual ones. I have already said this, but I am not too lazy to repeat it.

So.

DO NOT BUY AIRPODS PRO WITHOUT A TRIAL.

Do not do this under any circumstances. I am sure they will suit very many people, millions of buyers, but even in my usual ears, the right earphone presses a little, I want to correct it. Of course, in a couple of days a habit will appear, everything will be ok, I would buy them both the second time and the third, but keep my idea in mind.

Another point: there are no problems with inserting / removing, everything is like with AirPods.

Active noise reduction

Each of the five grams (5,4 grams each earphone weighs) is just incredible electrical miracles. There is a healthy custom driver, a ten-core processor, a battery, a pair of microphones, and a pair of sensors – when you pull out the earpiece, the music pauses. As for the processor, many roflates, but somehow they forget that for the operation of the noise control, first of all, “brains” are needed. The H1 chip detects noise outside and feeds it in antiphase, plus the sound inside the ear is also analyzed by the second microphone – it is needed not only for calibration.

Yes, noise reduction will not cope with a vacuum cleaner near your desk, but still, even sharp noises will be smoothed out, the stress level is reduced, you can sit and work calmly. And it is also the only compact headphone at the moment with such an effective active noise canceling system, which performs better than the Sony WF-1000XM3. There are no noise cancellation levels yet – I suppose Apple does not want to make life difficult for users: the headphones themselves know how to do well for you.

“Transparency”

The mode works at the expense of microphones outside, ambient sounds are amplified. You can talk to a colleague, listen to an announcement at the airport, ride your bike in peace and not be afraid of being hit. Although, as Uncle Zhenya says, it’s better to ride a bike without headphones. Cool mode, everything is ok.

Voice quality

The Bose NCH 700 has a cool feature where you can hear yourself in closed headphones – that is, you do not raise your voice, as you rate it as you should. Here, this is more difficult: I have talked to AirPods Pro two times so far, but both times I “regulated” myself – I feel that I don’t need to yell. The main thing is that the microphones are ok here, it is very comfortable to talk even on the street. I tried it today, it was good.

Working hours

Claimed 4,5 hours of headphone operation, 24 hours with the case. There is a fast charge, one hour after five minutes of connection. I recommend using the original power supplies: for example, the PSU for the iPhone 11 Pro Max is perfect.

Areas of use

There is something to think about, and I will give out more information when I prepare the operating experience. Nevertheless, there are already several thoughts.

First thought: AirPods Pro are much better for the gym, as they are water and sweat resistant, IPX4 declared. But they sit better in the ears, and for sure, compared to regular AirPods, they are more tenacious in intense workouts.

Second thought: These headphones are perfect for meditations, listening to audiobooks before bed, using different sleep programs – when you need to play crickets, the sound of the surf and all that. Do you know why? The answer is simple: when you lie sideways on a pillow, you will not be able to press the sensor. Apparently, that’s why they came up with “tweaks”.

Third thought: Thanks to rain protection and transparency mode, these are ideal headphones for jogging or walking around the city, in the park, or for trekking.

Fourth thought: since the microphone legs do not protrude so much down and are pressed against the ears, it is very cool to wear AirPods Pro under the helmet. That is, snowboarding, skiing and substitute your favorite sport yourself.

Fifth thought: Playing CoD on an iPhone is great, but even for a PC, it’s the perfect headset. And the sounds will be perfectly positioned (I believe in this, but you have to try), and the quality of speech transmission is at the highest level. Especially if you decide to play on a laptop somewhere on a trip – there are such people too, right?

Sixth thought: you should definitely buy these headphones if you work in noisy places, use only Apple technology, do not want a large model and generally try to optimize your technology (tablet instead of laptop and all that).

Well, I’ll save the rest of the guesses for operating experience. I’ll try everything at the same time.

Sound and music

A custom driver is used here, but so far nothing is clear about the amplifier – I think I’ll get back to you soon with more details. It’s even more amazing how one driver can deliver such a wide dynamic range. There are no obvious failures either in high frequencies or in the middle, the bass is cool.

But everyone has their own preferences, and in our office, only I have fully enjoyed the AirPods Pro, but my colleagues have not appreciated the sound. You ask: so who should we believe? You can only trust yourself.

Apple has customized AirPods Pro for the widest possible audience of consumers, and whatever the driver is, a lot depends on the content, and on the device, and on your preferences. I believe that the company’s many years of attempts to give users a kind of middle ground in various directions – whether it be the quality of shooting on iPhone cameras, sound in AirPods, a picture on a MacBook monitor – these attempts deserve great respect.

And I would rate the AirPods Pro sound as excellent for Bluetooth headphones. If you want to improve it – load FLAC, warm AirPods Pro (no matter how funny it sounds), enjoy. It has its own equalizer. Apple Music and Tidal are at your disposal. In the meantime, I’ll turn on the Rubberband album of the incomparable Miles Davis and get my portion of positive vibes.

But if you fly to the ground, then Apple should seriously experiment with the following headphones and use a separate driver for high frequencies and a separate mid-low frequency driver. And then it will be very good – however, can it be so in AirPods Pro 2?

I will also say for all fans of electronic music: brothers, this is great. In general, I listened to many different genres, for electronics this is one hundred percent hit. But not really for vocals.

A final thought on sound: Compared to AirPods, this is a completely different matter – you can’t talk about superiority or, conversely, lose. Different character of sound, different sensations, emotions.

I chose AirPods Pro for daily use.

Verdict

In retail, headphones will cost 21 rubles, cheaper in the US, but there is another problem: the next deliveries have already moved to mid-November. It is gratifying that Apple did not set a protective price for the innovative product, so that AirPods Pro are available to most consumers. Like the original AirPods, they are already in high demand. So if you want to give someone for the New Year, then now you should take care of the purchase.

I liked the implementation of the Active Noise Cancellation system, how the “Transparency” mode was made, the ease of control and settings in the style of Apple. This is the perfect modern headset for those looking to avoid stress – but there is a contradiction here.

After all, these are no longer exactly headphones, but a product on the verge between audio, communication and, say, clothes – we do not leave the house without shoes and do not forget AirPods, otherwise what to do on the way to the subway or while sitting in line?

And this is not really a headset – the talk time is steadily decreasing for most people, everything goes into correspondence.

However, here we will not invent a name for the product categories. There is a name, AirPods Pro, they are so alone, without competitors, unique and very, very, very good. Buy quickly.

PS I will write additions to the text here. There are actually not two, but three microphones in each earphone.

When connected to a MacBook, there is also a menu in the computer menu that lets you turn on noise canceling or transparency mode in AirPods Pro.