Say hello to the new Apple AirPods Pro. I have been waiting for you, little ones. I loved the portability of my AirPods but I missed having Active Noise Cancellation (ANC). I also liked having a tighter seal in my earphones and the AirPods had a more open design. Now the AirPods Pro address these two issues with ANC using two microphones (outward-facing and inward-facing), canceling out the environment for me.
Apple also touts Adaptive EQ for the AirPods Pro, to deliver better sound. I shall test that too. The AirPods were ok, but lacked the sound fidelity of more expensive wireless earphones like the Sennheiser Momentum TW (great sound but bulky case).
That Pro label on the AirPods Pro had better live up to its name. My cursory listening so far on the AirPods Pro (I am rocking Summer Walker’s new album currently) shows promise.
I also like the ability to switch from Active Noise Cancellation to Transparency mode with one click of the new capacitive force sensor' in the new shorter stem. The Transparency mode lets the outside sound in, and sounds very natural.
Battery life is four and a half hours with Active Noise Cancellation on, and five hours without ANC or Transparency on. All day battery life with the case to charge it, just like the AirPods 2.
It also comes with three sizes of tips to fit different ears and a Ear Tip Fit Test to let you know if you are using the right size of tip. I ended up with the Medium size. The seal feels good too. I wonder how the AirPods Pro sound with third-party Comply foam tips with them. I shall look for some when they become available.
Also fun to test will be sharing music with Audio Sharing mode: two AirPods or AirPods Pro listening to one device. Nice.
What I am truly happy about is I can now get true-wireless earphones in a small package. I love being able to slip my AirPods into my jeans and these AirPods Pros are not much larger. Same thickness, just slightly wider. Other True Wireless earphones in the market are usually too big and bulky to carry in the pocket with their case. Let alone True Wireless earphones with ANC.
The AirPods Pro retail for S$379 and will be available from the 30th of October, 2019. By comparison, the Sony WF-1000XM3 noise-cancelling earbuds cost around S$349, so this seems to be the price point for this class of wireless noise-cancelling buds.
I am so gonna test this these buds in my upcoming trip to Japan. I may not need to pack the larger noise-cancelling headphones in future.
