AppleAirPods Max Wireless Over-Ear Headphones, Pro-Level Active Noise Cancellation, Transparency Mode, Personalised Spatial Audio, USB-C Charging, Bluetooth Headphones for iPhone, Midnight ​​​​​​​

One word describes these amazing headphones by Apple. - Brilliant.Expensive but they are worth it in my opinion. Noise cancellation is just perfect, the immediate connection when taken out of the case, and the comfort when wearing them.

TL/DR: Superb build quality, astonishingly good audio quality and best in class ANC add up to be the very best noise cancelling headphones you can buy, as long as you intend to use them with Apple hardware. Users of Android phones or windows desktops are probably better served by other options.Longer review:The first impression when these come out of the box is the sheer excellence of the build quality. The aluminium ear cups, stainless steel head band and soft memory foam ear pads all add up to a build quality that looks, feels and is light years ahead of any other offering at this or even much higher price points. By comparison competing headphones that are made of plastic, however well made, feel nastily cheap by comparison. Apple always focus on build quality and aesthetics and here they have outdone themselves.Comfort is surprisingly excellent. These headphones feel and are weighty but never feel heavy even after lengthy listening sessions. The fabric & memory foam ear pads combine with the mesh on the head band to make them surprisingly comfortable despite their relative weight. Again full marks in this department.The active noise cancelling is very impressive. When switched on the outside world really does simply disappear. Best of all, the sound signature is in no way affected by turning on ANC. No distortion, no hiss, no background noise at all. Again very impressive. Similarly transparency mode is handled equally well - turn it on and the effect is that of the headphones seeming to disappear. External sound is clear but so is whatever music you have playing. The engineers at Apple did a superb job with the transparency mode.Being headphones the £1M question is of course how do they sound? The answer is very good indeed. The sound signature is close to the Harman curve so the Airpods Max have a natural and neutral sound. Detail and separation are excellent. The sound stage is good though admittedly not as wide as other headphones I've tried. Bass is punchy but detailed and doesn't sound muddy in the slightest. Treble is tight and highs are handled again with detail. Be aware though that because the sound reproduction is excellent these headphones will severely punish low quality or poorly done recordings.In terms of ease of use, I don't think I've ever had a pair of bluetooth headphones that are as easy to use. Pairing with Apple devices is effortless (I use with an iPhone 12 pro max and a 2019 iPad pro) and switching between Apple devices is seamless and "just works." Android or WIndows users will however be missing out on a number of features and are probably best served by other options.One final point - the case that these headphones come with is a horrible joke. Given how carefully designed and engineered the headphones are the case is head scratchingly awful. It feels nice and is made of decent material but it does a very poor job of covering the headphones. I would imagine that everyone who buys Airpods Max will instantly also buy a proper third party hard case to go with them. No idea what Apple were thinking there but the included case is quite literally nearly pointless as an actual case.All in all, are the Airpods Max worth the (relative to the competition) very expensive price? Value is obviously a subjective thing but in terms of build quality, ease of use, convenience and most importantly audio quality these far exceed all of the competition. For me personally they're definitely worth the price and I genuinely find it hard to put them down. 9.5/10 for the Airpods Max, 2/10 at most for the pointless included "case."

Music will understand the importance of picking a new set of headphones, in most cases these will be living on your head for two to three thousand plus hours over the years that you will own them. For the last year and a half I have been using Sony WH1000XM5s (XM5s) as my daily headphones and have racked up 1400 hours on them so far. Two weeks ago I switched these out for a pair of Apple AirPods Max. Here’s my honest thoughts of the two, and my recommendation for which you should buy.# Noise CancellingWhen comparing the noise cancellation the AirPods Max have the clear win, with both excellent cancellation of constant noises such as the drone of an airplane and sporadic noises such as cars, passers by etc which most lower end noise cancelling headphones struggle with. The XM5s feature some seriously impressive noise cancelling, which is a very close second to the AirPods Max. The AirPods Max take the win here due to much better cancellation of wind noises.# Transparency ModeFor me, transparency mode is just as, if not more important than noise cancellation. I love being able to enjoy the listening experience of a premium pair of headphones such as the AirPods Max or XM5s while being able to hear discussions around me at work and not be completely isolated. The transparency algorithms on the AirPods Max and XM5s have clearly taken different approaches here. Both have crystal clear transparency when indoors or in a quiet environment, with the AirPod Max’s having a slight edge over the XM5s - but as with noise cancellation, wind causes problems here. When the wind picks up, the XM5s take the approach of attempting to replicate the wind, which can be overwhelming but is just an amplified version of reality. The AirPods Max take the opposite approach by reducing the wind noise, and almost blocking it out entirely in most cases, which means that all other sounds passed through are muffled. This leaves a strange semi-transparent experience. I personally prefer the approach taken by the XM5 of letting it all in, but this preference will vary person to person.# Sound QualityWhile neither of these headphones will be replicating studio quality wired headphones due to the fact that most users will be connecting wirelessly, there is no debate here - both the AirPods Max and XM5s qualify as some of the best headphones you can buy. Out of the box the AirPods Max put the XM5s to shame, giving a much more hifi-esque and balanced sound profile. The XM5s have a much more bass leaning sound profile. The XM5s allow users to specify a custom EQ using the Sony Connect app, which is when the XM5s start to shine and get very close to the AirPods Max. I am by no means an audiophile but both headphones are phenomenal after reducing the bass then increasing the mid and higher ranges of the XM5s EQ - although the AirPods Max always seem to have a ”wider” sound. This is most likely due to their 40mm drivers compared to the XM5s 30mm drivers. It is worth noting that Apple has recently added support for true lossless audio to the Apple AirPods Max, which requires a USB C to USB C cable to be connected from the headphones to a compatible Apple device.# Build QualityThere is no discussion or competition to be had here, the AirPods Max are a premium, extremely well built pair of headphones as would be expected from Apple. The XM5s feel well put together, but use a fully plastic construction that does not feel comparable to the AirPods Max’s metal build - the AirPods Max are as hefty as their price tag. The only area of build quality that Sony has won here is the carry case. The XM5 case feels premium and protects the headphones well, compressing slightly when not in use. The AirPods max case does not even cover the headband and feels out of place when compared to the quality of the headphones, leaving users disappointed and often buying a third party case.# SoftwareIf you have an Apple device - which you almost have to if you are considering the AirPods Max then you will be sufficiently impressed by how easy the AirPods Max are to set up and use. To connect these for the first time you have to take them out of the case, put them on and Apples magic will connect them to your iPhone automatically. This is taken to the next level when you also use a Mac, iPad, Apple Watch or Apple TV, with the headphones automatically and seamlessly switching depending on the device you are using. The best software feature of the AirPods Max is spatial audio, transforming stereo to a surround experience which can be further enhanced with head tracking powered by the AirPods Max’s built in accelerometers and gyroscope. This is where the tricks end for the AirPods Max, but the XM5s have a whole host of additional features. The Sony Connect app is great, and has gotten significantly better in the year and a half that I have been using these headphones. The app boasts features such as a usage tracker that logs your listening hours and a noise level monitor for hearing protection. The XM5s also support Sonys version of spatial audio but this is limited to certain music providers and I haven’t had the chance to try this out. One of the most useful features of the XM5 is their speak-to-chat feature, which automatically pauses noise cancelling, and your music whenever the headset detects you speaking, to allow you to have a conversation. The headphones will even resume playback and noise cancelling once you are done.# ControlsThe AirPods Max feature two controls: an extremely nice to use digital crown for playback control, as featured on the Apple Watch, and a button to toggle between transparency mode and noise cancellation. Everyone loves to complain about the lack of power button on the AirPods Max but in all honesty - I don’t care, don’t miss it and haven’t noticed any issues yet. The XM5s, once again, go in the other direction from the AirPods and feature a power button and transparency / noise cancelling toggle button on the left ear cup and a touch pad on the right ear cup. The touch pad is fairly responsive and allows for playback control. The touch pad also enables a pretty cool feature where holding your palm over the ear cup switches from noise cancellation to transparency mode and reduces the volume of your music to almost silent until you take your hand away.# Battery LifeThe XM5s will get about 30 hours with a mix of transparency mode and noise cancellation from personal experience. The AirPods Max will do about 20 hours in the same conditions. It is worth noting that the XM5s seem to charge much quicker than the AirPods Max. Charging from 10% to 90% on the XM5s will take about 20 minutes whereas the AirPods Max will take about 50 minutes - both using a 100W charger which is more than either of these headphones is capable of accepting.# PriceThe price will make this an easy choice for most buyers here. The XM5s are £299 and the AirPods Max are £499 (both RRP). To worsen this price difference the XM5s are frequently on sale for £229-£249 with the AirPods Max on sale much less often.# ConclusionLets be honest, if you are invested in the Apple ecosystem, you are probably almost decided on the AirPods Max; but I want you to consider both headphones here carefully. The Sony XM5s and the Apple AirPods Max are really fighting it out here and are very comparable, but take two different approaches to being top tier headphones. If you want feature packed headphones that are function over form, go for the XM5s. If quality, looks and Apple magic are what you are looking for, its an easy win for the AirPods Max. I did struggle to decide myself; I am fortunate enough to be able to choose from both and I do find myself going for the AirPods Max most of the team due to the better sound quality / noise cancelling and their stylish it girl design, but still lean towards the XM5s for longer listening sessions due to their lightweight build. Either way, you’ve chosen an excellent pair of headphones.

I was hesitant about the price at first, but after using the AirPods Max, I can confidently say they're worth the investment. The sound quality is phenomenal – rich, balanced, and incredibly immersive. Whether I’m listening to music, watching films, or taking calls, the audio is crystal clear with deep bass and crisp highs.The noise cancellation is outstanding, cutting out background noise effortlessly, and the transparency mode is equally impressive when I need to stay aware of my surroundings. The spatial audio feature adds an entirely new dimension to movies and music – it truly feels like you're in the middle of the action.They’re also surprisingly comfortable for long listening sessions, with the memory foam ear cushions and breathable mesh headband offering a secure yet light fit. USB-C charging is a welcome addition, and the battery life has easily kept up with my daily use.Overall, these headphones deliver in every category – sound, comfort, design, and features. If you're an Apple user looking for top-tier wireless headphones, these are a fantastic choice.