The AirPods Max 2 are a great sequel, but not an ambitious one
It's been over five years since the original AirPods Max came out. A minor hardware update in 2024 brought new colors and changed the Lightning port to USB-C (to meet EU regulations), and an update last year added lossless audio and ultra-low latency. But a new version was still well overdue.
The $549 AirPods Max 2 sound incredible thanks to a new built-in amp, the internal chip has been upped from the H1 to the H2, and noise-canceling performance competes against the best Sony and Bose have to offer.
But the AirPods Max 2 are an upgrade, not a reimagining. They look identical to the first-gen AirPods Max, and have many of the same problem …