In Apple’s iPhone 16 event, the latest batch of smartphones weren’t all the company announced. Apple is also refreshing its AirPods lineup, bringing new colors and/or features to its set of earbuds and headphones. There are new AirPods 4, AirPods 4 with active noise cancellation, and a lighter refresh of Apple’s over-the-ear AirPods Max headphones. All of the new models are available to preorder now (see them at Amazon), with a release date of September 20. Let’s take a look.
AirPods 4
The baseline AirPods 4 look similar to the previous models, but with shorter stems. Apple says it has lightly redesigned them to be more comfortable for a wider range of ear shapes. The charging case is also smaller and lighter this time around.
In terms of new features, AirPods 4 offer Personalized Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking, which makes it seem like sounds are coming from the direction of your device when using it with a Mac, iPhone, or iPad. It’s pretty cool. Driving these features is Apple’s H2 chip, which Apple says offers better sound overall, whether you’re talking on the phone, using FaceTime, playing a game, or listening to music or a podcast.
AirPods 4 Active Noise Cancellation
The $179 Active Noise Cancellation model has all of the features of the baseline AirPods 4, plus a few extras to justify its $50 price bump. The first and most obvious is active noise cancellation, a feature previously only found in AirPods Pro and AirPods Max. Active noise cancellation senses the sounds in your environment and uses Apple’s H2 chip to actively neutralize it in real time. It remains to be seen how well it works without any kind of seal to help shut out the noise around you, but I can attest that it’s a great feature on AirPods Pro, anyway.
Also like AirPods Pro, this model offers adaptive audio that turns up the volume when you’re in a noisy environment. It also offers a transparency mode for when you want to listen to the world around you, and conversation awareness that automatically lowers the volume of what you’re listening to when it hears someone talking nearby.
The case for this model also features wireless charging, which is always handy for anyone with a MagSafe charger, or any other compatible Qi-certified charger. It also has location tracking via the Find My app, and a speaker that can make noise (via the same app) if you lose them.
AirPods Max
Apple’s AirPods Max didn’t get quite the same level of makeover as the earbuds did. This subtle refresh offers USB-C charging, plus a fresh lineup of color options. The new colors are called Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple, and Orange. Other than that, they’re the same, with active noise cancellation, excellent sound quality, and all the other features they’ve had for years.
Save on Previous Models of AirPods
- AirPods (2nd Gen) - $89 (MSRP $129)
- AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) - $189.99 (MSRP $250)
- AirPods Max - $449 (MSRP $549)
If you can live without the newest models, you can save quite a bit on some of the previous models of AirPods and AirPods Max. In fact, there are quite a few AirPods deals available now that will ship even sooner than when the new batch launches.
Chris Reed is a commerce editor and deals expert for IGN. He also runs IGN's board game and LEGO coverage. You can follow him on Threads.
