Apple after years of hesitation has launched its first ever over the ear headphone a week ago and as usual, the internet is all eyes on the tech giant’s debut in the segment. Sticking to its nomenclature and the style of pricing, Apple’s new venture is named AirPods Max and is priced at $549. That said, has Apple really reimagined the over-ear headphone experience in full as they claim? Let’s quickly walk through the design elements.
A lot of comparisons were due to be drawn to its subsidiary, Beats Electronics for Apple’s new venture to the Bluetooth earphone segment. However, Apple has cleverly (?) dismissed every such question right off the bat. Apple continues to flaunt its iconic style of glossy and anodized aluminum design even in the new Apple AirPods Max which by far looks the best in the segment ever!
Earcups
The curved rectangle shaped look adds to the list of critics’ often quoted Apple’s obsession with ‘rectangular boxes’. Yet, the memory foam and the magnetically attached earcups are a sight to behold for anyone loving the aesthetic senses that Apple has managed to cultivate in the audience’s minds. And to be honest, on this front, Apple is the clear pioneer and none in the industry claim to have bettered it.
Digital Crown
Quite literally Apple’s modern day crown is packed in AirPods Max too. Just as in the Apple Watch, the Crown in the control switch helping the users with the management of audio tracks, volume control and also comes in handy with Siri activation. All of it comes with a slight whizz of your single finger.
The question of precision is already out of the debate as Apple Watch users know the level of comfort the Digital Crown offers and with twice of the watch’s Digital Crown size, the AirPods Max is sure to provide an experience like none before.
Headband aka Canopy
Sweetly named the Canopy, Apple has truly reimagined the look of the headphone temples (headbands). Usually made of plastics and fiber for lightweight and malleability, these thin strips of plastic bars have long been the spoilers of the overall aesthetics of headphones. But the Canopy in Apple AirPods Max have marked the change in trend.
The canopy is a lightweight and yet a durably knit mesh with its elegance beaming on a stainless steel frame. The arms between the headband and the earcups are adjusted just like a telescope to provide a firm and a comfortable fit on your ears.
Case
Though every element discussed above were all new to the world of audios, we promise, this probably is the most innovative (?) and certainly the most talked about design element of Apple AirPods Max. The case, was a viral hit moments after the pics were first released.
The case for AirPods Max is designed to protect your earcups meanwhile exposing your headband (fondly named as Canopy) unprotected. Though we may know the durability of the canopy only after few months, the internet was abuzz with drawing parallels to a woman’s purse or as even some felt as a bra, the reception was quite noisier than expected. As for the reimagination, full marks to Apple on this without a doubt! More on the performance, audio quality, 20 hour battery life, and other promises of Apple are yet to be tested after Apple’s debut on Dec 15, 2020. Stay glued with Techmye for further updates!
