AirPods 4 - A Much Bigger Upgrade Than I Expected
So these are the AirPods 4 and initially I didn’t think much of them, but these are actually a huge upgrade over previous AirPods, you can get them with active noise cancelation which honestly performs a lot better than I expected, and I think that its safe to say that the AirPods 4 are going to be replacing my AirPods Pro 2. So whether you’re an iPhone or an android user lets see what the AirPods 4’s with ANC are all about, and we’re also going to see how they compare to 2024’s latest ANC Earbuds.
So first theres price, the AirPods 4 without ANC retail for $130 and the AirPods 4 with ANC retail for $180. Honestly, I think that that’s not bad at all and for comparison sake the AirPods Pro 2 retail for $250 an the Beats Studio Buds Plus retail for $170. Now we’re going to be comparing the AirPods 4 to a lot of other earbuds today, but if you want to pick any of these earbuds up they’ll be linked down below, or you can always press on the YouTube shopping button.
So first we have to talk about the case, cause whether you get the version with ANC or without, I feel that this case is a big deal. Now apple has always had some of the smallest cases out there for their earbuds and I have always really loved a small case cause it just makes it super easy for every day carry. Now at first glance this case looks identical to the AirPods 3’s case, but surprisingly, this case is a little smaller. Thickness and hightwise they are the same, but the older case is a little wider than the AirPods 4’s case. And overall, the AirPods 4’s case is smaller than the original AirPods case cause it has a smaller footprint, and more importantly its smaller than the AirPods Pro 2’s case and the Beats Studio Buds Plus case just looks like a giant compared to the AirPods 4’s case. So overall, I cant stress how amazed I am that apple managed to shrink the AirPods 4’s case even more… cause it just make its super conviente for everyday carry, and other cases out there from other companies just struggle to compare to the AirPods 4’s new case.
And if you were to go with the AirPods 4’s with active noise cancelation like we have here, then this case also has a built in speaker like the AirPods Pro 2’s case, so for when you eventually lose your earbuds, not only are you going to be able to use the Find My network to track down your earbuds and your case, the speaker is also going to help you find it. And again, this adds to why im amazed that apple managed to shrink this case from the AirPods 3’s case cause its not just smaller, they also crammed in a speaker.
And when it comes to charging the AirPods 4’s case, it charges via a USB C port which is to be expected now cause apple has finally caved and everything is going to USB C… but also, the AirPods 4’s case has wireless charnging so you can throw it on any qi wireless charging mat… or you can charge it up with your Apple Watch’s charger just like how you can with the AirPods Pro 2. And this is another upgrade from the Airpods 3 case, cause yes it does have wireless charnging… but you cant charge it with your apple watch charger. And I feel that simply having options is nice. And then there are the Beats Studio Buds Plus, and this case is just huge and it doesn’t have wireless charnging.
But then theres the battery life on these earbuds. Now both the AirPods 4 and the AirPods 3 have a combined battery life of 30 hours if you use the AirPods 4 with their ANC turned off. However, the AirPods 4 have a little less stamina than the AirPods 3. With the AirPods 3 they can go for as long as 6 hours… where as with the AirPods 4 they can go for as long as 5 hours with their ANC turned off. Now personally I dont think that this 1 hours difference is a huge deal, but you’ll might want to be mindful of that. And with Active Noise Cancletion turned on, the AirPods 4 can go for as long as 4 hours.
And when we compare the AirPods 4 to the AirPods Pro 2’s… the AirPods Pro 2 have a combined battery life of 30 hours with their ANC turned on… and the AirPods Pro 2 can go for as long as 6 hours with their ANC turned… versus the 4 hours on the AirPods 4’s. And with the AirPods Pro 2 you can get them to last longer if you use them with their ANC turned off.
So overall, the battery life to case size ratio on the AirPods 4 with ANC is great cause this case is very small and its packed with features, and a combined battery life of 30 hours with ANC turned off is great. However, the stamina on the AirPods 4’s is little less than the stamina on the AirPods 3’s, but I think its negligible give the case improvements… but the AirPods Pro 2’s are going to give you a considerably better battery life cause they have a combined battery life of 30 hours with their ANC turned on… and you can get more out of them if you use them with their ANC turned off.. however, you are going to have to carry around a larger case than the AirPods 4’s… but it could be worth it to some people… plus the AirPods Pro 2’s case is still super small when compared to other cases out there.
But with the case out of the way, lets talk about the ear buds themselves… and again at first glance the AirPods 4’s earbuds looks very similar to the AirPods 3’s earbuds… but there are some big upgrades here as well. The sculpt of the AirPods 4 has been changed from the AirPods 3, the AirPods 4 are a little flatter, the hight is little shorter and the mouth is a little longer. So the result is, I feel the AirPods 4 do a better job of creating a seal with your ear canals without actually having to go into your ear canals like with in ear earbuds… so as a result, the AirPods 4 do a slightly better job of passively blocking out noise than the AirPods 3… now the difference in amount of noise being blocked out isn’t huge… but it is there. But more importantly, I think the AirPods 4 feel more comfortable than the AirPods 3 cause they feel a little less bulky. But since these earbuds dont actually go into your ear canals like the AirPods Pro 2 or like with many other in ear earbuds out there, these aren’t going to passively block out as much noise, so your music isn’t going to sound as good and noise pollution is still going to manage to get in. But comfort wise, I prefer these other in ear earbuds, and they still offer great lock down without needing ear fins, so they don't wiggle out all that easily. And the fact that these don't have ear fins is good cause that contributes to them having such a small case. Overall the AirPods 4 are a comfortable pair of earbuds for causal use.
Now when it comes to connectivity, the AirPods 4 work with both iPhone and android devices, but the AirPods 4 are going to work best when use with an iPhone. As soon as you connect these earbuds to your iPhone, they are going to automatically connect to all of your other apple devices associated to your iCloud account, so you can easily hot swap between all of your apple devices. So if you have an iPhone you can easily switch to your Mac or iPad.
But more importantly, each earbuds eastblisehes a connection with your device so if you want you can use just one earbud at a time, and you can use either one it doesn’t matter. And I know that this sounds super basic, but apple has been doing this since day one with their original AirPods, and I took multiple years for the rest of the competion to get this right. And from a perfoamcen standpoint, again this sounds very basic but latency is not an issue so you can watch movies or videos on your phone.
But with all of that out of the way lets talk about sound, and well, the AirPods 4 sound just as you’d a expect of non in ear earbuds to sound. The AirPods 4 have a very bass heavy sound signature and the bass on these earbuds hit very hard. And the vocals on these earbuds are also very well pronounced so that they can cut through all of the bass. The highs on these earbuds are also well controlled so they never get tinny and more importantly, the highs never get ear piercing. Overall, the AirPods 4 sound more than good enough to get the job done, they get decently loud and they are great for casual listening or while at the gym. However, even though these earbuds sound decently open, the instrumentals on these earbuds aren’t as pronounced as with in ear earbuds. But the AirPods 4 do have spacial audio, and with spacial audio turned on these earbuds open up and the instuemtnals are able to come out. Now the AirPods 4 are able to do the whole head tracking thing, but I dont like it, I honestly think that its pointless, so I do use spacial audio on these earbuds, but while its set to fixed. But then theres also the fact the AirPods 4’s are simply just going to always let in a good amount of noise pollution cause they aren’t in ear earbuds… So overall, yes the AirPods 4 sound good and they have a lot of bass. Therye great for watching videos or movies, listening to podcasts, and lisnteing to music while you work out. However, if you want better sound quality then you are better off going with a pair of in ear ear buds cause they will passively block out noise pollution and they will allow you to more easily hear the finer details in the instrumentals. But im not mad at these earbuds.
But then there are the media controls on the AirPod 4, now just like before you have your stems that you can squeeze so you can play or pause your music, you can skip through your music and so that you can answer your phones calls. Overall these stems get the job done, but I do feel that its a little awkward to squeeze them. But the main thing that I really miss on these AirPods 4 is that you cant swipe up or down on these stems to adjust the volume how you can on the AirPods Pro 2. But besides that, everything else is the same, there are proximity sensors so they’ll automatically pause your music when you take them out and they have Hey Siri support so you can activate Siri with just your voice. However, with the AirPods 4 you can just say Siri, where as with the AirPods 3 you have to say Hey Siri. And the AirPods 4 have head gestures so you can answer or reject calls by nodding yes or no… and peronsally im indifferent about this feature… it could be useful in small situations where you need to answer the phone and your hands are full.
But then theres the active noise cancelation on the AirPods 4 and quit honestly, the ANC on the AirPods 4 has me very excited for the AirPods Pro 3, cause the AirPods 4 block out a lot of noise, even though they aren’t in ear ear earbuds.
Now when it comes to my 2024 ANC earbuds ranking list, in first place we have the Sennhesier momentum 4 which block out a ton of noise, but they also go in super deep into your ear canals. right below them are the AirPods Pro 2 which are a lot more comfortable. Below them are the Sony WF-1000XM5’s which aren’t as comfy cause of their foam ear tips, right below them are the Bose QC earbuds, below them are the AirPods 4 and below them are the Bose QC Ultra earbuds.
Then right below them are the Sony Linkbuds S, below them are the Pixel Buds 2 pro, below them are the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 Pro, followed by the Galaxy Buds 2 pro, below them are the Galaxy Buds 3, below them are the Sony Linkbuds Fit, below them are the Galaxy Buds 3 and below them are the Beats Studio Buds Plus.
So obviously, these aren’t all of the ANC earbuds on the market cause there are a lot, but I think that these are some of the most important ones for late 2024. And more importantly, the ANC on the AirPods 4 is super impressive and it manages to block out more noise than a lot of other in ear earbuds out there… and the AirPods 4 simply embarrasses the Galaxy Buds 3 which also aren’t in ear ear buds, and they dont block out anywhere near as much noise as the AirPods 4.
And also, the ANC one the AirPods 4 doesn’t change how your music sounds and theres also very little cabin pressure, these actually have less cabin pressure than the AirPods 2 Pro. The only thing that I do have to point out tho is, there is a slight hint of a buffering… almost as when you’re in the car with the windows open on the high way. Its very minimal and it doesn’t happen all of the time, but I really hope that apple is able to adjust this through a firmware update… but nonetheless, the AirPods 4 manage to block out a lot of noise even though they aren’t in ear earbuds and they have me really excited for the AirPods Pro 3.
And then theres the ambient mode on the AirPods 4, and this is another thing that apple has always done very well cause the ambient mode on the AirPods 4 sounds like you dont even have earbuds in your ears and the microphone array on these earbuds does a really good job of rejecting wind noise when walking out doors. The only thing is, I doesn’t seem like the AirPods 4 have an active ambient mode, cause these just let in everything, unlike the AirPods Pro 2… and also, the AirPods 4 aren’t going to be able to be used as hearing aids like with the AirPods Pro 2. But nonetheless, the Ambient Mode on the AirPods 4 is awesome, it sounds like you’re not even wearing earbuds, peoples voices are easy to understand, and their micprohne array does a great job of blocking out wind noise.
And finally heres the microphone test, and this is another thing where apple has always done very well. They want their earbuds to be super convientnet. Now the mcriphoen on the AirPods 3 sounds pretty decent while in a quite room.
Mic Beats Quiet
Now the microphone on the Beats Studio Buds Plus also sounds pretty good… but I cant help but feel that this microphone sounds a little shallower than the mic on the AirPods 3.
Mic AirPods 4 Quite
But then theres the mcirphoen on the AirPods 4 and this microphone has noticeable better clarity than the Mic on both the AirPods 3 and Beats Studio Buds Plus.
Mic AirPods Pro 2 Quiet
And then theres the mcirphoen on the AirPods Pro 2 and these sound and perform identical to the mic on the AirPods 4.
Mic AirPods Pro 2 Road Noise
Cause both the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 do a really good job of dealing with noise pollution.
Mic AirPods 4 Road Noise
Cause with both the AirPods Pro 2 and the AirPods 4, these are doing a really good job of blocking out all of this road noise. Cause for comparison sake, if we were to switch over to my lapel mciphone, you’re going to clearly hear all of this road noise, but if we were to switch back over to the AirPods 4, it is severely reduced and my voice still sounds great.
Mic Beats Studio Buds PLus Road Noise
Now the Beats Studio Buds Plus also does a good job of reducing all of this rod noise, however, they aren’t doing as good of a job as either the AirPods Pro 2 or the AirPods 4.
Mic AirPods 3 Road Nosie
And then there are the AirPods 3 which are reducing this road noise and you can still easily understand me, but there is a noticeable amount of road noise in the background.
Mic AirPods 3 chatter
But when it comes to blocking out chatter, there is a considerable amount of interference going on with my voice and theres a good amount of chatter in the background.
Mic Beats Chatter
Where as with the Beats Studio Buds Plus, these are blocking out a lot of all of this chatter, however my voice sounds very pushed down and muffled.
Mic AirPods Pro 2 chatter
And then there are the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 which also block out a lot of chatter, but they also like to push down on your voice.
Mic AirPods 4 Chatter
But I feel that these have a little more clarity than the beats studio buds plus. And again for comparison sake, if we were to switch over to my lapel microphone you’re going to clearly hear all of this chatter, but if we were to switch back over to the AirPods 4, it is severely reduced. So overall, yes the AirPods 4 have a better sounding and better performing microphone for phone calls than the AirPods 3. But the microphone on the AirPods 4 sounds and performs the same as the mic on the AirPods Pro 2. Overall, this is a great sounding microphone for phone calls and you can get away with a lot of noise pollution.
But with all of that being said, the AirPods 4 are a big upgrade than I expected and these are perhaps the most convientne earbuds that apple has ever made. Personally, I was shocked to see that the AirPods 4’s have smaller case than the AirPods 3’s, and if you have the ANC version like I do than you’re going to have a built in speaker which does come in clutch, plus you can now charge it with your apple watch charger. Yes, you do have to sacrifice a little bit of battery life stamina, but the AirPods 4 still have an incredible battery life to case size ratio.
And even though the AirPods 4 aren’t in ear earbuds, they manage to block out a ton of noise, more noise than some in ear earbuds out there. And since they aren’t in ear earbuds, they’re more comfortable. But thanks to their new sculpt, these earbuds offer better lockdown than the AirPods 3’s and they also passively block out a little more noise pollution. The AirPods 4 also have a super clear ambient mode that sounds like you’re not even wearing earbuds and they also have a great sounding microphone for phone calls and they block out a lot of noise pollution.
The only thing is, given the nature of their fit, these earbuds are still going to let in noise pollution, so you music isn’t going to sound as good as with a pair of in ear earbuds. And like with more earbuds that rest in the bowl of your ears, the AirPods 4 have a very bass heavy sound signature. But regardless the the AirPods 4 sound great and since these earbuds are a lot more comfortable than in ear earbuds, combined with their small case and long battery life, the AirPods 4’s are perhaps the most conviennte earbuds on the market today.