Wireless earbuds are more affordable now than ever, making them easily accessible to younger consumers tired of headphones smashing their ears or wired earbuds getting all tangled up. As a millennial growing up with flimsy wired earbuds, omitting cables from their design was a welcome change for me.
The premium wireless earbuds market is mostly dominated by theAppleAirPods, with offerings from Bose, Sony, and Samsung trailing behind. These earbuds offer a punchy yet balanced sound profile with exceptional noise cancellation and a few gimmicks sprinkled in for good measure.
Right now, you’re able to buy Apple’s best wireless earbuds, theAirPods Pro second generation, for $170 instead of their regular price of $250. With rumors of Apple working on the third generation of the Pro AirPods, this might be a good time to snag this deal, as we all know Apple will probably slap a high price tag on its latest and greatest products.
Why Buy The Apple AirPods Pro Second Generation?
The first-generation non-Pro AirPods were Apple’s first-ever wireless earbuds with a revolutionary and somewhat polarizing design. The AirPods Pro 2 follows the same design language and has a plastic charging case with USB-C and wireless charging.
You can also charge them with an Apple Watch charger or anyQi-certified one. The buds themselves are also made of durable plastic, which don’t feel heavy or bothersome when worn. They stay in place if you’re doing physical exercise such as running or walking. The buds come with rubber tips and have extra tips of other sizes in the box. The buds, along with the charging case, have IP54 dust and water resistance, so light splashes shouldn’t worry you much.
You can control the audio by pressing the stem of the buds, and they also have some touch gesture controls as well. One press pauses a track while a double press skips a track. A long press activates Siri, and sliding your finger over the stem controls the volume.
The buds come equipped with a few bells and whistles, like mapping the audio according to your ear shape. There’sspatial audio, which adjusts with your head movement, which adds a whole new dimension to the sound. It can detect you speaking to someone else and lowers the volume, and lets in more ambient sound so that you may hear the person you’re talking to. This is a step up from the regular transparency mode you get in these earbuds and others in the segment.
All these won’t matter much if the audio quality isn’t up to par. Thankfully, the highs and lows are balanced, while the vocals are crisp and clear. There’s enough bass and oomph that the average consumer won’t have much to complain about.
The ANC provides a seclusion from ambient noises, which is a top priority for commuters. Very few earbuds havenoise cancellation as good as Apple’s, making them worthy of their price tag. You can personalize your listening experience in more ways than you can imagine with the AirPods Pro 2, which makes them a no-brainer if you have a sub-$200 budget.
