108 MACWORLD DECEMBER 2021
PLAYLIST AIRPODS VS. AIRPODS PROalerts. The 3rd-gen AirPods and AirPods
Pro also support Announce Notifications,
which lets Siri dictate important messages
and alerts as they arrive.
BATTERY LIFE
The 2nd-gen AirPods last five hours, and
you can charge them up about four times
with the charging case for a total of 24
hours of listening time. The AirPods Pro
have similar battery life, but you’ll lose
about half an hour if you have noise
cancellation enabled.
The 3rd-gen AirPods extend that
listening time by an hour for six hours of
time, and with four more charges in the
case, you get a total of 30 hours.
WIRELESS CHARGING
With the launch of the 3rd-gen AirPods,
Apple only sells the 2nd-generation
AirPods with a wired case, but you can
buy a wireless charging case for $79. The
3rd-gen and AirPods Pro both come with a
wireless charge case that lets you charge
via Lightning, any Qi wireless charger, or
MagSafe.
BOTTOM LINE
The three AirPods models Apple offers
are very different. If you don’t care about
wireless charging, the 2nd-gen AirPods for
$129 are a good option. They won’t sound
quite as good or last quite as long as the
3rd-gen AirPods, but they’re a good
affordable choice. If wireless charging
matters, definitely get the 3rd-gen AirPods,
since buying the charging case with the
2nd-gen AirPods will actually cost $20
more than the 3rd-gen AirPods. And finally,
the main reason to get the AirPods Pro is
noise cancellation.
We think the 3rd-gen AirPods are the
best buy. They’re technically cheaper
than the 2nd-gen AirPods with a wireless
charging case and come with a slew of
new features. They have better battery
life and should sound incredible. Plus
you get spatial audio, Adaptive EQ, and
a nicer design. The AirPods Pro are a
great choice if you want noise
cancellation, but we caution that there
are rumors Apple is going to release a
new model in the first half of 2022. ■You can buy a wireless charging case for your
2nd-generation AirPods.