A year ago today, Apple made AirPods Max available to purchase a week after announcing its first over-ear headphones via a press release on its website.
AirPods Max are Apple's first AirPods branded over-ear headphones and are undoubtedly a premium option for customers looking for over-ear headphones in the market. Rumors had initially indicated the headphones would be called "AirPods Studio," and their launch was deemed "imminent" for the majority of 2020.
AirPods Max feature a knit mesh canopy that's flexible to fit various head sizes. The headphones themselves are entirely metal, resulting in a heavy overall footprint. AirPods Max come in five colors: silver, space gray, pink, green, and sky blue.
Borrowing innovations from the Apple Watch, AirPods Max feature a Digital Crown for volume adjustment and a press to invoke Siri, as well as a Side Button for toggling on or off Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode. Like all AirPods and select Beats headphones, AirPods Max feature Apple's H1 chip, which powers tight integration with Apple devices, such as easy pairing and automatic device switching.
Priced at $549, AirPods Max are not an inexpensive purchase for customers, and other options such as Apple's own Beats line offer significantly more affordable over-ear headphones. Along with their hefty price tag, however, reviews of AirPods Max have been favorable, applauding the headphones for being "more than enough to compete with other high-end headphones."
AirPods Max have received some criticism, though, for the design of the "Smart Case" and poor battery life, the latter of which was patched by Apple in a software update.
AirPods Max initially saw very high demand that saw shipping estimates stretch out into months, but since the initial backlog was cleared, they've become much more readily available with third-party retailers sometimes even offering even discounts of $100 or more.
