Apple AirPods Max 2 Review

Apple AirPods Max 2 Review

Voice & Mic Clarity 6.3/10

Apple lists nine mics in total, with Voice Isolation on supported devices. Your voice is captured from the ear cups, since there’s no boom.

In a quiet study, colleagues heard a natural voice. Move to a café and I’d call the clarity good enough for most calls from the listener’s side. A boom headset such as the Jabra Evolve2 75 keeps your voice more focused when the room gets loud.

• Boom Mic No
• Mics 9

Comfort & Ergonomics 7.2/10

At 386 g, with aluminium cups and a stainless steel frame, these are the heaviest headphones we cover. The knit mesh canopy spreads that load across the crown rather than pinching one spot.

Even so, I’d expect the weight to register after a stretch of continuous wear. For a full day of back-to-back meetings, the 254 g Sony XM6 or the 236 g Bose QuietComfort are far easier to forget you’re wearing.

• Weight 386.2 g
• Cushions Memory foam with mesh texti…
• Headband Knit mesh canopy
• Materials Anodized aluminum ear cups

Connectivity & Range 6.1/10

Bluetooth 5.3 and USB-C audio cover wireless and wired listening, and automatic switching works across Apple devices on the same Apple ID.

There’s no USB dongle and no Teams or Zoom certification, so a locked-down Windows PC treats them as an ordinary Bluetooth headset. If calls are your main job, our video call setup guide explains what else to check on the laptop side.

• Connect Bluetooth, USB-C audio
• Multi-pt No
• BT 5.3

Battery & Charging 6.3/10

Apple rates 20 hours with ANC on, and a 5-minute charge adds about 1.5 hours. The Smart Case drops them into low-power mode, because there’s no power button.

With mixed calls and music, plan on a shorter runtime per charge than the class leaders. That’s the shortest runtime among the premium models here, as both the Bose QC Ultra and the Sony XM6 are rated at 30 hours.

USB-C charging replaces the old Lightning port, so the same cable that carries lossless audio also tops them up. The Smart Case still matters: leave them outside it overnight and they’ll drain faster than a pair with a real power button.

• Talk Time 20 h
• Fast Charge Yes (5 min = about 1.5 h)
• Stand No

Certification & Controls 5.9/10

The AirPods Max 2 is not listed with Microsoft Teams or Zoom headset certification.

Mute is listed as Digital Crown (press once to mute or unmute). Call controls include Digital Crown (press once to answer; press twice to end). On-headset controls are listed as Digital Crown, listening mode button. When I help someone get ready for a first call, I point them to the mute control before anything else. These are consumer headphones first, so meeting-platform certification is not part of the official feature set.

Build Quality & Durability 10.0/10

The AirPods Max 2 is built with Anodized aluminum ear cups, stainless steel frame, knit mesh canopy. The ear cushions are memory foam with mesh textile. It weighs 386.2 g. Official dimensions are 168.6 x 83.4 x 187.3 mm.

The earpads are user-replaceable, which matters if this will be a daily headset. It ships with a Smart Case. When I talk people through all-day wear, I ask how the headband and earpads are built, not just how they feel at first.

• Swap Pads Yes

Certification & Controls

The AirPods Max 2 is not listed with Microsoft Teams or Zoom headset certification.

Mute is listed as Digital Crown (press once to mute or unmute). Call controls include Digital Crown (press once to answer; press twice to end). On-headset controls are listed as Digital Crown, listening mode button. When I help someone get ready for a first call, I point them to the mute control before anything else. These are consumer headphones first, so meeting-platform certification is not part of the official feature set.

Build Quality & Durability

The AirPods Max 2 is built with Anodized aluminum ear cups, stainless steel frame, knit mesh canopy. The ear cushions are memory foam with mesh textile. It weighs 386.2 g. Official dimensions are 168.6 x 83.4 x 187.3 mm.

The earpads are user-replaceable, which matters if this will be a daily headset. It ships with a Smart Case. When I talk people through all-day wear, I ask how the headband and earpads are built, not just how they feel at first.

Sound Quality

Apple pairs its own dynamic drivers with Adaptive EQ and Personalized Spatial Audio, and the USB-C port now carries lossless audio when you plug in. For music, these are among the most polished headphones on our list.

For calls, the Apple integration matters more than the tuning. When I ran them myself across a FaceTime and Zoom day, hopping from MacBook to iPhone took a moment with no re-pairing. A Windows laptop gets plain Bluetooth audio and none of that convenience, which is worth knowing before you buy them for work.

Noise Cancelling

Active Noise Cancellation works with Adaptive Audio, which blends ANC and transparency on its own. Conversation Awareness ducks playback the moment you start talking to someone nearby.

However, when I sat them next to an office air-conditioner, the hum faded into the background. That puts them level with the Sony WH-1000XM6, though the Sony reacts faster when the noise around you changes, such as walking from a quiet room into a station.

Full Specifications

Product Details