Apple has launched another premium product, at another premium price. Some people had had enough; here’s Twitter’s verdict on the AirPods Max.
There’s been speculation for years that Apple would launch its own-brand over-ear headphones, and so it has finally come to pass: the AirPods Max have some fancy features such as noise cancellation, Spatial Audio to create an effect similar to surround sound, and Adaptive EQ, which adjusts sound according to the fit and seal of the ear cushions.
But that’s just techy stuff, and of course no-one outside of Cupertino has really had the chance to really put the headphones to the test yet. So between the design and the price, the Twitter mob is going all in on lambasting Apple’s latest product.
The CEOs of Sony and Bose when they saw the AirPods Max pic.twitter.com/hUC5K5QrgT
— Josh (@js_11m) December 8, 2020
Tech influencer Marques Brownlee feigned tongue-in-cheek surprise that the new design didn’t pay homage to the in-ear AirPods design:
The original prototype for AirPods Max 😅 pic.twitter.com/9pnLX1bpuG
— Marques Brownlee (@MKBHD) December 8, 2020
But most critiques focused on the new carrying case for the luxury headphones. When stored inside, the headphones enter an ultra-low power mode which saves battery life, but some Twitter users clearly wouldn’t be seen dead carrying the new case.
Some say it resembles a leather handbag, which might not make it a great hit with the lads down the pub.
new @Apple airpods pro case looks amazing pic.twitter.com/UBFHx0XJsr
— Sergiy Voronov 🇺🇦 (@mamezito) December 8, 2020
And if you thought that was bad enough, others even claimed it looked more like a bra – with supporting evidence…
Well pic.twitter.com/N0ZlNWvAOL
— Phoenix CS Andrews 🏳️⚧️ (@pennyb) December 8, 2020
One particularly creative user decided it looks like a handbag, that itself looks like a bra. Meta.
new airpods max case looks exactly like my helmut lang bra purse pic.twitter.com/pRFwUW3LP9
— tsan (@tsantsai) December 8, 2020
But while any design is going to have some fans and some detractors, there’s one thing that seemed to unite the Twittersphere (a rarely-achieved feat indeed) and that was sheer horror at the £549 price tag.
Me looking at the AirPods Max price pic.twitter.com/g1cS3xDbO2
— philip lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) December 8, 2020
After the initial shock, the price comparisons started rolling in – and it wasn’t pretty. Sony’s new PS5 console has been flying off the shelves lately and all that next-gen gaming tech could be yours for around the same price as Apple’s new audio gimmick.
What are we doing Airpods Max or PS5? 🤯 Let that sink in… pic.twitter.com/vmLfparMt7
— Danny Winget (@superscientific) December 8, 2020
And if gaming’s not your thing, you could even buy yourself a cheap little run-around car for the same price as, I repeat, a pair of headphones.
AirPods Max vs. Celta 2001 🤔 pic.twitter.com/MGD8ZwYcP8
— Cauê Fabiano (@Cauefabiano) December 8, 2020
Class-conscious comparisons similar to those laid out in this year’s Oscar-winning film Parasite, also poured in:
"Sorry, I can't hear you. My AirPods Max automatically mute poor people." pic.twitter.com/SwDsPKNTKe
— Steve Kovach (@stevekovach) December 8, 2020
While fans also speculated as to the hidden features that such an expensive pair of headphones must surely boast in order to justify such a costly outlay:
$549 for the AirPods Max, I better be able to hear my loved ones in the afterlife.
— NUFF (@nuffsaidny) December 8, 2020
So what do you make of the headphones and the backlash they instantly generated across social media? Is it all a big fuss about nothing, or has Apple officially taken it too far this time? Let us know in the poll below.