Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation vs Apple AirPods Max (Lightning)

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AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation compared with AirPods Max (Lightning)

	AppleAirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation	AppleAirPods Max (Lightning)
Overview
Released
Released	September 2024	December 2020
Sound
Type
Type	Open-ear	Over-ear
Noise cancelling
Noise cancelling	Yes	Yes
Transparency mode
Transparency mode	Yes	Yes
Spatial audio with head tracking
Spatial audio with head tracking	Yes	Yes
Driver size
Driver size	–	40 mm
Bluetooth codecs
Bluetooth codecs	SBC and AAC	SBC and AAC
Lossless over USB-C
Lossless over USB-C	No	No
Chip
Chip	H2	H1
Drivers
Drivers	Custom high-excursion Apple driver and custom high dynamic range amplifier	Apple-designed dynamic drivers with dual neodymium ring magnet motors
Chip
Chip	–	H1 in each ear cup
Noise cancelling detail
Noise cancelling detail	Active Noise Cancellation with Adaptive Audio, Transparency mode and Conversation Awareness	Eight microphones for Active Noise Cancellation; Transparency mode
Audio features
Audio features	Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking; Adaptive EQ; Voice Isolation; Live Translation (with an iPhone 15 Pro or later running iOS 26 or later and Apple Intelligence); lossless audio with Apple Vision Pro	Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking; Adaptive EQ; Audio Sharing; AAC and SBC Bluetooth codecs (SoundGuys); analogue wired listening through a separately sold Lightning to 3.5 mm audio cable
Battery
Listening time (maker's claim)
Listening time (maker's claim)	Up to 4 hours	Up to 20 hours
With the case
With the case	Up to 20 hours	–
Wireless charging
Wireless charging	Yes	–
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Up to 5 hours per charge and 30 hours with the case with noise control off	Up to 20 hours of movie playback with Spatial Audio; Smart Case puts headphones in an ultra-low-power state; charging via Lightning
Charging case
Charging case	Charging Case (USB-C) with speaker for Find My; charges with a USB-C cable, Apple Watch charger or Qi-certified charger	–
Fast charging
Fast charging	5 minutes in the case gives around 1 hour of listening	Around 1.5 hours of listening after 5 minutes of charging
Design
Weight (each earbud)
Weight (each earbud)	4.3 g (better)	384.8 g
Water and sweat resistance
Water and sweat resistance	IP54	–
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	5.3	5.0
Headphone cable
Headphone cable	–	Yes
Controls
Controls	Force sensor on the stems (press once to play, pause or answer a call; twice to end a call or skip forward; three times to skip back; press and hold for Siri); “Hey Siri” or just “Siri”; Siri Interactions by nodding or shaking your head	Digital Crown for volume, playback, calls and Siri; listening mode button for ANC/Transparency; “Hey Siri”
Microphones
Microphones	Dual beamforming microphones and an inward-facing microphone; speech-detecting accelerometer	Nine microphones, three for voice pickup (two shared with ANC); optical, position and case-detect sensors and accelerometer in each cup, gyroscope in left cup
Fit and ear tips
Fit and ear tips	Open-ear design with no ear tips	Stainless steel frame, telescoping arms and knit mesh canopy; memory foam cushions; aluminium ear cups
Case weight
Case weight	34.7 g	134.5 g (Smart Case)
Dimensions
Dimensions	–	187.3 × 168.6 × 83.4 mm (height × width × depth), including cushions
Water resistance detail
Water resistance detail	IP54 (IEC 60529) for the AirPods and charging case	–
Works with
Works with	Full features with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, Apple TV and Apple Vision Pro on the latest software; works as Bluetooth headphones with other devices, with limited features	Apple devices with current iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS or tvOS; Bluetooth audio with older Apple software and non-Apple devices, with limited features
Colours
Colours	White	Space Grey, Silver, Sky Blue, Green, Pink
In the box
In the box	AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation and Charging Case (USB-C) with speaker, documentation; USB-C cable sold separately	AirPods Max, Smart Case, Lightning to USB-C cable, documentation