Apple AirPods 4 vs Apple EarPods (USB-C)

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

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AirPods 4 compared with EarPods (USB-C)

	AppleAirPods 4	AppleEarPods (USB-C)
Overview
Released
Released	September 2024	September 2023
Sound
Type
Type	Open-ear	Open-ear
Noise cancelling
Noise cancelling	No	No
Transparency mode
Transparency mode	No	–
Spatial audio with head tracking
Spatial audio with head tracking	Yes	–
Bluetooth codecs
Bluetooth codecs	SBC and AAC	None (wired)
Lossless over USB-C
Lossless over USB-C	No	Yes
Chip
Chip	H2	–
Drivers
Drivers	Custom high-excursion Apple driver and custom high dynamic range amplifier	–
Audio features
Audio features	Personalised Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking; Adaptive EQ; Voice Isolation; lossless audio with Apple Vision Pro	Lossless audio over USB-C (TechRadar); Apple does not publish supported bit depths or sample rates on its product page
Battery
Listening time (maker's claim)
Listening time (maker's claim)	Up to 5 hours	No battery (wired)
With the case
With the case	Up to 30 hours	–
Wireless charging
Wireless charging	No	–
Charging case
Charging case	Charging Case (USB-C), charged by USB-C cable only	–
Fast charging
Fast charging	5 minutes in the case gives around 1 hour of listening	–
Design
Headphone cable
Headphone cable	–	No
Weight (each earbud)
Weight (each earbud)	4.3 g	–
Water and sweat resistance
Water and sweat resistance	IP54	–
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	5.3	–
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	Inline remote for volume, music and video playback, and answering or ending calls
Microphones
Microphones	Dual beamforming microphones and an inward-facing microphone; speech-detecting accelerometer	Inline microphone
Fit and ear tips
Fit and ear tips	Open-ear design with no ear tips	Non-sealing earbuds with a fixed shape and no ear tips
Case weight
Case weight	32.3 g	–
Water resistance detail
Water resistance detail	IP54 (IEC 60529) for the AirPods and charging case	Apple states protection from sweat and water but does not publish an IP rating
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	USB-C Macs with macOS Monterey 12.6 or later; USB-C iPads with iPadOS 16.4 or later; USB-C iPhones with iOS 17 or later
Colours
Colours	White	White
In the box
In the box	AirPods 4 and Charging Case (USB-C), documentation; USB-C cable sold separately	EarPods with USB-C Connector