Time to accept that $550 is a "fair" price

[The-Real-Deal82]

Agree. And same with most other products. Double the price on chef's knives doesn't get you double the sharpness or double the price of the car doesn't give you double the gas milage.

Apple's products are luxury products, meaning that you have to pay extra for materials, easy of use ect. Same with iPhones. You can get same results (ram, storage, screen resolution) with other products which are cheaper, but they often lack in categories, that some values more than others, like materials, design and usability. Some will call me crazy for paying double to get these "features" but for me, they are worth the extra price.

It just goes to show there is no right answer for everybody. The fact is if the person is happy with what they have bought, it was the right decision for them. Discussion on here are very circular as so many people like to insinuate that their preferences are ‘the best’ but nothing could be further from the truth. One persons £550 ‘best’ headphones are another persons ‘not first choice’ headphones. Who is right? Everybody is.

Apple products do carry a certain premium, but they also appeal to most demographics down to very low earners who still have a choice. One thing I have learned with Apple is you don’t have to get the most expensive version of a product to get the features you need. It’s all about choice and with headphones, there are many manufacturers who provide excellent products too.

 

[Ghost31]

If you don’t wanna watch, skip to 25 minutes in where he compares to everything else. “Compared to wired headsets, the AirPods max are maybe $100 in sound quality? Wireless they’re kinda middle of the pack. Even in noise cancellation”

im glad some people are digging the headphones and are happy with their purchase. But Apple could have done ALOT more with these in sound quality, the crap case, priced them more competitively, and just made them worth it for more people.

the apologists coming out of the freaking woodwork “well you don’t understand. Like why are you comparing it with the Sony’s and the Bose? These are high end. Luxury headphones I say!” Yeah? Have you heard “luxury headphones”? Cheaper wireless headphones absolutely destroy the AirPods in sound quality.

i agree with tailosive tech in that unless you absolutely love these for...some reason, you have to disregard so much negative to justify these

 

[cycling_pete]

If you don’t wanna watch, skip to 25 minutes in where he compares to everything else. “Compared to wired headsets, the AirPods max are maybe $100 in sound quality? Wireless they’re kinda middle of the pack. Even in noise cancellation”

im glad some people are digging the headphones and are happy with their purchase. But Apple could have done ALOT more with these in sound quality, the crap case, priced them more competitively, and just made them worth it for more people.

the apologists coming out of the freaking woodwork “well you don’t understand. Like why are you comparing it with the Sony’s and the Bose? These are high end. Luxury headphones I say!” Yeah? Have you heard “luxury headphones”? Cheaper wireless headphones absolutely destroy the AirPods in sound quality.

i agree with tailosive tech in that unless you absolutely love these for...some reason, you have to disregard so much negative to justify these

Don't know what you're trying to get at here. Yes, there are some reviewers who don't like the APMs? Did anyone ever think otherwise?

I suggest you look through the "reviews" thread for a greater variety of opinions and read through this own thread more thoroughly as well. Your post reeks of ignorance, both in terms of the actual performance of the APMs as well as the reasons why a good chunk of us happen to like them.

 

[Ghost31]

Don't know what you're trying to get at here. Yes, there are some reviewers who don't like the APMs? Did anyone ever think otherwise?

I suggest you look through the "reviews" thread for a greater variety of opinions and read through this own thread more thoroughly as well. Your post reeks of ignorance, both in terms of the actual performance of the APMs as well as the reasons why a good chunk of us happen to like them.

Oh man I didn’t mean to reek of “ignorance!”
whatever shall I dooooo. Which part specifically? That Apple should have put more thought into this piece of crap case? That the sound quality may be decent but it’s not the leap forward people expected? Or that they are priced at a weird spot in the market and it’s strange people are STILL trying to figure out what category to put these in? Which part of that was ignorance on my part?

I returned mine after trying not to get too hyped up on them because my feelings on them were the same as others: pretty nice. Not revolutionary. But pretty nice. No IPX rating so apparently I’m not supposed to work out with them or even go outside if the weather changes. The Bluetooth on mine was crapping out and getting all crackly in my left ear cup. When Apple puts something at a certain price point, people figure out why it’s justified. So all the criticism Apple is getting for them? They asked for it. And I hope they get even more so they can improve upon the product over the next generations.

 

[Ethosik]

$550 is a fair price for those who are willing to pay the full price. That doesn’t mean other individuals can’t state that for them, the product is overpriced for the build quality and what it offers.

I don’t believe you can say it is a fair price for all when everyone is not buying the product.

It’s not really overpriced though. If I only game at 1080p and 60fps, is it fair for me to say the RTX 3090 is overpriced?

 

[Ethosik]

Overall I agree with this. This has become a marketing 101 tactic for Apple. " They sold out within 30 minutes!" drives the perception it is a hot item and creates the illusion it is something you want. While having the side benefit of gauging demand and adjusting from there.

The ONLY thing unusual about the Airpods Max launch is the fact when that supply ran out, the times slipped to 12-14 weeks fairly quickly( heck I don't think I have ever seen an Apple product get that backordered) which tells me Apple does anticipate the product to be a low volume product overall once the launch rush subsides. Looks like Apple has made a small adjustment as they are now estimating a mid-February delivery for black/silver models, but I don't expect the Max to be as popular in its intended market as the regular Airpods or Pro's.

This is speaking as a person who has one waiting for me at an Apple Store tomorrow.

I don’t agree with this. If I needed headphones now, and these are out of stock, I would get a different product. I would not wait just because they are out of stock.

Also, this has been the year of BAD scalping. It would not surprise me to see some of these on eBay for $1000+. I want a PS5, Xbox Series X and either the new AMD or NVIDIA GPUs, but I can’t get them.

 

[thadoggfather]

Time to accept nothing: I'm not married or under any contractual obligation with Apple to consume blindly.

If I'm not interested in their products or their products at the prices they set, or both, that's my prerogative not Tim's.

Beginning to firmly think, not just suspect, Apple's new model is : MSRP things through the roof, sit back and 'profit' - at least in case of iPhones since prices are generally inflexible across all forms of selling channels (notwithstanding carrier subsidies, etc) and all premo smartphones cost a pretty penny not just Apple, and let everything else product line wise be captured by different price elasticities-- that is, people that don't bat an eye will fork over $550 and love it, day 1. The rest will wait for casual retail sales for $400 in 6 months that were interested at the right price, and the remainder will be the used market.

Personally - I don't use my Bose QC700 enough to justify a new pair of cans, at even the $300 price range. Too little and too late. Don't like how it looks like a recycling of designs from the past: Apple Watch strapped to your ears and some previously canned Ive concepts slapped together. Nevermind the 'bra', lightning port (I do take issue with lightning on headphones, at this point vs. USB-c and I still don't really with iPhone, go figure) and the weight. I am curious about the sound signature, for my own knowledge, but not curious insofar as laying out cash to find out... even if these are the best sounding headphones of my life, exceeding planar tech, I'm not currently in the market and there's no magic that could change that.

It wouldn't deter me from being interested either, but they could not have chosen a worse name. unless they make an AirPods Max Pro down the road.

This product was not timely in its release either: at the end of an apocalyptic year (with no surefire indicators that 2021 will be the needed light at the end of the tunnel) when a lot of people have taken it on the chin in one way or another, there's little room for margin on things I'm not really dying to have.

2019 was the year of competing topnotch flagship wireless noise cancelling cans with Bose and Sony offerings.

 

[quagmire]

I don’t agree with this. If I needed headphones now, and these are out of stock, I would get a different product. I would not wait just because they are out of stock.

Also, this has been the year of BAD scalping. It would not surprise me to see some of these on eBay for $1000+. I want a PS5, Xbox Series X and either the new AMD or NVIDIA GPUs, but I can’t get them.

If You truly needed the headphones now( current ones broke, traveling, work, etc) than yeah I wouldn’t wait either. But if you wanted an upgrade and the current ones could get you by for another 2-4 weeks( the usual time frame when Apple launch day supply runs out vs the 12-14 week one the APM’s had initially), you wouldn’t be able to wait? It’s sort of like the do I buy now or wait argument. If it is something you need now, then buy now. If not, wait sort of deal. If people couldn’t wait 2-4 weeks, you would see mass order cancellation, but you don’t.

 

[Ethosik]

I have these and I don't really understand the device switching argument. With my Xm4's I can connect to two devices and just click on the device I want to connect to. If there is an additional device I simply sever the connection of one and click on the other one. With the Airpods Max I still have to click on the device I want to connect with each time I'm switching devices. What am I missing here?

The reason I’m getting these is that my Sennheiser supports 2 connections at once, but the pairing list is 4/5 devices. I have more than 5 so I need to clear the pairing list every other day. I don’t need to with my base AirPods, but those hurt my ears after 20 mins.

 

[cycling_pete]

Oh man I didn’t mean to reek of “ignorance!”
whatever shall I dooooo. Which part specifically? That Apple should have put more thought into this piece of crap case? That the sound quality may be decent but it’s not the leap forward people expected? Or that they are priced at a weird spot in the market and it’s strange people are STILL trying to figure out what category to put these in? Which part of that was ignorance on my part?

I returned mine after trying not to get too hyped up on them because my feelings on them were the same as others: pretty nice. Not revolutionary. But pretty nice. No IPX rating so apparently I’m not supposed to work out with them or even go outside if the weather changes. The Bluetooth on mine was crapping out and getting all crackly in my left ear cup. When Apple puts something at a certain price point, people figure out why it’s justified. So all the criticism Apple is getting for them? They asked for it. And I hope they get even more so they can improve upon the product over the next generations.

Yes, ignorance.

When was there an expectation from the community that the APMs were going to be a "leap forward" in sound quality, as you suggest? Where is this misunderstanding of what category people should put these in (99% of comparisons are made to the XM4s/QCs)? Where is the expectation (or even desire, really) for them to be IPX rated? Also wasn't aware that there was some pent up demand to exercise in full size headphones.

You seem to be making up false expectations and arguments, which (again) belies your ignorance of the topic. I genuinely wonder if you really had a pair.

 

[Ethosik]

If You truly needed the headphones now( current ones broke, traveling, work, etc) than yeah I wouldn’t wait either. But if you wanted an upgrade and the current ones could get you by for another 2-4 weeks( the usual time frame when Apple launch day supply runs out vs the 12-14 week one the APM’s had initially), you wouldn’t be able to wait? It’s sort of like the do I buy now or wait argument. If it is something you need now, then buy now. If not, wait sort of deal. If people couldn’t wait 2-4 weeks, you would see mass order cancellation, but you don’t.

I would go for the best product that fits my needs. Not because something is artificially out of stock. Look at my previous post why I ordered these and why I am waiting. Mostly due to the ecosystem and experience. Not because of the marketing BS of artificial low stock to raise hype. And it gave me time to see the reviews. If the reviews were bad, I would get the Sony ones even if those took longer to arrive.

 

[Falhófnir]

Ultimately a little too expensive to be a real mainstream option, not good enough to be a true high end/ professional option. A real Apple classic move on the prosumer market. Quite possibly they will still sell relatively well just because, which is fine, people like nice things. No need to try and justify it any further than that ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Apple is good at tapping into this market when its there, though can fall a bit flat when it isn't (HomePod).

Not being an audiophile they hold little real interest to me either way, and wouldn't do at £250 either. Good speakers on a device is of more interest to me (an area where Apple is very good) and I'm happy with a pair of earbuds for times when I do need to plug in.

 

[Ghost31]

I would go for the best product that fits my needs. Not because something is artificially out of stock. Look at my previous post why I ordered these and why I am waiting. Mostly due to the ecosystem and experience. Not because of the marketing BS of artificial low stock to raise hype. And it gave me time to see the reviews. If the reviews were bad, I would get the Sony ones even if those took longer to arrive.

Never in my life have I EVER seen something out of stock and wanted it just for that fact alone. People don’t pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars for things unless they are damn sure they want it. So when people say Apple created demand artificially? Psh. Like they’d ever need to

 

[quagmire]

I would go for the best product that fits my needs. Not because something is artificially out of stock. Look at my previous post why I ordered these and why I am waiting. Mostly due to the ecosystem and experience. Not because of the marketing BS of artificial low stock to raise hype. And it gave me time to see the reviews. If the reviews were bad, I would get the Sony ones even if those took longer to arrive.

Sorry misunderstood your post. Thought you were stating if the item you wanted was sold out, you would just go with something else vs waiting.

Also I didn't mean to imply because it is out of stock/in short supply is the reason you're buying it. All I meant by that original statement was it helps out Apple's marketing. iPhone sells out within 30 minutes of pre-orders, Apple can go on the news stating, " We are overwhelmed by the demand there has been for the products and we are trying our best to catch up" then the positive reviews flow in from their selected outlets flow in further building hype, etc. That marketing tries to suck you into buying the product or at least get you interested. Same case with the Airpods Max.

And like you, I didn't order on launch day. I waited for the reviews to come out and based on ecosystem, the experience, and the reviews( from people who paid for the APM's and not sent review units) then I decided to buy them via waiting until they popped up in stock at a local store.

 

[C. Robert]

The B&O H95 cost $800 and has ****** ANC. But hey, you get a lot of cables and a hard case. Whatever floats your boat, buddy.

The sonys are $350 but no one is complaining about that.

 

[Frankfurt]

The sonys are $350 but no one is complaining about that.

Just buy the Sony’s and move on.

 

[Ethosik]

Sorry misunderstood your post. Thought you were stating if the item you wanted was sold out, you would just go with something else vs waiting.

Also I didn't mean to imply because it is out of stock/in short supply is the reason you're buying it. All I meant by that original statement was it helps out Apple's marketing. iPhone sells out within 30 minutes of pre-orders, Apple can go on the news stating, " We are overwhelmed by the demand there has been for the products and we are trying our best to catch up" then the positive reviews flow in from their selected outlets flow in further building hype, etc. That marketing tries to suck you into buying the product or at least get you interested. Same case with the Airpods Max.

And like you, I didn't order on launch day. I waited for the reviews to come out and based on ecosystem, the experience, and the reviews( from people who paid for the APM's and not sent review units) then I decided to buy them via waiting until they popped up in stock at a local store.

I actually ordered them the same day, but shipment was in February. Which still gave me time to cancel if the reviews were bad.

 

[LongWayHome]

Not speculating? Unless you have access to Apple's internal documents, you don't know A THING about units produced, availability and sales figures. You're just making stuff up.

Lol ok pal.

 

[Korican100]

everyone in this thread is acting like purchasing an item is a rational choice void of emotion. Yea right, get real. APM is an emotional purchase bar none. Which also, absolutely nothing is wrong with that either. But with all emotional purchases, we do it for pleasure, not necessity. Every other argument is dumb and a waste of time.

 

[rkuo]

everyone in this thread is acting like purchasing an item is a rational choice void of emotion. Yea right, get real. APM is an emotional purchase bar none. Which also, absolutely nothing is wrong with that either. But with all emotional purchases, we do it for pleasure, not necessity. Every other argument is dumb and a waste of time.

Actually, it's pretty easy to justify noise cancelling headphones in terms of call quality, performance in varied environments, comfort when traveling, etc. Doesn't have to be emotional at all.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Yes, ignorance.

When was there an expectation from the community that the APMs were going to be a "leap forward" in sound quality, as you suggest? Where is this misunderstanding of what category people should put these in (99% of comparisons are made to the XM4s/QCs)? Where is the expectation (or even desire, really) for them to be IPX rated? Also wasn't aware that there was some pent up demand to exercise in full size headphones.

You seem to be making up false expectations and arguments, which (again) belies your ignorance of the topic. I genuinely wonder if you really had a pair.

I’ve seen a couple of reviewers, MKBHD was one where they mention these headphones aren’t IPX rated so not a good idea wearing in changeable weather. He also mentions these headphones are in between categories and it’s confusing which market of consumer they appeal to. You’re having a go at that poster but everybody here is entitled to their opinion even if they haven’t even used a product. Insulting others by calling them ignorant because you like something and they don’t is rather poor form.

 

[Korican100]

Actually, it's pretty easy to justify noise cancelling headphones in terms of call quality, performance in varied environments, comfort when traveling, etc. Doesn't have to be emotional at all.

yes but the point im trying to make is the price we are paying for those features are influenced by emotion with the APM

 

[soaddk]

Im trolling? With this comment? When someone starts attacking a person and not the product they're the one who is laughable and trolling. Argue your point or just don't say anything.

Yeah you're trolling. If I went to a Tesla forum and said:

"I could buy a Honda, glue tinfoil all over it and put a Samsung Galaxy tablet on the dashboard and have saved me $50.000 dollars AND it would still drive faster."

Wouldn't that be trolling? But as I said in another reply to you: Whatever floats your boat, buddy.

 

[LongWayHome]

If you don’t wanna watch, skip to 25 minutes in where he compares to everything else. “Compared to wired headsets, the AirPods max are maybe $100 in sound quality? Wireless they’re kinda middle of the pack. Even in noise cancellation”

im glad some people are digging the headphones and are happy with their purchase. But Apple could have done ALOT more with these in sound quality, the crap case, priced them more competitively, and just made them worth it for more people.

the apologists coming out of the freaking woodwork “well you don’t understand. Like why are you comparing it with the Sony’s and the Bose? These are high end. Luxury headphones I say!” Yeah? Have you heard “luxury headphones”? Cheaper wireless headphones absolutely destroy the AirPods in sound quality.

i agree with tailosive tech in that unless you absolutely love these for...some reason, you have to disregard so much negative to justify these

This is one of the most detailed and fair reviews that I've seen yet except for him comparing them to wired headphones. They aren't wired, so don't compare them to that even though he admits that he shouldn't (but does) compare them to that.

 

[C. Robert]

Just buy the Sony’s and move on.

I hate Sony. Just be happy with your AirPods Max and move on.