Apple AirPods Pro (1. generation) with Wireless charging case (2019)

For anyone who knows the headphone market they know how good the AirPods Pro are.True wireless earphones have been very hit and miss, and one of the best thing Apple does with these headphones is to not drop the ball in any area.Sound quality, fit, comfort, battery life, noise cancellation, microphone and quality, ease of use, water and sweat resistance, portability, and built quality are all good to excellent.Most true wireless earphones are let down on one of these categories. These are one of the first true great all rounders, particular in the category of true wireless headphones that prioritise noise cancellation, call quality, connection and portability over other areas, noticeably sound quality (and, admittedly, price).The AirPods Pro won’t blow you away with sound quality, although they will still sound good to most people who aren’t too discerning about audio quality. They aren’t for bass-heads, they prioritise clearer audio, particularly vocals and voices for calls, videos, podcasts and other things such as acoustic music, which they do very well with. If you want big sound and like bass heavy thump thump music, don’t get these.So their good quality and all-rounded nature is why the have the price tag they do. Whether your prepared to pay for it depends on a) your budget and b) your intended usage.If you want headphones to wear to make lots of business calls on (and especially if you have an iPhone) then these are fantastic for that.If you want headPhones you can pop in and out of your ears as you’re travelling across the city, dampening some of those city noises and helping you listen to your podcasts, videos, and music to pass the time (without wanting to have a dedicated music listening session) then these are fantastic for that.If you’re new to the world of wireless headphones, then these might be perfect for you if budget and the best sound quality aren’t big factors. You’ll enjoy a seamless experience. However if budget is a big factor, or you won’t be using them very often, then they’re probably not great value for money for you.Again, if you want big bassy thump thump music don’t expect to get these in true wireless earphones. The best you’ll find is the Jabra elite also elite active) 75t. I own those too, and they’re a great alternative to the AirPods if you want to do more listening to music and are less concerned with active noise cancellation to help you block out daily sounds as you listen to your podcasts, audiobooks, videos etc.Personally, I bought these because of the microphone quality, ease of connection with iPhone, noise cancellation, and comfort, I wanted a pair I could leave in for hours at a time whilst at work, reducing the sounds of the office with active noise cancellation and allowing me to play some soothing background music to help me focus, whilst also giving me the option to make and receive high quality business or personal phone calls with ease.They’re also great if you just want to quickly put your earphones in to watch a video without distributing those around you - no fiddly wires to untangle, just grab them from your pocket, flip the case lid and pop them in. Boom, connected. Start watching.It’s worth saying here there are other options beyond true wireless earphones too. One hybrid method for better sound quality, call quality, and also cheaper is to use wired headphones (either in ear or over ear depending on your preference) with a Wireless Bluetooth Receiver. I also own this option, using soundmagic E10s earphones (about £40) which have fantastic sound quality for in-ears with a FiiO Bluetooth headphones amplifier/adaptor (£30-50 depending on model). Simply plug your wired headphones into the Bluetooth receiver and then connect to the receiver with your phone like you would Bluetooth headphones. You don’t go truly wireless, but you cut the cord between your phone and the headphones, which for me is the most important thing because then you just pop the receiver in your pocket (and run the cable under your jumper if you like) and continue using your phone without any wires attached. It’s not the ‘true wireless’ experience but for £50-£100 you’ll have a better sounding, more durable, cheaper option (albeit without active noise cancellation, which is okay on true wireless earphones but not game changing).Other people will prefer over ear headphones as you can get better sound quality and more effective noise cancelling for less money. Personally I find them too clunky.I think I’ll do a hybrid approach. I’ll use the AirPods Pro for work, calls, and convenience. But I’ll use my hybrid semi-wireless option when I want better sound quality but still don’t want to disturb others (eg listening to music in my bedroom).So, as mentioned in the title, what these little amazing pieces of technology do, they do very well. But I thoroughly urge you to consider why you’re buying headphones in the first place so you can identify the option that is best suited to you (as there are many) and that you don’t just get caught up in the AirPods hype. If on the other hand you don’t really care so much (in that case you’re probably not reading this review) and just want good quality wireless earphones and have a decent budget then buy these and forget about everything else.

Sound Quality: These don't sound bad by any means. I will say that, the wired earbuds do sound better. Yes they might not have the special features like: 'Spatial Audio', 'Noise Cancellation', & the 'Transparency mode' but, they do sound a little better as far as bass goes. Like I said, they do have nice bass and I'm not saying that they sound bad, because they don't. I'm very judgy when it comes to sound quality and I do like things with a lot of bass so, take that with a pinch of salt. They also have around the same loudness as the normal wired earbuds. If not, maybe the Airpods are a little louder.Special Features: The noise cancellation is amazing! I was blown away with these. I use the 'Sennheiser GSP 300' when I'm using my PC. They have noise cancellation, but these are way, way better. I can still hear the fans on my PC when using those headphones (with no sound playing through them) but, with the Airpods Pro's, I couldn't hear them at all. When outside with these and the noise cancellation is enabled, it does cut out a lot of the sound. You still hear the higher pitched sounds, but it cancells out most things. I've heard on reviews that others say that the noise cancellation isn't anywhere near as good as what is offered on a top of the range pair of headphones. I've not been able to compair that as I don't own a high end pair of headphones, so I can't comment. I just thought I'd point that out just in case people were expecting the noise cancellation to block out every little sound. The transparency mode works like a charm! When enabled, it sounds like you have nothing in your ears, it just sounds like how it would without them in. I've not tried the 'Spatial Audio'. I have however heard that it is very immersiveStaying In My Ears: These Airpods stay in my ears a lot longer than the normal wired earbuds ever did. When working out, the wired earbuds would slide out a little and sometimes fall out which was frustrating. Due to the new design of these Airpods Pro's with the new silicone ear tips, they don't even slide out my ears to the point where I'd lose sound quality and/or fall out as much. The only time that of these Airpods did fall out of my ears is when doing pushups, it's always the left one. The right Airpod doesn't move, Weird, I know. Don't let that put you off though, that's just something to do with my ears. Other than that, doing any other workout/general everyday use such as walking around, sitting and listening to music, they've never fallen out.Bluetooth Connection: I've not had any connection issues with these Airpods. If you were worrying about these disconnecting a lot/having your music, movie, video play through your phone/connected device randomly, don't. Even if they did lose connection from your phone, the sound would pause if the connection was lost anyway. (On YouTube at least).Overall: I think that these Airpods are great and anyone who does purchase, won't be disappointed. The special features such as the transparency and the noise cancellation modes are brilliant! They're really nice for listening to music on full blast. They won't slide out of your ears, and they're comfortable. I'm happy with my purchase and don't have anything to complain about. Great product!