Unless you inspect them closely side by side, you’d never be able to tell the AirPods Pro 3 from the AirPods Pro 2. They carry over the same basic look, which means they have a white bulb atop a white stem with some small black patches.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)
Apple has reduced the size of the buds and redesigned them to fit more naturally into your ears. Each pair of AirPods Pro 3 comes with five eartips (rather than three), so you can find the set that best matches your ears and generates the most secure fit. Further, the eartips include a thin layer of foam under the silicone to give them some structure and assist with passive noise isolation. These changes make all the difference in the world.
I haven’t used my AirPods Pro 2 in ages because the buds simply won’t stay in my ears. They loosen and fall out in a matter of minutes, no matter how firmly I push them in. The AirPods Pro 3 fit much better, remain secure during movement, and are comfortable to wear for hours at a time. In fact, they are some of the most comfortable earphones I’ve worn and feel better than the $299 Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds and the $299 Sony WF-1000XM5.
First Look at the Apple AirPods 3: Packed With New Features, Same Old Price
The controls are the same as ever. One press plays/pauses media or answers/mutes a call, two presses end a call or skip forward a track, three presses skip back a track, and a press-and-hold switches between listening modes. Swipe up and down the stem to adjust playback volume. Though these controls make sense, I often find it difficult to find the right spot on the stem and end up accidentally doing something I didn’t intend. Perhaps I’m just thick-fingered, so your mileage may vary a bit here. You can change a few of these controls, such as what happens with a press-and-hold gesture (activating Transparency mode or Siri).
(Credit: Eric Zeman)
Apple hasn’t shared the technical details for the drivers, so we don’t know their size or frequency range. Apple only says they have custom high-excursion drivers with custom high dynamic range amplifiers. They connect to your devices via Bluetooth 5.3, which is somewhat surprising, since Bluetooth 5.4 has been around for years, and some accessories are already adopting Bluetooth 6.0.
The buds support AAC, AAC-ELD, and SBC, which is a short list of codecs. I’d have preferred to see Bluetooth LE and LC3. The Bose buds support aptX Adaptive, and Sony’s support LC3 and LDAC for higher fidelity listening.
The AirPods may not technically have Bluetooth multipoint, but what they do have is much better. Thanks partly to Apple’s custom H2 chip, your AirPods will automatically pair with and connect to any other Apple products you own, like your iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, or Mac. I can’t overstate how seamless this process is and how clutch it can be when you need or want to change connected devices in a hurry.
Apple has boosted the IP rating from IP54 to IP57. This means the AirPods are mostly protected against dust and can easily handle sweat and pouring rain. You can even drop the buds in a puddle without worry. Together with the more secure fit, the AirPods Pro 3 are compelling fitness companions for runners and beyond.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)
The charging case is nearly identical to the Pro 2’s but slightly larger. It measures 1.86 by 2.45 by 0.86 inches (HWD) and weighs 1.55 ounces, including the buds. The Pro 2’s case is just a couple of hundredths of an inch shorter and narrower, but the same depth. The Pro 3 case is still small and slick enough to easily slide into (and out of) your pocket. You can plug a USB-C cable into the port on the bottom for charging, or place the case on a MagSafe charger, Apple Watch charger, or any Qi-certified charger for wireless charging.
Apple says its latest generation of ultra-wideband chip works better with its Find My network than before, making it easier to find lost buds. The Find My network can give precise directions from 1.5 times further away than the Pro 2 case, giving you a little bit more reach. I tested this by placing the AirPods Pro 3 in my backyard and walking away from my house. Sure enough, I was able to locate them easily and get turn-by-turn directions with my iPhone from more than a block away.
Battery life has improved as well. Apple has extended the playtime with active noise cancellation (ANC) from six hours for the Pro 2 to eight hours for the Pro 3. You’ll get closer to 10 hours in Transparency mode. The case holds an additional two charges, so you get a total of 24 hours of ANC listening from a set of fully charged buds and case.
(Credit: Eric Zeman)
This article was published by WTVG on 2025-09-15 08:00:00
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