The AirPods Max headphones will turn five years old this year, but they’re still a gift that keeps on giving—which is good considering their price point. With a new update, your AirPods Max are now getting a couple of really cool, and useful, additions.
The AirPods Max are getting a software update with two long-requested additions. The headline feature of this update is the introduction of lossless audio support. When connected via the USB-C cable, the AirPods Max will be capable of playing back audio at 24-bit, 48 kHz resolution. Your audio signal will retain all the detail and nuance of the original studio recording, without the compression artifacts that can be present in standard Bluetooth audio streaming.
If you’re an audiophile, you’ll find this to be a neat addition. Apple Music, for one, supports lossless audio, and you can’t really take advantage of it unless you’re using wired headphones or earbuds—in case you were wondering, yes, ultra-cheap EarPods with a USB-C connector do support lossless audio since they have a wired connection, which is basically all you need to meet lossless audio’ demanding data transfer requirements. Compression has constantly remained a problem with Bluetooth connections, and while the quality you get out of wireless earbuds is good enough for almost everyone, audiophiles will always prefer wired connections for a reason. With this update, you can now use these ultra-expensive headphones for your lossless music as well.
The update also promises “ultra-low latency” audio, significantly reducing this delay to levels comparable to the built-in speakers on Mac, iPad, and iPhone devices. This is, of course, also only available if you connect your AirPods Max to your phone, tablet, or laptop using a USB-C cable—the wireless experience will remain identical. This wired connection is the pathway for delivering the uncompressed experience that allows for both of these improvements, which simply aren’t possible over Bluetooth, at least right now. It’s a bummer, but it’s the best we can get right now.
This improved USB-C functionality, according to Apple, is a boon for music creators. The reduced latency, combined with the lossless audio quality, opens up new possibilities for using AirPods Max in professional workflows. Previously, the latency inherent in wireless connections made headphones unsuitable for certain critical tasks, such as real-time monitoring during recording or precise timing adjustments during mixing.
As a matter of fact, you might want to use AirPods Max for this over other headphones if your hardware is all Apple. According to the company, they will become the only headphones capable of both creating and mixing in Personalized Spatial Audio with head tracking, while connected via USB-C. The ultra-low latency bit will also benefit gamers—reduced audio lag means a more responsive gaming experience, where sounds align more precisely with on-screen actions.
Apple AirPods Max
$499 $549 Save
$50
Apple high-end AirPods Max over-ear headphones may not have the best audio quality for the money, but taken as an overall package there’s plenty of features and fidelity to make it worth the price of entry.
The update will begin rolling out in April for Apple devices running iOS 18.4, iPadOS 18.4, or macOS Sequoia 15.4, so make sure to grab it if you own these headphones and you have a USB-C cable you don’t mind carrying around.
Source: Apple
