Beyond more subjective aspects such as sound or noise cancellation, something we see in the analysis of the AirPods Max, there is a very controversial point about the new Apple headphones. And no, it is not the price this time. Surprisingly, these cannot be turned off , which has generated many doubts during these weeks. However, the company has issued a silent information that clarifies this curiosity somewhat more, and we say that it has done so in silence because what they really did was expand the information related to the Smart Case that is included with the headphones.
This is how the AirPods Max work in low consumption
It is true that other Apple headphones such as normal AirPods or AirPods Pro cannot be turned off as such, but this is not in the end something strange and it is almost already a trend in the rest of headphones of this type. In fact, in those there is a charging case that already makes you see that they will not be losing battery unnecessarily when they are not used. However, it is not so common to find a lack of this type in headband headphones.
The Smart Case of the AirPods Max (the case that is incorporated) does not serve as a charging method for the headphones, so the difference with the rest of AirPods is already substantial in this case. However, it was known that it had a special function around optimizing the consumption of the headphones. In the latest clarification from Apple they have stated that when they are placed in this accessory they enter the well-known low consumption mode , as long as 5 minutes have passed. If they are not removed from this case in three days, they will go into an even lower consumption mode, even deactivating Bluetooth and the possibility of finding them with the Search app.
We ourselves have been able to verify the actual consumption of the AirPods Max in these circumstances and the truth is that the battery barely drops when it enters this mode. That is why in the end it is somewhat curious that it cannot be turned off, but it is not serious either. While this may vary, according to our calculations in low power mode, 1% battery power can be consumed in 2 days, which would be further reduced in “ultra low power” mode. However, having included the option to turn them off would have been more efficient in the end in a way, although the reason for not having done so is that Apple wants the headphones to be always ready to use instantly .
Does this justify the design of the Smart Case?
There are always opinions for all tastes and we do not doubt that there may be a large number of users who positively value the design of the AirPods Max case. However, we never remember so much agreement in user and media reviews about an Apple product: the Smart Case is ugly . And from this writing we apologize if you think otherwise or if this comment offends you in any way, but it is the most repeated opinion about it since the AirPods Max was launched this week.
We understand that the fact that the headphones are not foldable like others from the competition makes it much more difficult to create a custom case, however the materials used by Apple for them do not seem to have been to everyone’s liking either. It is evident that in the end this point is the least important of all and more after having known more exactly the importance of the Smart Cover in the consumption of headphones. However, it is inevitable to think that Apple could have done something more. Will this case change in future generations or versions of these over-ear headphones?