There were two big drops out of Apple this week. First came Monday’s stunning surprise announcement of the AirPods Max 2, which arrive on March 25. The second one was quieter and far less surprising, and also one you don’t have to wait a week for. The AirPods Max (do we call them the Max 1 now? Original Max? OG Max?) are now nearly $100 lower in price at Amazon, falling all the way down to $450.
We’ve come to expect the cause-and-effect of Apple’s big product releases by now, but it’s still worth a reminder that the original AirPods Max are every bit as good as they were four days and $99 more dollars ago. They’ll cede the flagship label to the Max 2, but for anyone who’s deep in the Apple ecosystem, wants the best-possible integration with all their other devices, and isn’t willing to compromise on build quality, the AirPods Max are now a more cost-effective way to scratch that itch.
Pure Comfort
A middling pair of over-ear headphones can get really uncomfortable really quickly, from sheer weight, poor fit, overheating, or a combination of all three. When the AirPods Max first arrived on the scene five years ago, the reviews raved about their exquisite comfort almost as much as their pro-level sound. The aluminum ear cups, knit-mesh headband, and memory foam cushions are all built for lengthy yet enjoyable use. The cushions create a seal that makes a difference acoustically, and the headband distributes weight well enough that extended listening sessions don’t turn into endurance tests.
Of course, they’d be little more than glorified earmuffs if they didn’t come with truly superior sound. The Active Noise Cancellation is top-notch thanks to the H1 chip, and Personalized Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking means the soundstage stays anchored to the content you’re watching rather than rotating with your head. This latest USB-C version of the AirPods Max also adds Lossless Audio with ultra-low latency over a wired connection, which the original Lightning model lacked.
One Big Happy Family
The AirPods Max are seriously good wireless headphones even when you use them with non-Apple devices, but it’s how they work within that ecosystem that makes them a true must-have for people with the iPhone/Mac/iPad trifecta. You pick them up, they pair automatically by proximity, and switching between your iPhone, iPad, and Mac happens without any manual intervention. Audio pauses when you take them off. None of this is revolutionary in 2026, but Apple’s execution of the handoff experience remains tighter than most of the competition — it’s the kind of thing you stop noticing unless you try non-Apple headphones or earbuds.
If you’ve spent the past 5 years shying away from the AirPods Max because of the admittedly high price tag, you’re not likely to jump at the Max 2 when they hit stores next week. But their arrival might be the crack in the door you need to finally set yourself up with the original Max wireless headphones, thanks to the $99 price drop you can take advantage of now at Amazon.