Apple will update its high -end helmet, AirPods Max, promising lossless audio and low latency. Except that to take advantage of it, it will be necessary to use it in a wired, with a USB-C cable. A real gag!
Apple is renowned for the quality of its products. but also pure its very high prices. And sometimes, for no reason. We remember the affair of the famous figure sold for 30 euros – its price has increased to 25 euros since – which had caused a lot of ink to flow a few years ago and above all, triggered many taunts when we know that this kind of fabric is less than 1 euro at Action. And many users choke when seeing the price of Mac options on memory and storage, especially when they compare them to RAM and SSD prices on the market. And the apple manufacturer is still likely to attract harsh criticism with a small novelty concerning the audio this time.
In A press release discreetly published on March 24, 2025the Cupertino firm thus announces the upcoming arrival of an update for AirPods Max, its very high -end wireless helmet officially sold 579 euros. Thanks to the new version of its firmware, scheduled for April, it will be possible to listen to audio without loss (Lossless in English) with a low latency. Excellent news on paper which will allow you to enjoy high quality sound, in 24 bits – 48 kHz for example, without the usual losses induced by the compressions inherent in wireless transmissions.
Airpods Max: Lossless audio… with a wire!
Except that here: to benefit from it, the helmet will have to be connected to USB-C-the improvement will not be available on the old model with a Lightning interface-on a player-iPhone, Mac or other. In other words, with a thread! And that’s where we borders on ridicule. Because what is the point of buying an airpods max if it is to use it with a cable? We are picked on the market dozens of much cheaper models that only work in wired, and which are perfectly capable of diffusing very high quality sound without any loss and without any latency, “old -fashioned”, analog. Just use a good source, with good converters for digital supports, or a good preamp for vinyls and magnetic strips.
And to drive the nail, Apple even offers a new USB-C cable with a 6.35 mm stereo mini jack adapter to connect the Max AirPods to any analog source. Price: 45 euros! We believe you dream!
Admittedly, this is not the only novelty of the AirPods Max, which will also be able to manage the spatialized audio with tracking of the head movements, a function dear to Apple. But the argument of audio without loss via a cable sounds like a gag with the ears of specialists. If it is aspect that seduces you, forget the MP3, the AAC and others, and prefer lossless formats like WAV or FLAC (same quality, but more compact). And keep your money: you will find very good wired helmets from 30 euros in reputed brands such as AKG (model K-52) or less known as superlux (HD-681 model) and a host of excellent quality references at less than 200 euros in specialized manufacturers (AKG K-371, Sennheiser HD 599, Beyerdynamic DT-770 Pro, etc.). Afterwards, if it’s just a question of look or social status, nothing prevents you from cracking for the Apple helmet …