This appears to be the year that I realized that I am no longer a Pro. Instead of moving on to the iPhone 16 Pro from the iPhone 15 Pro, I'm planning on preordering the iPhone 16. Instead of getting that sweet Satin Black Apple Watch Ultra 2, I preordered the Apple Watch Series 10 in Jet Black.
And now, I'm even considering ditching my AirPods Pro 2 for the new AirPods 4. I already have a preorder in and am ready to potentially replace the last Pro Apple product I will have (after I switch from the Pro iPhone to the Apple Watch Ultra which is basically the Pro Apple Watch).
With AirPods Pro 2 getting some software upgrades and still having what seemingly will be better noise cancellation, why would I get rid of them? Well, it has to do with two things.
Noise cancellation and fit are the factors
The first reason — and the big reason — I'm considering a switch from the AirPods Pro 2 is due to the fit. While the AirPods Pro 2 are great, the biggest issue I've always had with them is that they — whenever I've done any kind of exercise or chewed gum too much — would fall out of my ears.
If I go for a run, I'm going to be adjusting the ear tips of the AirPods Pro over and over and over again. If I go for a hike, it's going to be the same deal. And don't even try to do sit-ups or push-ups — those babies are coming out regardless of how much I try to secure them.
I've found that open-ear earbuds are more comfortable, so I really want to give the AirPods 4 a try to see if they not only live up to this but if they actually end up being more secure in my ears. That's a big ask since AirPods Pro 2 offer four different ear tips for a more custom fit, but I've heard from multiple people that the regular AirPods have actually stayed in their ears better than the Pros did. I'll have to see if I fall into that camp as well.
The second reason I'm considering a switch is that the AirPods 4 are getting the one feature that I really stuck with the AirPods Pro for: noise cancellation. This is the most important feature of my earbuds, and I'm sure I'm not the only one. Being able to drown out external noise when trying to focus at work, on a plane, or during a workout is a required feature nowadays.
With noise cancellation coming to the AirPods 4 with that open-ear design, I'm wondering if they'll be a better choice for someone like me who has fit and comfort issues with the AirPods Pro 2. I know the AirPods 4's noise cancellation won't be as good as the noise cancellation on the AirPods Pro 2 but as long as they are good enough, I'll sacrifice a little bit of performance here.
So that's where I'm at. If the AirPods 4's noise cancellation is good enough for my use cases and fix my fit and comfort issues with the AirPods Pro 2, they could make me jump once again from a Pro to a non-Pro Apple product.
We'll see what happens when they come out on September 20th. I have my preorder in now!