Apple Debuts AirPods Max 2 Headphones With Live Translation, Better Noise Canceling

Apple introduced the AirPods Max 2, upgrading its over-ear headphones with more powerful noise cancellation and a handful of features that have already rolled out to the AirPods Pro line in recent years.

The AirPods Max 2 offer active noise cancellation that’s 1.5x more effective than the original model, which came out in late 2020, Apple said Monday in a statement. A light revision of the AirPods Max with a USB-C connector and lossless wired audio arrived in 2024.

The $549 headphones maintain the price of the previous model and will be available to order starting March 25. The AirPods Max 2 are expected to reach stores in early April. Apple is offering the headphones in five colors: blue, purple, orange, midnight and starlight (pale gold).

In addition, Apple has replaced the dated silicon inside the premium headphones with its newer H2 chip, making possible features like Live Translation and Conversation Awareness, which lowers the audio volume when the user is speaking. The AirPods Max 2 also offer Adaptive Audio, which balances the level of noise cancellation for a given environment.

Loud Sound Reduction is another nice-to-have perk carried over from the AirPods Pro series, letting the headphones reduce the severity of sirens, construction and other ear-piercing sounds.

In addition, Apple has upgraded the microphones on the AirPods Max 2 to deliver “studio-quality audio recording” and reduced wireless latency for better performance when wearing the headphones while playing games.

Monday’s announcement follows a blitz of new products from Apple earlier this month that included the iPhone 17e, the $599 MacBook Neo and the new Studio Display XDR, along with upgraded versions of the MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iPad Air and Studio Display.