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Apple AirPods 3rd Generation Review: The Best AirPods Yet!

The new Apple AirPods 3rd Generation is here and we’ve got a full review for you!

This image shows the Apple AirPods 3rd Generation on the table.

Pros & Cons

Pros
  • Easy & portable
  • H1 Chip
  • Stunning spatial audio
  • Wireless charging MagSafe case
  • IPX4 rating
  • Overall, an excellent performer
Cons
  • Limited to iOS features
  • Active noise cancellation is absent

AirPods 3rd Generation is the latest iteration of Apple’s signature wireless earbuds, and they are every bit as impressive as you’d expect from the company that revolutionized the wireless headphones industry back in 2016. 

With improved noise cancellation, better connectivity, and a host of other improvements, AirPods 3rd Generation is the best AirPods yet! 

Let’s take a closer look at what these new wireless earbuds have to offer and whether or not they deserve to be labeled as the best Apple AirPods 3rd Generation Review yet!

A closer look 

The new Apple Airpods 3rd generation is a massive upgrade. They have increased battery life, added Siri integration, equalizer functions, and much more. 

I’ve been using them for about 2 weeks now and I’m ready to let you know if they’re worth your money or not. Let’s get started…

When you first open up your Apple Airpods 3rd Generation, they will come in a little charging case. It’s small and easy to carry around in your pocket or purse. 

You can even clip it to your pants while you’re working out because it doesn’t weigh much at all. 

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It takes about 15 minutes to get 1 hour of playback so make sure you always have it plugged in when not using them for long periods of time or else you’ll lose battery life fast…

What sets Apple’s Airpods apart from other Bluetooth earbuds is that they don’t have wires at all. 

No more trying to wrap them around your phone, or having to stuff them in your pocket just to listen to music. 

I never realized how much it actually bothered me until I had a pair of wireless headphones myself. 

They are a little expensive but totally worth it if you’re looking for hassle-free earbuds that stay secure and give you tons of features…

The Price

After spending a few days with Apple’s latest, I can confidently say that it’s worth its steep price tag. 

By sharpening all of its already-superior features and adding some sweet new ones (headphone controls!), Apple has outdone itself yet again in what is a rapidly-crowded headphone market. My advice? 

If you want great sound and perfect convenience, pick up a pair of AirPods 3rd generation today. 

They’re simply stellar headphones—and there’s no better way to keep your earbuds charged than with some homemade DIY charging stations!

Of course, $200 is a lot to spend on headphones—you can get a pretty sweet deal on AirPods 3rd Generation for only $169 At Amazon

But if you’re a true audiophile (like I am), then spending more money on better-quality headphones is completely worth it. 

Also, at less than half of what Apple’s original first-generation pair cost, you can snag yourself a brand new pair and still have plenty of cash left over to get yourself some charging stations like these or these so you never run out of juice on your daily commute!

There are some other really awesome reasons why we love these headphones besides their affordable price tag.

Design and Build Quality

Apple claims its charging case holds multiple charges, though you’ll have to charge it every single time you recharge your earbuds. 

If you’re often forgetting to plug in your earbuds, that could be a big drawback. 

This image shows the Apple AirPods 3rd Generation.

Apple’s charging case is bigger than it needs to be—there are competing options with smaller cases that still hold as many charges. 

If battery life is critical to you, consider an alternative option like Sony’s WI-1000X MDR-100ABN or Bragi’s Dash Pro. Still, Apple’s charging case has one major advantage over competitors—it seamlessly pairs with all of your devices via iCloud. 

As long as your phone and laptop are both signed in to iCloud, switching between devices is painless.

 Apple’s AirPods 3rd Generation case is pretty big, especially compared to its closest competitor—Sony’s WF-1000X MDR-100ABN. 

You can fit two Sony cases in Apple’s charging case. Still, if you like Apple devices, it’ll be a seamless experience to switch from your phone to laptop or vice versa and pick up right where you left off. 

Sound Quality

Though Apple didn’t make a huge improvement in sound quality, they did fine-tune what they already had and kept it at a high level. If you’re familiar with Apple’s EarPods, then you’ll know what to expect here. 

Everything sounds pretty much like it does through Apple’s wired earbuds, but without wires getting in your way—but if that isn’t enough for you, there are plenty of other options available. 

Simply put, these earbuds deliver crisp highs and deep lows and should be perfectly suitable for most users.

Of course, if you’re more into headphones than earbuds, then Apple makes some of those too—and many would argue that they make some of the best. 

They offer three different models currently—AirPods, AirPods with a wireless charging case, and BeatsX—all of which should be compatible with your iPhone. 

In addition to their great sound quality and lightweight construction, they also boast long battery life and features like touch controls and Siri support. 

It all depends on what you want out of your headphones though; if sound quality is most important to you then there are plenty of other options available in both wired and wireless forms. 

Either way though, Apple is sure to have a product that will work for you.

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Noise Cancellation

Apple’s decision to stay away from noise cancellation means you’ll still be able to hear your surroundings when you want to.

And Apple’s mostly done a great job here, especially compared to other brands, with just a slight touch of ambient noise bleeding in and out. 

If you’re used to wearing earbuds—or even in-ear headphones—it will take some getting used to, but it shouldn’t bother most people. 

This image shows the Apple AirPods 3rd Generation with its box.
Image credit: phonearena

I personally enjoyed listening to music outside more than ever before because I could actually hear my surroundings—the world around me was no longer silent once I put on a pair of AirPods. This leads me to Apple’s solution for noise cancellation. 

Instead of incorporating true noise cancellation—which could get in the way of your hearing real sounds—Apple uses a physical barrier to block out exterior noise when you’re listening to music or making a call. 

While it doesn’t have active noise cancellation, it does let in your surroundings, so you can still hear everything around you. You won’t need to adjust your music every time a car drives by, for example.

Spatial Audio

Apple’s new W1 chip comes with a built-in digital signal processor (DSP), which is designed to make music sound more natural. 

Apple claims it can transform everything from voices to instruments, creating an incredible listening experience. 

I spent several weeks listening to a wide range of music on these AirPods 3rd Generation, and I was surprised by how big of a difference there was between them and my first-generation Apple earbuds. 

Overall, the music sounded more dynamic and had a clearer separation of instruments. 

Although there isn’t any bass, vocals had plenty of mid-range clarity; voices didn’t seem muffled as they sometimes do when listening with other wireless headphones or earbuds. Everything just seemed… brighter.

I wasn’t expecting much from these Apple AirPods 3rd Generation, mostly because I’ve always been disappointed by other wireless earbuds. 

But I was blown away by how much better music sounded on these AirPods compared to my first-generation pair—and even to the wired buds, I own.

This image shows the Apple AirPods 3rd Generation on black background.

Value & Features

Apple’s newest pair of AirPods 3rd Generation is much improved over their predecessors, and they still offer great sound quality, battery life of 6 hours, and seamless integration with your Apple products. 

In fact, Apple claims that they are 70% faster and have better connectivity compared to previous models. 

As a bonus feature, you can even use them as wireless earbuds if you want to listen privately without disturbing others around you. These have become my go-to headphones for all-day use. 

I think they may even be worth buying at their current price tag of $169!

However, there are some downsides. As with any wireless earbuds, it can be a bit of a hassle to charge them every day since you have to place them in their case for charging. 

Also, since they lack active noise cancellation like most Bluetooth earbuds, it can be hard to use them on noisy commutes or planes. 

Another thing that bothered me was that I often had trouble connecting my iPhone XS Max and AirPods 3rd Generation together. 

I had to reset both my phone and earbuds numerous times before they would sync up properly. 

Finally, you cannot upgrade your battery yourself which is something that other brands such as Samsung offer as an extra bonus feature.

Also, check our full review of the latest Apple AirPods Pro 2022 and Apple AirPods Max.

Charging Case

With such long battery life, there’s not much to say about charging. However, I will say that having an extra case for backup purposes is always smart. 

During my time with Apple AirPods 3rd generation, I accidentally lost one of my pods and was able to replace it by just swapping it with another pod from my backup charging case. That was really convenient. 

And since all Apple products are now using USB-C charging technology, it makes things even better because you can use any standard USB-C power brick to charge them without needing a proprietary wall adapter that may be harder to find if you’re on vacation or at a friend’s house.

Battery life has also greatly improved since Apple AirPods 2nd generation. 

It’s pretty much a guarantee that you will get a full day of listening with Apple AirPods 3rd generation, and even then there are options like Hey Siri to quickly charge them if you really need some extra battery juice. 

And once again, using USB-C makes things better because you can use any standard USB-C charger to power them up instead of needing their own proprietary cable. 

And I can attest that they do indeed work with your MacBook Pro’s charging brick!

Battery life

A big gripe people had with Apple’s first two generations of AirPods was how quickly they drained battery. 

These new AirPods 3rd Generations have 5 hours of total talk time or 6 hours for listening to music, and a quick 15-minute charge gives you three hours of use. 

It’s not as good as having full-day use, but it’s a lot better than what Apple was offering before. 

This image shows the Apple AirPods 3rd Generation with its case.
Image credit: scarbir

Plus, if you really need to use them longer than that—for example, if you’re commuting on a train and want to listen on your way home from work—you can always plug them into an external battery pack using their Lightning charging case.

Apple claims that its new AirPods 3rd Generation are twice as efficient, and in my experience, they are just that: I never ran out of juice during a normal day—and even using it heavily doesn’t drain them as quickly as they used to. 

Sure, your iPhone will probably run out of battery first if you leave both connected all day, but it’s nice not to have to worry about that with these little pods.

Overall Verdict – Should you buy it?

Our overall verdict of Apple’s new AirPods 3rd Generation is definitely a positive one. 

They are likely to be a huge upgrade for owners of older generations and an attractive alternative to many other options out there. 

However, they don’t quite match up to our top choice, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds (and they also aren’t waterproof). 

Still, Apple seems focused on improving battery life, connectivity, and sound quality – which means that we can expect future generations of these headphones to be even better than what we have today.

Still, as is, you can expect a solid product that’s a step up from what we saw with AirPods Max. 

With these headphones, Apple seems focused on improving battery life, connectivity, and sound quality – which means that we can expect future generations of these headphones to be even better than what we have today. 

Our verdict overall? If you’re an iPhone user who needs truly wireless earbuds for your day-to-day life, then there’s no reason not to buy them. You’ll be very pleased with your purchase and won’t regret it.