Apple released the AirPods Pro 3 back in September of 2025. I have been living with them and using them every single day since then. I have used them for everything from workouts and runs to Zoom calls, travel, and just everyday listening. What has truly stood out to me isn’t how good they sound for the size, or how they are just about as good as their $550 AirPods Max 2 counterpart, but how Apple has actually improved them over the last 7ish months of owning them. Here is how they have held up, how they’ve improved, and what Apple can still add to them.
Be sure to check out my hands-on review of the AirPods Pro 3. I talk about my experience with them over the last seven months and how I think Apple will turn these AirPods into the Apple Intelligence product.
Design & battery
The design of the AirPods Pro 3 is nearly identical to the AirPods Pro 2, but Apple made subtle changes to accommodate the new earbuds. The earbuds are a bit smaller overall, and the case is a bit smaller as well. It still looks and feels the same, and you can only tell the difference if you have them side by side but here are some of the specs you should know.
- Up to 8 hours of listening time with Active Noise Cancellation
- Up to 24 hours total battery life with the charging case
- IP57 rating for sweat, water, and dust resistance
- USB-C, MagSafe, and Apple Watch charger support
- 5-minute quick charge = 1 hour of playback
- Removed physical pairing button
The design has held up well and is very familiar. Personally, I wasn’t a huge fan of removing the physical pairing button, but the new pairing method via the touch-sensitive control on the inside of the case was easy to get used to. Another thing to note here is that while you can last longer on a single charge (up to 8 hours from 6), the charging case actually provides less charge (going from 30 total hours down to 24). This didn’t affect my usage because it is rare that I listen for 8 straight hours, but it is something people should be aware of.
As I mentioned, Apple also slightly changed the shape of the earbuds, but for me, it was totally fine. AirPods have always fit me well, with no issues. I know that is not the case for everyone. The final improvement they made was for the new silicon-foam hybrid tips. This was genius because you get all the passive noise-cancellation benefits of the foam tips, while keeping the easy-to-clean nature of silicone. I am a huge fan of the new foam hybrid ear tips.
Sound quality
I recently compared the AirPods Max 2 to the AirPods Pro 3. I highly recommend watching the video. But, in short, my biggest takeaway from the comparison was just how good AirPods Pro 3 are. At $350 less, and 1/10 the size (or less), you get 99% of the sound quality. I tested it rigorously against the AirPods Max 2, and I was so impressed by how well the AirPods Pro 3 kept up. If you plug in your AirPods Max 2 for lossless audio, the difference is a bit bigger. But most people use their Max 2 wirelessly.
Then you get into all the different modes. Active noise cancellation is excellent. Apple claims major improvements here, and in real-world use, it shows. Whether you’re in a coffee shop, on a flight, on the subway, or just trying to focus at home, these block out a surprising amount of noise without needing to crank the volume. Transparency mode remains best-in-class. It feels incredibly natural, almost like you’re not wearing earbuds at all, and it does a great job of amplifying voices when needed with settings like Personalized Volume and Conversation Awareness.
It is tough to convey sound quality in an article, and even in a video, but I tested the AirPods Pro with all types of audio. I listened to heavy bass music and more acoustic-style music. The range and separation you get is unbelievable. I also tested it with Zoom calls, FaceTime, podcasts, and everything was crystal clear.
Ecosystem and smart features
This is Apple’s bread and butter. The AirPods Pro 3 show you exactly how powerful the ecosystem is. From instant pairing to seamless device switching, everything feels frictionless in a way that’s still hard to match. Over time, Apple has also added more intelligence to how these behave in day-to-day use. You get:
- Instant pairing with iPhone, iPad, and Mac
- Automatic device switching across Apple devices
- Find My with case speaker
- Adaptive Audio that adjusts based on the environment
- Automatic volume adjustments in real time
- Conversation Awareness to lower the volume when someone speaks
- Head gesture controls for calls and notifications
In real-world use, this is where AirPods Pro 3 feel like they have zero competition against non-Apple headphones. Features like Adaptive Audio and Conversation Awareness genuinely make a difference without needing to think about them. More importantly, this is one of the rare products that has actually improved over time, with updates making these smarter, more stable, and more capable months after release.
Health features
Now, if you thought that the key differentiator between AirPods and non-Apple headphones was the ecosystem, I would actually argue that it’s all the new health features Apple has implemented. Apple decided to add a heart rate monitor to the AirPods Pro 3 to further enhance the health metrics and data that Apple helps you track with other devices like the Apple Watch. Not only that, Apple also received approval to allow the AirPods Pro 3 to be used as a hearing aid for people with low to moderate hearing loss. Here are some of health focused features that make the AirPods great:
- Built-in hearing test functionality
- Medical-grade hearing aid support for mild to moderate hearing loss
- Conversation Awareness for clearer speech in noisy environments
- Built-in heart rate sensor Integration with the Health app
These are features that are impactful beyond just music listening and auto-switching. I was at a wedding last month, and the bride’s father was using his AirPods as hearing aids throughout the entire wedding. I asked him about it, and he said that it has completely changed his relationship to hearing loss and hearing aids. Hearing aids are expensive and are not known to be easy to set up and use. Now with AirPods Pro, you just connect them to your iPhone, and for $200, you have a medical-grade hearing aid that also happens to be AirPods.
The future of AirPods Pro
Apple has added numerous features to AirPods over the years. Some of the features focus on audio and sound quality, which is great, but many of the improvements to the AirPods have been more quality-of-life focused. As we look forward to iOS 27, Apple Intelligence, and future Siri improvements, AirPods are likely to become a primary input method for interacting with your devices. Instead of reaching for your phone or watch, you can simply speak to your AirPods. They’re always in your ears, always connected, and always ready, which makes them the perfect foundation for that kind of frictionless experience.
We have already heard rumors of a new AirPods Pro 4 version that will have even more sensors. Some speculate there will be cameras on either the case or the earbuds to add another layer of interactivity to your AirPods, but let’s see how that all shapes up.
Final take
Over six months later, the AirPods Pro 3 are still my default recommendation for people who need headphones and are in the Apple world. They offer great sound, excellent noise cancellation, best-in-class transparency, and a feature set that continues to grow over time. AirPods have been one of the few products that have actually improved after you made the initial purchase.
Now they aren’t perfect, the battery case could be a bit bigger, it is missing a true EQ customizer, which is a default feature of every other headphone, but as an overall package, it’s hard to beat what Apple is offering here.
To make it even more enticing, they are currently on sale on Amazon for less than $200, which blows my mind. As I said, the $550 AirPods Max 2 sound only 1% (in my opinion) and lack a ton of the health features that the AirPods Pro 3 give you. So what do you think? Do you own AirPods Pro? Which version do you have? What’s your favorite feature? Let’s discuss below
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