Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation  Headphones Review

The Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation come with a few proprietary Apple audio features that make for a different listening experience when paired with an iPhone updated to iOS 18. For example, Apple's always-on Adaptive EQ feature means that iPhones apply a loudness contour that alters the sound based on output volume; this is designed to counteract how our brains perceive more bass and treble at higher volumes. This graph shows the difference in sound at three volume levels, normalized at 1kHz.

Because of that, we took our measurements using our standard measurement rig, so that Adaptive EQ isn't applied. These earbuds have a warm sound profile. They lack a little low-bass thump, but the rest of the bass and mid-range is flat. A big dip in the treble range can make your audio sound dull or smooth, depending on your tastes.

We also noted slight differences in the frequency response, with marginally more bass with ANC enabled. Similarly, there are slight increases in the bass and mid-range when using the Personalized Volume feature, which dynamically adjusts the output volume based on the volume of your surroundings.

These buds have an impressive frequency response consistency with little deviation in audio delivery between different listening sessions. After a bit of adjustment, you'll be able to enjoy consistent audio delivery with every wear.

The Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have great compliance with our target in the bass range. Since they don't form a seal with your inner ear, open-fitting earbuds tend to feature some roll-off in the bass range, but it's limited to just the very lowest part of the range in this case. While the low-bass range is slightly underemphasized, there's still plenty of low-end punch, courtesy of the balanced mid and high-bass response. As a result, kicks and basslines are well-defined, but sub-bass sounds, like 808s and dub-step wobbles, lack a little rumble and boom.

These earbuds do an incredible job of following our mid-range target. The response is balanced across the entire range, meaning vocals, strummed acoustic guitars, and piano melodies alike are all reproduced clearly and with plenty of detail.

The treble range's compliance with our target is poor. The whole range is very recessed, with a considerable dip in the response between the low and mid-treble. In songs like Joni Mitchell's Ladies of the Canyon, Joni's lead vocal line sounds veiled, even when she slips into the top of her range. The upper harmonics of her finger-picked guitars also sound dull and muted. That said, you may enjoy that warmer, smoother sound.

The peaks and dips performance is impressive, meaning these headphones generally adhere to their own warm sound profile. There are almost no deviations in the bass and mid-range, with the most notable peaks and dips occurring in the higher parts of the treble range, where our hearing is weakest and most dependent on our individual anatomy.

These headphones have amazingly well-matched left and right drivers. Amplitude and phase are closely aligned between the drivers across the whole spectrum, so objects are accurately placed in the stereo field.

There are no issues with group delay, as all group delay falls below the audibility threshold in the areas of the spectrum these headphones can reproduce.

These headphones have remarkably low harmonic distortion, even when pushed to unsafe listening levels. You can expect clean and pure audio reproduction.

You can access the virtual soundstage features through the iOS interface. There are two types of spatial audio at your disposal: 'Fixed' and 'Head Tracked.' The 'Fixed' mode locks the position of the soundstage in one place so the orientation of the stereo field doesn't change when you move your head. 'Head Tracked' will follow the position of your head and shift the soundstage around relative to how your head is angled. There's also a Personalized Spatial Audio feature, which requires you to take a video of your head and both ears. An algorithm then adapts the sound profile and soundstage to your ear shape. Subjectively, we found little difference in the immersiveness of the soundstage from using this feature, but its adaptive nature might mean it improves with repeated use.

These are the settings we used to test the Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation. These headphones also have wide variety of additional sound modes. Our tests were carried out with Personalized Volume, Conversation Awareness, Automatic Ear Detection, and Personalized Spatial Audio all set to 'off.' As previously noted, all sound tests were carried out over an iPhone, with measurements recorded on Audio Precision.

The Apple AirPods 4 with ANC share more visual similarities with the previous generation Apple AirPods (3rd generation), due to their open design and shortened stems. This iteration forgoes silicone tips, like on the Apple AirPods Pro 2, in favor of a 'one-size-fits-all' approach to the design, which the manufacturer claims is based on studying many different ear shapes. As is the norm for Apple earbuds, they sport a distinctive all-white colorway, with no options for other colors.

These buds are decently comfortable, though this will depend on the shape of your ears. Users who dislike the deep, in-ear fit of buds like the Apple AirPods Pro 2 will appreciate their contoured shape, which rests inside your ear canal without providing a full seal. For some, this results in a snug and extremely comfortable fit, but there are also numerous reports online of the buds falling out while in use, which is also a potential downside to their very lightweight design.

The Apple AirPods 4 ANC have also inherited a control scheme that has much in common with the previous generation. These buds use the same 'Force Sensor' controls, which use an indented area on their surface that can be squeezed to input controls.

Unlike conventional earbud controls, which often employ physical buttons or tactile touch-sensitive surfaces, this input method is more forgiving of the accidental touches and brushes that can produce unwanted results. There are unique chimes depending on the feature engaged, which provide audible feedback and are accompanied by a light vibration. Even the case has controls. With the case open and the earbuds inside, two taps on the front of the case enters pairing mode. You can also double tap three times (which can be tricky to execute correctly) to reset the AirPods to their factory settings.

The control scheme is easy to grasp, too, with some additional explanation provided in the manual. You can even assign some gesture controls via iOS settings that allow you to answer or decline calls with a simple head nod. There's also an automatic ear detection feature that transfers call audio to your buds when you put them in your ears. The only notable oversights are related to volume, as there's no way to adjust the volume via the controls and no max/min volume chimes.

As with other earbuds, they're exceedingly portable. They come with a small case that can easily be tucked into pockets or bags without taking up much room at all.

The Apple Airpods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation come with a very handy case. While its design will be familiar to existing AirPods users, its form factor is smaller than previous iterations. It's reassuringly solid, with no loose points in its plastic construction, and there are strong magnets inside to keep the buds fastened in place. There's even a small speaker inside that's used to convey charging status and pairing status, which emits a tone when using the 'Find My' app feature. Sadly, Apple removed MagSafe compatibility with this model, though there's still support for wireless charging to complement the standard USB-C charging. The case is rated IP54, meaning it's protected from dust damage and water splashes.

The build quality is great. Both the case and the buds are made of the same glossy, feather-light plastic that seems resistant to light drops and bumps. They're still susceptible to scratches, though. Both the case and the buds are rated IP54 for protection against water splashes and dust damage. To keep them in good shape for a longer lifespan, check out how to clean your AirPods.

The Apple AirPods 4 with ANC form a good fit, although this will depend somewhat on the exact shape of your ears and the fit you're able to achieve. With a solid fit, they'll stay in place during brisk strolls and moderate headbanging. They could even feasibly be used for running, though their lightweight design runs the risk of them falling out mid-stride.

• Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation headphones
• Charging case
• Manuals

The Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have a fair noise isolation performance. That said, it's still a tier above the performance we expect from open-back designs, which is a testament to the strength of their ANC. This design offers very little passive attenuation against low- and mid-range frequencies, which is where the ANC is able to offer some improvements. As a result, their noise isolation falls short of the silicone tip-equipped Apple AirPods Pro 2, but it's still a cut above the Apple AirPods (3rd generation), which don't have an ANC system. We measured some differences in the noise isolation performance with firmware update 7B19, which increased attenuation across the bass and mid-range. However, Apple doesn't usually detail if firmware updates will result in performance-related changes.

This model also features a few different ANC modes that can affect the noise isolation performance. There's Transparency mode, which filters in external noise via the built-in mics. While not as natural-sounding as the second-generation AirPods Pro, it does a good job of keeping you aware of your surroundings. Adaptive Audio will selectively allow more external noise through depending on three pre-selected noise profiles: 'Default,' 'More Noise,' and 'Less Noise.' It helps maintain a consistent balance between ANC and Transparency even if the noise in your environment changes. We were able to measure the performance of these different modes to see how this affected noise isolation.

Finally, there's a Conversational Awareness function that detects when you speak, filtering in a certain amount of external audio to allow you to converse.

The Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation do a good job of attenuating against noise in common scenarios. They filter out much of the low roar of airplane engines and the rumble of passing buses. While they fare worse when it comes to office noises, like scraping chairs and chatting co-workers, they still noticeably tamp down on these frequencies. For a more powerful ANC performance, see the Apple AirPods Pro 3, which provide better noise isolation and ANC.

Wind noise interacts with their ANC mics differently compared to other common noises. Even though the sound doesn't reach your ears, the mics attempt to cancel it out. This can create loud, unwanted noise. These buds don't have a wind handling feature that can help mitigate this, so wind noise is very noticeable, though less so at 90-degree angles.

Despite their open-back design, the Apple AirPods 4 ANC don't leak too much audio. Even if you're blasting your favorite tunes in a quiet environment, it's unlikely that anyone around you will be able to hear your audio. Escaping audio is mostly located in the treble range, so it sounds thin and tinny.

The mic's recording quality is okay. Within the iOS settings, you can adjust which of the left or right microphone gets used, or select 'Automatic,' which automatically chooses the better of the two. Using the 'Automatic' setting, we found that the mic reproduces your voice intelligibly. Recorded speech lacks body and can sound a little boxy, though, given the roll-off in the treble range.

The Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation's built-in mic has an adequate noise-handling performance. It fares quite well in moderately busy environments, so if you're taking a call in a cafe, your voice will still have clarity and detail amidst background conversations. That said, louder sounds, like passing trains or buses, come through very clearly and will easily overpower the sound of your voice. This can make it very unpleasant for the person on the other end.

The battery performance is adequate, though it's a little shorter than previous AirPods models. The manufacturer advertises around four hours of listening time with ANC enabled, which is in line with our measurement of 4.5 hours. We were able to achieve a little over six hours with the ANC disabled.

There are four additional charges available via the case, and it only takes around 30 minutes for the AirPods to fully recharge. There's also a standby feature that turns the buds off after you remove them from your ears. Similar to the iPhone, there's also an optimized battery charging feature that detects the times you most often use your device and pauses charging at 80% until you're most likely to start using the device again.

There's no dedicated app for these earbuds, but you can access their interface via the iOS settings. You'll need iOS 18 installed to take advantage of all the available features, which you can see in this video overview. You can enable audio-related settings, like Personalized Volume, Personalized Spatial Audio, and Automatic Ear Detection. You can also adjust ANC-related features like Adaptive Audio, Conversational Awareness, and Noise Control. You can find more details on these in the Noise Isolation - Full Range box. While there's some scope for sculpting the sound via the the 'Accessibility' tab of your iOS device, you're limited to some basic presets with few parameters for further tuning. You can also enable head gesture control and other call controls and find misplaced buds via the 'Find My Network' feature.

You can't use the Apple AirPods 4 with ANC wired. While you use a USB-C cable to charge the case, there isn't one provided.

The Apple AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation have decent Bluetooth connectivity. Their multi-device connectivity is limited to iOS, meaning Android users won't be able to connect to more than one device at a time. Thanks to their H2 chip, switching works seamlessly between Apple devices registered to the same iCloud account. So if you're playing music on your laptop but start a podcast on your phone, audio playing from your AirPods will switch from one device to another. This plays well with their automatic ear detection system, which transfers audio from other Apple Ecosystem devices when you put them in your ears.

Latency with the SBC codec is high, which isn't ideal if you plan on watching videos on your PC. We noticed a few other differences in Bluetooth connectivity between iOS devices and other operating systems though. While we don't measure latency via AAC, we didn't notice any obvious latency while watching videos on an iPhone. Similarly, the wireless line of sight range increased when using an iPhone instead of our Android testing phone.

These headphones are audio and mic compatible with Bluetooth-enabled PCs. However, they can't connect any other way.

The Apple AirPods 4 with ANC come with a small charging case that holds around four additional charges. It charges via USB-C. The case also supports wireless charging, but support for MagSafe charging has been withdrawn for this model.