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Products
Fairphone Fairbuds XL
Apple AirPods Max
Tested using Methodology v1.7
Updated May 16, 2025 03:17 PM
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Amazon.comTested using Methodology v2.0
Updated Sep 22, 2025 03:42 PM
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Amazon.com
TypeOver-ear
Noise CancellingYes
EnclosureClosed-Back
WirelessYes
TransducerDynamic
MicYes
TypeOver-ear
Noise CancellingYes
EnclosureClosed-Back
Bass AmountSlightly Emphasized (1 dB)
WirelessYes
TransducerDynamic
Treble AmountUnderemphasized (-4 dB)
MicYes
Sound SignatureWarm
Our Verdict
Fairphone Fairbuds XL
Apple AirPods Max
The Apple AirPods Max and the Fairphone Fairbuds XL are both wireless over-ears constructed from materials that are geared towards longevity. The Apple uses durable aluminum, metal, and silicone in its construction, while the Fairphone is made of recycled plastic and vegan leather. While the build quality of the Apple is higher, these headphones lack the Fairphone's modular, easily replaceable design. The two are similarly comfortable. That said, the Apple's premium price tag comes with a superior ANC performance that can isolate you more effectively against a range of sounds. They can pair seamlessly with Apple devices. The Fairphone headphones have a longer continuous battery life, though, which can come in handy on longer journeys.
Variants
- Fairbuds XL (Black)
- Fairbuds XL (Green)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Blue)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Green)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Midnight)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Orange)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Pink)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Purple)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Silver)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Sky Blue)
- AirPods Max (Lightning) (Space Gray)
- AirPods Max (USB-C) (Starlight)
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Green
Fairbuds XL
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Amazon.comGreen
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Amazon.comBlack
Fairbuds XL
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Amazon.comBlue
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Amazon.comMidnight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Amazon.comOrange
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Amazon.comPink
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Amazon.comPurple
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Amazon.comSilver
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Amazon.comSky Blue
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Amazon.comSpace Gray
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Walmart.comStarlight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
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Amazon.comMain Differences forNeutral Sound
Neutral Sound
Threshold
Neutral Sound
7.6
Full Comparison
Sound
Sound Profile
Sound Profile
Normalization Frequency
1,250 Hz
Bass Amount
Slightly Emphasized (1 dB)
Bass Amount
0.72 dB
Treble Amount
-1.84 dB
Treble Amount
Underemphasized (-4 dB)
Sound Signature
Warm
Frequency Response Consistency
6.4
8.1
Consistency L
Consistency R
Std. Deviation
0.78 dB
0.83 dB
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
8.9
9.7
Bass Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
1.54 dB
1.5 dB
Low-Frequency Extension
10 Hz
20 Hz
Low Bass
1.91 dB
1.71 dB
Mid Bass
-0.02 dB
1.08 dB
High Bass
0.9 dB
1.43 dB
Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
8.8
9.2
Mid-Range Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
1.59 dB
1.27 dB
Low Mid
0 dB
0.42 dB
Mid-Mid
0.65 dB
-0.05 dB
High Mid
1.09 dB
-1.35 dB
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
7.2
6.3
Treble Profile: Target Compliance
RMS Deviation From Target
4.13 dB
4.91 dB
Low Treble
-1.91 dB
-4.96 dB
Mid Treble
1.68 dB
-2.98 dB
High Treble
-10.35 dB
-2.68 dB
Stereo Mismatch
9.1
Frequency Response Mismatch
Phase Response Mismatch
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
0.42
0.10 dB
Weighted Frequency Response Mismatch
1.94
0.67 dB
Weighted Phase Mismatch
15.34
0.6°
Cumulative Spectral Decay
CSD
PRTF
4.3
4.4
PRTF Accuracy (RMS Deviation)
4.85 dB
4.28 dB
PRTF Size (Avg.)
6.85 dB
6.81 dB
PRTF Distance
9.54 dB
5.22 dB
Openness
1.5
Acoustic Space Excitation
2.6
Harmonic Distortion
9.5
Harmonics Levels
THD Ratio
WHD @ 94 dB SPL
0.638
0.06%
WHD @ 104 dB SPL
0.239
0.10%
Electrical Aspects
Impedance
Sensitivity @1kHz-1V
N/A
Bluetooth Max SPL
103.2 dB
Virtual Soundstage
0.0
2.9
Virtual Soundstage
Head Modeling
No
No
Speaker Modeling
No
On/Off
Room Ambience
No
No
Head Tracking
No
On/Off
Virtual Surround
No
Spatial Audio
Test Settings
Firmware
V90
6A326
Power
On
On
Connection
Bluetooth 5.1
Bluetooth
Codec
aptX HD, 24-bit, 48kHz
SBC, 16-bit, 48kHz
Test Instrument
Audio Precision APx517B
EQ
Amsterdam
Adaptive EQ
ANC
On
On
Tip/Pad
Default
Default
Microphone
Integrated
Integrated
Imaging
8.1
Group Delay
Phase Response Mismatch
Weighted Group Delay
0.2
Weighted Phase Mismatch
15.34
0.6°
Weighted Amplitude Mismatch
0.42
0.10 dB
Weighted Frequency Mismatch
1.94
0.67 dB
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
6.9
Weighted Harmonic Distortion
WHD @ 90
0.638
0.06%
WHD @ 100
0.239
0.10%
Design
Style
Design Picture 2
Type
Over-ear
Over-ear
Enclosure
Closed-Back
Closed-Back
Wireless
Yes
Yes
Transducer
Dynamic
Dynamic
Comfort
7.0
7.0
Comfort Picture
Weight
0.73 lbs
0.85 lbs
Clamping Force
1 lbs
1.2 lbs
Controls
7.6
7.9
Controls Picture
OS Compatibility
Not OS specific
iOS
Ease Of Use
Good
Great
Feedback
Decent
Good
Call/Music Control
Yes
Yes
Volume Control
Yes
Yes
Microphone Control
No
No
Channel Mixing
No
No
Noise Cancelling Control
On/Off
On/Off
Talk-Through
On/Off
On/Off
Additional Controls
Voice Assistant
Voice Assistant
Breathability
Breathability After Picture
Avg.Temp.Difference
Portability
5.9
6.0
Portability Picture
L
5.6" (14.1 cm)
7.8" (19.8 cm)
W
7.0" (17.9 cm)
7.5" (19.1 cm)
H
3.0" (7.6 cm)
1.7" (4.3 cm)
Volume
119.54 in³ (1,958.98 cm³)
99.00 in³ (1,622.31 cm³)
Transmitter Required
No
No
Case
6.5
6.0
Case Picture
Type
Pouch
Soft case
L
8.0" (20.4 cm)
7.9" (20.1 cm)
W
8.5" (21.7 cm)
8.5" (21.6 cm)
H
0.1" (0.3 cm)
1.7" (4.3 cm)
Volume
8.10 in³ (132.80 cm³)
114.00 in³ (1,868.12 cm³)
Build Quality
7.5
8.0
Build Quality Picture
Stability
7.0
6.5
Stability Picture
Headshots 1
Angled Picture
Side Picture
Headshots 2
Front Picture
Rear Picture
Top
Top Picture
In The Box
In The Box Picture
Isolation
Noise Isolation - Full Range
8.4
9.4
Noise Isolation - Full Range Graph
Noise Cancelling
Yes
Yes
Overall Attenuation
-22.10 dB
-26.06 dB
Bass
-15.91 dB
-19.54 dB
Mid
-19.06 dB
-30.62 dB
Treble
-32.98 dB
-28.95 dB
Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios
7.5
9.0
Noise Isolation - Common Scenarios Graph
Airplane Noise Attenuation
-17.66 dB
-21.85 dB
Airplane Noise Isolation Audio
Office Noise Attenuation
-17.99 dB
-19.98 dB
Office Noise Isolation Audio
Street Noise Attenuation
-19.21 dB
-21.92 dB
Street Noise Isolation Audio
Noise Isolation - Voice Handling
Female Voice 1
Male Voice 1
Female Voice 2
Male Voice 2
Microphone
Microphone Style
Integrated
Yes
Yes
In-Line
No
No
Boom
No
No
Detachable Boom
No
No
Mic
Yes
Yes
Recording Quality
6.9
6.6
Microphone Frequency Response
Recorded Speech
LFE
403.18 Hz
273 Hz
FR Std. Dev.
2.67 dB
2.77 dB
HFE
6,267.15 Hz
3,466.89 Hz
Weighted THD
1.084
3.025
Gain
28.65 dB
15.85 dB
Noise Handling
5.4
5.0
SpNR
19.53 dB
9.61 dB
Noise Gate
Always On
No
Speech + Pink Noise Handling
6.0
5.0
Speech + Pink Noise Audio Sample
Speech + Subway Noise Handling
4.5
5.0
Speech + Subway Noise Audio Sample
Active Features
Battery
7.6
8.3
Battery Type
Rechargable
Rechargable
Continuous Battery Life
28.4 hrs
21.6 hrs
Additional Charges
0.0
0.0
Total Battery Life
28.4 hrs
21.6 hrs
Charge Time
2.2 hrs
1.5 hrs
Power-Saving Feature
No
Standby mode
Audio While Charging
Yes
Yes
Passive Playback
No
No
Charging Port
USB-C
Lightning
App Support
6.0
6.0
App Picture
App Name
Fairphone
iOS Interface
iOS
Yes
Yes
Android
Yes
No
macOS
No
Yes
Windows
No
No
Equalizer
Graphic + Presets
No
ANC Control
No
On/Off
Mic Control
No
No
Room Effects
No
No
Playback Control
No
No
Button Mapping
No
No
Surround Support
No
Yes
Connectivity
Wired Connection
8.9
9.3
Cable Picture
Analog Audio
No
Yes
USB Audio
USB-C
No
Detachable
Yes
Yes
Length
N/A
N/A
Connector
USB-C
Lightning
Latency - Analog
N/A
1.7 ms
Latency - USB
18.5 ms
N/A
Recorded Latency
Recorded Latency Connection
USB
Analog
Bluetooth Connection
7.5
7.9
Bluetooth Version
5.1
5.0+H1 chip
Multi-Device Pairing
2 Devices
No
Quick Pair (Android)
No
No
Quick Pair (iOS)
No
Yes
Line Of Sight Range
206.69 ft (63.00 m)
328.00 ft (99.97 m)
Latency - SBC
271 ms
185 ms
Latency - aptX
265 ms
N/A
Latency - aptX Adaptive (High Quality)
N/A
N/A
Latency - aptX Adaptive (Low Latency)
N/A
N/A
Latency - LDAC
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
Recorded Latency Codec
aptX HD
SBC
AAC Support
Yes
Yes
Wireless Connection (Dongle)
0.0
0.0
Line Of Sight Range
N/A
N/A
Latency - Dongle
N/A
N/A
Recorded Latency
N/A
N/A
PC Compatibility
Analog
No
No
Wired USB
Audio + Microphone
No
Non-BT Wireless
No
No
PlayStation Compatibility
PS4 Analog
No
No
PS4 Wired USB
Audio + Microphone
No
PS4 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
PS5 Analog
No
No
PS5 Wired USB
Audio + Microphone
No
PS5 Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox Compatibility
Xbox One Analog
No
No
Xbox One Wired USB
No
No
Xbox One Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Analog
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Wired USB
No
No
Xbox Series X|S Non-BT Wireless
No
No
Base/Dock
0.0
0.0
Type
No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock
USB Input
No
No
Line In
No
No
Line Out
No
No
Optical Input
No
No
RCA Input
No
No
Dock Charging
No
No
Power Supply
No Base/Dock
No Base/Dock
Check Price
Green
Fairbuds XL
SEARCH
Amazon.comGreen
AirPods Max (Lightning)
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Amazon.comBlack
Fairbuds XL
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comBlue
AirPods Max (USB-C)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comMidnight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comOrange
AirPods Max (USB-C)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comPink
AirPods Max (Lightning)
SEARCH
Amazon.comPurple
AirPods Max (USB-C)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comSilver
AirPods Max (Lightning)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comSky Blue
AirPods Max (Lightning)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.comSpace Gray
AirPods Max (Lightning)
SEE PRICE
Walmart.comStarlight
AirPods Max (USB-C)
SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Fairphone Fairbuds XL
Apple AirPods Max
Comments
Apple AirPods Max vs Fairphone Fairbuds XL: Main Discussion
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