Apple Airpods Pro (2019)

Exceptionally comfortable ; Strong noise-cancelling ; Balanced, easy-going sound

Noise-cancelling impacts timing ; Sony rival sounds more engaging

The noise-cancelling AirPods Pro can be beaten for sound, but they are a joy to live with and use all day, every day – especially if you're an Apple device user

Really great audio quality ; Very secure and comfortable fit ; Noise cancellation is impressive ; Battery life isn't bad ; The 'arms' protrude less far from your ear

Still feel very iOS-focused ; More nuance in Transparency mode would be nice ; Obviously, over-ear headphones have better ANC

Apple AirPods Pro are among the best true wireless earbuds you can get. They sound excellent, the noise cancellation is strong, and the secure yet comfortable fit means they work very well for exercise too. They're still better suited to iOS than...

Noise cancellation Excellent Transparency pass-through mode Much better fit

Higher price Capacitive controls fiddly USB-C charging cable in box

The new AirPods Pro have already impressed in a number of ways in our early testing - we need to spend more time assessing them, but already the Pro earbuds feel like a marked step up over the original AirPods.

Easy setup ; ANC is superb ; Better sound than standard AirPods ; Three tips included for optimum comfort and sound ; Spatial Audio

Only available in white ; Music listening time is reduced with ANC ; Squeeze gesture takes some learning ; Beats earbuds offer better bass

Despite now being more than a couple of years old, we're still incredibly impressed with the ease of setup and quality of sound that the AirPods Pro deliver. Active noise-cancellation makes a huge difference to ambient noise, making these in-ears far...

A joy to use ; Great ANC & Transparency modes ; Improved design

No improvement to battery ; Not the best sound available ; Expensive

Apple takes the smash-hit AirPods and improves fit, comfort, and sound quality while adding a decent active noise reduction system and great transparency mode. But at this price, they should probably sound just a little better.

— Strong sound, very comfortable, and excellent noise cancellation

— Less impressive for Android users, and the battery life isn’t brilliant

The Apple AirPods Pro are an excellent pair of earbuds that greatly improve on the standard version of AirPods, especially in terms of sound quality, noise cancellation, and comfort. However, they’re not necessarily the best choice if you’re not wedded...

Spatial audio virtual surround feature coming this fall with iOS 14

Unclear if these have better long-term battery life than the original AirPods

Comfortable and secure fit ; Decent noise cancellation

Expensive ; No colour options

Apple’s AirPods Pro are fantastic wireless in-ears, comfortable and incredibly intuitive making for a seamless user experience. It does feel a bit of a stretch to call them ‘Pro’ as they don’t quite match similar priced competitors for sound quality.

The upgrades are so significant - active noise cancellation, better audio quality, better fit, multiple eartips, improved water resistance - and the additional cost so moderate, that it's now hard to make a case for the early-2019 AirPods. Go for the...