AirPods 4 noise reduction is reportedly half as good as AirPods Pro 2

It is entirely legitimate to ask what the AirPods Pro 2 compared to the new ones AirPods 4which now integrate a noise reduction system and the famous H2 processor offering a plethora of new features. Despite their subtleties, the differences between these two models would be enough to justify a price difference of €80, or even a little less on different merchant sites.

According to the Cupertino company, the first thing to keep in mind is that the AirPods Pro 2 deliver “2x better active noise reduction compared to AirPods (first generation) and AirPods 4 with ANC”. If this explanatory note added yesterday (September 10, 2024) on the product sheet of the AirPods Pro 2 provides little technical information, it confirms one obvious fact: the design open-fit (open earbuds) of the AirPods 4 should limit the effectiveness of noise reduction. Featuring a semi-in-ear design, the AirPods Pro 2 benefit from sufficient passive isolation to ideally reinforce the cancellation of surrounding noise.

Apple has, however, taken steps to adapt active noise reduction to the AirPods 4 in the best conditions. In addition to a gain in power thanks to the integration of the H2 chip, we highlight in particular the integration of “enhanced microphones”.

If an AirPods Pro 2 user is planning to downgrade to the AirPods 4 because they prefer their design open-fitso you shouldn't expect similar noise reduction performance. Of course, we'll be checking out these performances in our AirPods 4 review, coming soon to The Digitals.