The AirPods Max make your ears sweat and, if worn for prolonged periods of time, condensation can also form inside the earpads. It is a problem that some owners of the new Apple headphones are experiencing, on the market for a few weeks, and for which they are expressing their concerns through the various social channels.
Now, that Apple headphones make your skin sweat is not surprising because it is one of the physical limitations common to all headphones of this type, which adhere to the head completely enveloping the ears. With the AirPods Max, however, the problem seems to be much more evident, probably because the metal earpads offer less breathability than some competing solutions that use polycarbonate covers and sometimes offer some fabric openings.
In addition, there is also the high wearability of Apple’s headphones, which adhere perfectly to the skin, offering excellent soundproofing from external noise, which however is paid for with greater sweating during prolonged use.
The condensation that is deposited along the internal walls of the pavilions is, therefore, to be taken into account, as writes Donald Filimon, one of the owners of the AirPods Max who told his impressions on Twitter with lots of photographs, some of which are reported in this article. This accumulation of water droplets inside the pavilions also generates a second problem, even more, annoying than sweating: «penetrating inside the drivers» he writes «it causes ear detection problems». Once dry this problem is solved, but as Filimon points out without hiding his concern since there is no waterproof certification, they could be damaged in the long run.
As mentioned, this is a known problem, so much so that companies like EarHugz produce covers for this kind of headphones that promise better resistance to sweat. It is a physical limit for which Apple can do nothing, except to experiment with new materials and designs that, in a future version, are able to offer better breathability of the pavilions.
For those who are thinking of buying or already own this first generation of AirPods Max, the advice is to periodically check the condition of the inner walls of the pavilions – which can also be done quite easily since the pads have been designed to be removed. and easily replaced – and dry them at the end of each consecutive hour of use “using a soft, dry, lint-free cloth” as Apple explains in the product specifications.
The Apple headphones were announced on 21 December: they can be ordered from the page of the Apple Store online at a price of 629 euros: at the time of writing, they are available on Amazon only in some colours.
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