I composed my review of the AirPods Pro 3 in a tropical paradise. Physically located at a resort in Maui, I was there for a conference, typing away in between sessions and presentations. As soon as I inserted my new AirPods, I entered a personal bubble of tranquility. The surrounding chatter and the sound of waves crashing against the shore faded away. All I had was my music, my thoughts, and my fingers dancing on the keyboard.

It’s not that the AirPods Pro 3 offer anything extraordinarily innovative compared to other wireless earbuds, which are frequently more affordable — you still get quality sound, active noise cancellation (ANC), transparency mode, and more. It’s that they surpassed expectations at every opportunity.

Amidst a tech conference social mixer, enveloped by the hum of people discussing specifications, all I needed to do was insert the AirPods, start some music, and nothing else mattered. It’s an incredible sensation. So, let’s dive in. I’ve been using the AirPods Pro 3 for about a week, and here’s my comprehensive review.

Simple connectivity

After taking the AirPods Pro 3 out of the box, the first step is to pair them with your iPhone. This involves the straightforward task of… opening the AirPods case next to your iPhone. That’s all there is to it. Oh, and by the way, once you complete that, any device linked to your Apple ID can connect to them — whether it’s an iPhone, Mac, or iPad. This feature isn’t new; it’s been there since the original AirPods. But it’s still a delightful touch.

Once connected, there’s no dedicated app to control the AirPods — the settings are integrated into your phone’s operating system, although not always in the most user-friendly manner. Within the Bluetooth settings, you can tweak hearing modes, hearing protection and assistance (which we’ll touch on later), controls, and a range of other settings — there are far too many to list here, honestly. What is missing, however, is the equalizer (EQ) for the AirPods, which can be found in a different part of settings. There’s also no custom EQ, which is quite frustrating.

Is the EQ optional?

During my testing, I mainly listened to podcasts — that’s my usual practice — but I also dedicated considerable time to music from artists like Metallica, Scorpions, Evanescence, and others. Then there’s my favorite, Lindsey Stirling, for exploring the entire frequency range from the lowest dubstep bass to the highest violin notes.

The AirPods Pro 3 deliver a balanced sound profile, with no particular emphasis on any frequency. It’s a very flat profile, which is exactly as it should be. You can select different EQs — also located in the phone’s system settings, but again, there are no custom profiles, which is suboptimal. Fortunately, I appreciate the default flat profile, so I don’t have any personal issues, but it’s not unreasonable to desire a custom sound profile.

Remarkable ANC and Transparency

As mentioned earlier, the ANC on these AirPods Pro 3 is truly remarkable. The main goal of ANC is to minimize outside noise. The primary advantage is to hearing health — the lower you can listen to your music and media comfortably, the less chance you have of harming your hearing. Yet Apple takes it a step further by reducing all external sounds to almost nothing. You can still perceive some noises, but they are diminished to a degree that they become insignificant.

While ANC was effective at blocking constant sounds, it struggled with sudden noises like a person speaking or a car honking. That remains true for lower-end ANC earbuds, but Apple excels at cutting out sudden noises as well. When you play any music or media, the surrounding noise simply vanishes.

Transparency mode allows outside sounds to filter in. The AirPods Pro 3 perform well in this regard, although they are a slight downgrade from the AirPods Pro 2. This is because the transparency mode on the AirPods Pro 3 carries a trace of sibilance in the audio — there’s a subtle ring of higher frequencies, akin to speaking in a bathroom, or a hissing sound on specific letters. It’s not detrimental, but it’s noticeable (and likely fixable via a software update in the future).

Numerous features I wasn’t able to test effectively

My wife would strongly disagree with my upcoming statement, but according to Apple, I don’t have significant hearing loss. Personally, I align with my wife’s viewpoint. A youth spent enjoying loud music in confined spaces has left me with ongoing tinnitus. Place me in a loud environment, and I will be grinning and nodding without having heard a word spoken by someone just three feet away. Even Nuance glasses didn’t assist.

But, according to Apple, I only