In 2020, Apple ran into some difficulties in the EU thanks to its proprietary charging connector, the Lighting port To avoid hefty fines, Apple was forced to convert its devices to USB-C ports and has been gradually releasing (and re-releasing) devices with this port ever since In some cases, this has been an opportunity to bring great updates like the AirPods Pro 2

and the recently announced AirPods Max

At Apple's recent Glowtime event, we got some great photos of the new AirPods 4 and all their new features We saw the new Apple Watch Series 10 and its sleek new design And the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro were announced Then the AirPods Max was announced Not AirPods Max 2, as expected, but AirPods Max

What is new with AirPods Max? For one thing, there is now a USB-C port on the bottom of the right ear cup, and a new color: AirPods Max is now available in Midnight, Starlight, Blue, Purple, and Orange, replacing the current lineup of Green, Pink, Silver, Sky Blue, and Space Gray They are now available for purchase instead Other than the colors and the USB-C port? Nothing

Interestingly, Apple is not calling these the AirPods Max 2 Instead, it sees them as a USB-C refresh of the headphones rather than a completely new pair

The USB-C port is a given, and Apple had to update that part to avoid incurring the wrath of the European Commission However, some of the improvements we were looking forward to seeing did not materialize

For example, there were rumors of improved noise cancellation and better sound quality A new case would have been nice, too, given that the one in the box is terrible to this day; the AirPods Max update is a disappointment Apple had a chance to update their 4 year old headphones and they missed it [Instead, we got orange headphones To be honest, part of me likes this new color variation (especially the orange), but I still wanted a proper update to what could have been the best noise-canceling headphones

For now, the AirPods Max and its new colors are the only way to get a pair from Apple, but that means we'll have to wait even longer for a proper update