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Apple's AirPods Pro 3 are doubtless the biggest earbuds release of the year – figuratively and in terms of the furore surrounding them, that is, rather than physically (they're nice and small, as it happens).

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00:04Apple's AirPods Pro 3 were absolutely the biggest earbuds of 2025, figuratively because they are
00:11nice and small as it happens. They're still ice white only and they still prefer an iPhone, iPad
00:17or MacBook over an Android device any day of the week if you want the full suite of features,
00:22but they are improved in a large number of ways over their predecessors. The lowdown on them is
00:28this. iPhone owners who value great, shut out the world noise cancellation should absolutely go for
00:35this set of earbuds. For noise stopping they are truly remarkable. The improved battery life of
00:41around six hours with noise cancellation on is good, though a little extra stamina even further
00:46would have been welcome since we actually got around 5.5 hours with spatial audio turned on as well.
00:52Between the smart Apple-friendly features, live translation if your iPhone is new enough,
00:57excellent spatial audio and now heart rate tracking these are excellent value especially given
01:04that they're notably cheaper than most of the elite earbuds competition.
01:12This time around you get five ear tips in the box and Apple has also performed some wizardry with the
01:19shape of the driver housing so they should slip right into your ear and stay there solidly.
01:24They did for multiple people on the tech radar team at least and we rate them as probably the best
01:31fit for
01:31people with small ears right now.
01:37Of course the sound is crucial and the AirPods Pro 3 sound is both zealous and attention grabbing,
01:44bringing your music to your ears with style and even joy. You can expect an expansive exuberant soundstage
01:51that allows bass registers, ample space to rumble with regimented clout. Instruments hold texture
01:58through the mids, there's excellent musicality that makes you want to dance along and there's total
02:04immersion especially with head track spatial audio turned on. And let me be clear, the impact of the music
02:11is thanks in no small part to the nearest to silent active noise cancellation performance we've experienced
02:18right in line with the other elite option in this area, the Bose QuietComfort Ultra earbuds second generation.
02:26These are almost scarily good at sucking the noise out of your ears but without the actual sucky wind tunnel
02:33nauseating effect
02:34you can sometimes get with similar levels of noise cancellation. We found that toggling on Apple's adaptive audio
02:40actually reduced the effectiveness, it felt just a touch laggy at picking up on low level noise but overall
02:46this peace and quiet is well worth spending money on for your commute as far as I'm concerned.
02:53For music neutrality and raw detail, the pure hi-fi versus fun debate, it's worth me pointing out that
03:00you'll get a little more accuracy in the sound from the Technics EAH-AZ100 which can sometimes now be found
03:07for around the same price as AirPods Pro 3 but if you like your music to lean towards energy and
03:12vigorous
03:12impact I find the AirPods Pro 3 to be basically as good as earbuds come right now.
03:21The one major new feature over previous AirPods here is the heart rate sensor. Simply by wearing them,
03:27an extra black little bar on the inside neck of the bud plus the built-in movement sensors can track
03:3350
03:34workout types with just AirPods Pro 3 i.e. no Apple Watch needed to give you a heart rate reading
03:41as long
03:41as you're wearing at least one earbud. They should also be able to work with third-party apps for heart
03:47rate tracking but depending on which one you use you may need to wait longer for an update to add
03:52this.
03:52Still, even if your favorite app doesn't track it, Apple's health app will.
03:56Having tested the heart rate sensing for various workouts, our verdict is that it can definitely
04:01add value to the earbuds. It's probably not going to be what makes or breaks your decision.
04:10Ultimately, AirPods Pro 3 are elite when it comes to noise cancellation, engaging sound and a reliable fit.
04:18They are solid for battery life, they are amazing for features if you have an iPhone,
04:22and they are pretty mediocre for features if you're on Android. Importantly, they do all this for
04:28slightly cheaper than most of the competition, making them maybe the best value of the premium
04:33earbuds for Apple users. Thanks very much for watching and if there is a pair of earbuds or
04:38headphones you'd like us to review, please let us know in the comments.
04:50I'll see you next time.
04:50I'll see you next time.
04:50I'll see you next time.
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