AirPods 5: Apple adds active noise cancellation at a lower price

# What changed with AirPods 5

Apple has released the AirPods 5. The headline change is that active noise cancellation (ANC) is included in the base model, and the new earbuds have improved noise control, better transparency, a new wireless-case option with on-stem volume control, and modest battery improvements.

# Price and availability

The baseline AirPods 5 will sell for $129. A $149 variant adds a wireless charging case and a swipe-to-volume control on the stem. Preorders are open and units go on sale in stores starting September 18.

# Noise cancellation and audio

Adaptive audio will automatically shift between ANC and transparency depending on background noise levels. There's also a conversation awareness feature that lowers media volume when the user starts speaking.

Apple also reports changes to sound tuning to better handle a wider range of ear geometries. That adjustment is intended to make personalized spatial audio feel more immersive across more users.

# Battery and charging

With ANC enabled, a single AirPods 5 charge provides up to five hours of playback, which Apple says is one hour longer than the older model. Combined with the charging case, ANC listening time can reach up to 22 hours.

The wireless charging case supports Apple Watch chargers, Qi-compatible chargers, and USB-C, giving more flexible charging options than some past AirPods cases.

# Controls and features

The $149 model with the wireless charging case adds a volume swipe feature: users can swipe up or down on the AirPods stem to change volume. Other control and convenience features include the automatic adaptive audio and conversation-awareness volume reduction.

# AirPods 4

• ANC: AirPods 5 include ANC in the base price and claim up to 50 percent better noise removal than AirPods 4.
• Price: The base AirPods 5 start at the same $129 launch price that AirPods 4 originally had, but now include ANC without the higher-cost model required previously.
• Battery: Single-charge ANC playback is up to 5 hours (AirPods 4 offered about 4 hours with ANC enabled).
• Controls: The wireless-case AirPods 5 add swipe-to-volume on the stem.

# Who this is for

Choose the base $129 AirPods 5 if you want Apple's entry-level earbuds with ANC included at the lowest price. Pay $149 for the wireless charging case if you want on-stem volume control and extended charging flexibility through Qi, Apple Watch chargers, or USB-C.

# Quick technical notes

Apple credits a multiport acoustic architecture and improved computational audio for the ANC upgrade. Adaptive audio automatically switches modes based on ambient noise. Conversation awareness reduces playback volume when the user speaks. Spatial audio personalization has been retuned to work across more ear shapes.