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Should you buy AirPods Pro on Black Friday 2021?

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It’s fair to say that at this time of year, a lot of folks are looking for the best Black Friday deals on all sorts of products. And when it comes to Apple products, people are eagerly in search of the best Black Friday AirPods deals — and for good reason. Apple’s excellent noise-canceling true wireless earbuds are some of the best you can buy, but at a regular price of $249, they aren’t exactly easy on the wallet, so getting a good deal can make them a lot more affordable.

  • View AirPods Pro Black Friday Deals at Amazon

Black Friday is the best time to buy AirPods Pro — but shop early deals

AirPods Pro resting on an iPhone with open charging case nearby.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

We’ve seen regular discounts on the AirPods Pro throughout 2021, but Black Friday will be your last chance to score a deal on these earbuds before the holidays. How low might they go? We’ve seen them on sale for as little as $180 — a nearly $70 saving on their $249 regular price – but more recently, those prices have been hovering around $199.

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Here’s a tip for saving money on the AirPods Pro: When Apple debuted the third-gen AirPods in October, it also quietly updated the charging case for the AirPods Pro to make it compatible with the company’s MagSafe charger. It was already capable of wirelessly charging on any standard Qi charger, but for some folks, the improvement will matter. If you’re not one of these buyers, look for the original version (AirPods Pro with Wireless Charging Case). This model will see deeper discounts than the MagSafe version, and yet the only difference is in the charging case — not in the earbuds themselves, so all other features remain the same.

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Here’s another tip: Don’t wait. Last year, there was huge Black Friday demand for the AirPods Pro and Apple has some difficulty providing enough inventory. We don’t think demand will be quite as high this year  (mostly due to the new AirPods 3), but due to ongoing global supply chain issues, why take the chance? If you can find a good deal right now — especially if you can find a Black Friday price guarantee — we say go for it!

Why buy the AirPods Pro?

Man wearing Apple AirPods Pro outdoors.
Digital Trends

If you’re an Android user, there are plenty of great noise-canceling true wireless earbuds to choose from. But if you’re an Apple user, you have even more choices, and one of the best is Apple’s own AirPods Pro. They’re tiny, lightweight, exceptionally comfortable, and have some of the best noise-canceling technology you can get. When you want to let in the outside world, just pinch and hold on the tiny white stems and they’ll shift you into a transparency mode that feels like you’re not wearing any earbuds at all.

Sound quality is also really good, but it’s worth pointing out all of the features that are enabled when you use the AirPods Pro with an iPhone:

  • Find My earbuds, with Find My network support: Now virtually every iPhone owner can help to locate your AirPods Pro if they go missing. That’s like having over a billion people looking for your missing buds.
  • Head-tracking spatial audio: This clever tech uses motion sensors to determine which way your head is turned in real-time. It uses that info to make Dolby Atmos audio for movies and music feel far more real and immersive.
  • Easy switching between Apple devices: Want to take a call on your iPhone but then listen to a Zoom call on your Mac? Just select the AirPods Pro from the relevant menu and that’s it — no need to re-pair using Bluetooth. This also works on all of the other Apple devices you own.
  • Fit test: Not sure if you’ve installed the right size of silicone ear tips (Apple included three sizes)? The fit test feature in iOS will let you know if you’ve achieved a good seal or not.
  • Conversation boost: In iOS 15, you can use one of your AirPods Pro earbuds as a kind of hearing aid alternative. The feature turns on beam-forming for the built-in mics, letting them selectively increase the volume of surrounding voices when in transparency mode.

All of this, plus you get wireless charging, about 24 hours of total battery life, and IPX4 water resistance so you can take them to the gym or go running with them, without worries.

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Simon Cohen
Simon Cohen
Contributing Editor, A/V
Simon Cohen covers a variety of consumer technologies, but has a special interest in audio and video products, like spatial…
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