Apple AirPods 4 Review: Who the Open Fit Is Actually For
The AirPods 4 are an easy product to describe and a hard one to recommend universally, because Apple made one decision that suits some people completely and rules them out for others.
What it is
| Fit | Open, no silicone ear tips |
|---|---|
| Chip | Apple H2 |
| Battery | Up to 30 hours total, including case recharges |
| Case | USB-C |
| Audio | Personalised Spatial Audio |
| Protection | Sweat and water resistant |
The open fit is the whole story
These do not seal your ear canal. They rest in the outer ear, the way the original AirPods did. Two consequences follow, and they are opposites.
In their favour: nothing is pushed into your ear, so there is no pressure and no occlusion — that plugged-up feeling where your own voice booms in your head. People who cannot tolerate in-ear tips find this the only comfortable option, and it stays comfortable for hours. You also hear the room naturally, which on an Indian road is a genuine safety point rather than a convenience one.
Against: there is essentially no passive isolation. On a metro, in traffic, or near an air conditioner, low frequencies leak away and bass thins out. The usual response is to raise the volume, which is both unsatisfying and hard on your hearing.
If your listening happens in noisy places, the open fit works against you at a level no amount of processing fixes. See ANC vs passive isolation for why the seal does most of the work.
Reading the 30-hour claim
That is total playback with case recharges, not per charge — the standard way this figure is quoted across the category. The number that governs a commute is the per-charge one, and it is a fraction of the headline. Our guide to reading earbud battery claims explains how to work it out from a listing.
The Apple tax, and what it buys
The H2 chip and effortless setup are real, and they are specifically for iPhone owners: instant pairing, automatic switching between your Apple devices, and Personalised Spatial Audio that maps to your own ear shape.
On Android these earbuds work as ordinary Bluetooth earbuds. They pair, they play, and almost everything above stops applying. Note also that iOS supports AAC and neither aptX nor LDAC, so the codec badges on rival products are not a comparison that matters here — see Bluetooth codecs explained.
Buy these if
- You use an iPhone and want pairing to simply never be a thought
- In-ear tips are uncomfortable or you dislike the sealed feeling
- You listen mostly indoors, at a desk, or while walking somewhere you need to hear traffic
Skip them if
- You commute by train, metro or bus — you want a sealed tip
- You are on Android; you are paying for a chip you cannot use
- You want strong bass without pushing the volume up
Check the Apple AirPods 4 on Amazon
If the open fit is the part that appeals but the price is not, a sealed in-ear pair with good tips will beat these on isolation for far less — browse alternatives.