Active noise cancellation is now standard on the AirPods 5, so the $129 pair does what only the $179 version of the AirPods 4 could. The step-up model costs $149 and adds a wireless charging case with a speaker for Find My, swipe volume controls on the stems, and an extra hour of listening. Apple says new internal acoustic architecture and a new algorithm cancel 50% more noise than before, and that upgrade lands on both models instead of only the expensive one. Andrew O’Hara went back and forth between the AirPods 5 and the AirPods Pro 3 across several flights for AppleInsider and rated the open-fit pair the best noise cancellation he has tested on that design. Dust and water resistance is up to IP57 from IP54.
Juli Clover, testing a set for MacRumors, found the sound muddier than the AirPods Pro 3 in the low mids, and the custom EQ in iOS 27 is the adjustment Apple offers for it. The $149 pair runs five hours with noise cancellation against eight on the Pro 3, and Raymond Wong’s cross-country flight landed with his below 5%. Only $20 separates the two AirPods 5 models. If you already own AirPods 4 with noise cancellation, there’s nothing here worth buying again. If you skipped AirPods over the price, the $129 pair is the one that changed.