AirPods Pro (1st generation)

What later Pro models added

Apple introduced AirPods Pro on 28 October 2019 at $249, its first AirPods with silicone tips and noise cancelling. Two Pro generations have followed. Here’s how it compares with the next one, AirPods Pro 2:

Spec	AirPods Pro (1st generation)	AirPods Pro 2
Ear tips	Silicone, three sizes	Four sizes, XS to L
Listening per charge	Up to 4.5 hours with ANC	Up to 6 hours
With the case	More than 24 hours	Up to 30 hours
Hearing Test, Hearing Aid, Hearing Protection	No	Yes
Adaptive Audio, Conversation Awareness	No	Yes
Precision Finding for the case	No	Yes
Bud size	30.9 × 21.8 × 24.0 mm	Same
Bud weight	5.4 g	5.3 g (USB-C model)

The buds are the same size, so moving up keeps the fit you know. Later Pro models also brought Voice Isolation, Personalized Volume, a speaker and lanyard loop on the case, and an IP54 rating. AirPods Pro 2 vs AirPods Pro (1st generation) walks through the whole upgrade.

AirPods Pro 3, Apple’s current sealed pair, goes further on fit, with foam-infused tips in five sizes from XXS to L, and keeps the hearing features. On the open-ear side, some AirPods 4 models picked up Adaptive Audio and Conversation Awareness, two features this Pro never got.

Noise cancelling, Transparency and Spatial audio

You choose between noise cancelling and Transparency yourself, with a press and hold on the stem’s force sensor; nothing blends the two the way Adaptive Audio does on later models. Apple gives no decibel figure for the noise cancelling.

The sound comes from a custom high-excursion driver and high dynamic range amplifier with Adaptive EQ, and Spatial audio with dynamic head tracking came later in software. Spatialize Stereo works with ordinary stereo on iOS 15 or later, and Apple Music in Dolby Atmos or 5.1 and supported video formats work too.

The accessibility settings add Live Listen, Headphone levels, Headphone Accommodations and Conversation Boost. Conversation Boost is not Conversation Awareness, and none of these is Hearing Aid.

Battery and charging

Mode	AirPods Pro (1st generation)
Listening with ANC	Up to 4.5 hours
ANC and Transparency off	Up to 5 hours
With the case	More than 24 hours
Quick charge	5 minutes in the case for about 1 hour

The original 2019 Wireless Charging Case charges by Lightning or on a Qi pad. The MagSafe Charging Case that followed in 2021 adds MagSafe and keeps the Lightning port, and the buds are identical with either.

Which case is it?

Case	Introduced	Charges by	Serial number ends in
Wireless Charging Case	2019	Lightning, Qi	0C6L or LKKT
MagSafe Charging Case	2021	Lightning, Qi, MagSafe	1059 or 1NRC

Both cases are model A2190, and the buds are A2084 and A2083 with either one, so the serial number is the quickest way to tell a listing’s case apart.

Price

AirPods Pro launched in the US at $249, in the $200–$300 flagship bracket. It’s discontinued, so what you pay depends on the seller and the pair’s condition. Check the battery and which case you’re getting before you buy.