I would love to own the AirPods Max, but I won't; I like the seamlessness of the AirPods and I've always preferred over-the-ear headphones. Plus I think the pink and black design is pretty cool. But I'm waiting to see what Apple does next.

And before you think I'm just being frugal, let me say that this decision is more than just the price of the AirPods Max. I have previously recommended spending $300 on headphones. My caution is more complicated.

Fortunately for Apple, the public disagrees with me on this point, as the AirPods Max are seriously out of stock and Apple is backing up sales through March. I don't know how the public has the funds to purchase these headphones. Are you all spending your $600 stimulus package on headphones?

From the iPhone to the Retina display MacBook, Apple products have had a spotty track record of debut editions and new designs. It may seem like old history, but remember Antenna Gate, one of the biggest failures in Apple's history?

Also, the MacBook Pro had screen burn-in problems (among others). These were pretty significant Apple products, and they had some pretty major flaws. And the Power Mac G4 Cube, with its new and unique look, had even worse overheating problems. It was a commercial disaster, and is not remembered fondly, as Tim Cook himself called it "an epic commercial failure."

We don't know what the first controversy over the AirPods Max will be, or if there will be one. But for now, we'll let the early adopters find out if it does.

The joke about the case looking like a bra may soon go away, but even with that out of the way, I don't really like what I've heard about the AirPods Max charging case.

According to an early report from The Verge, the case offers little protection and has a lot of slits, which could potentially expose the expensive AirPods Max to attack from other things in the bag. The case is also said to be prone to smudging and fingerprints.

There is some good news. These are just cases. They could design another case around the AirPods Max, right? And other companies that make accessories and cases for high-end Apple devices, like Bellroy, will probably make excellent AirPods Max cases down the road, and I may have to wait a while.

I don't like the term "killer features," but it's appropriate here; there's nothing in the AirPods Max that would compel me to buy them right now.

I already have the AirPods Pro, which I can pair instantly for listening on any Apple device I own, and the rest of the time I have the SteelSeries Arctis 3 Bluetooth headset and the wired Beoplay H6 2nd Gen ( which unfortunately is no longer manufactured), I can easily split my listening between them. Between them, there is no shortage of audio fidelity, noise cancellation, or ease of use. Sure, the AirPods Max can combine much of what I want in one headset, but it doesn't have anything new that I want.

And while the reviews claim that they have a great high-end design, I don't buy headphones for their industrial design. Likewise, while they must sound great, I have no complaints about the quality of the sound of the music and podcasts I listen to with the aforementioned headphones. I know Apple's Computational Photography tricks make my iPhone photos look great, but I don't feel I'm at the point where I need the Computational Audio tricks of the Apple H1 chip. Audio is said to be pretty cool and different from the AirPods Pro implementation, but I have no idea if it's worth $550.

Sound is one of those things where sometimes what you have is good enough until you hear how much better the alternative is, and I'm content with blissful ignorance for now.

These caveats become even more annoying when you realize that the AirPods Max is priced at $549. It is too expensive to not provide a headphone jack and Apple does not include a Lightning-to-headphone jack cable. Of course, Apple will sell you that cable, but for an additional $35.

Why do I need a headphone jack? I use a laptop that is not logged into my Apple ID, so the Bluetooth pairing process is a pain in the ass. And I will be flying someday. I need headphones with a 3.5mm jack to watch in-flight entertainment.

I know Apple is trying to reduce its environmental impact, and I know the company thinks we will all move to Bluetooth for all our listening (RIP iPhone headphone jack, you're gone but not forgotten). At least those who bought the phone before may already have a power adapter; I don't know of anyone who has a Lightning to headphone jack adapter.

And the real price of the AirPods Max would be $584. This is like buying a PS5 and a game after taxes.

The original iPhone dropped its price just a few months after launch, dropping $200 for the 8GB model, which led to anger from the early adopter crowd; in April 2019, Apple lowered the HomePod's $349 price to $299, and it could do it again here We have a feeling they might do it again. As our AirPods Max vs. Bose 700 vs. Sony WH-1000XM4 show, the AirPods Max is nearly twice as expensive as the superior Sony WH-1000XM4 and over $200 more than the Bose 700.

Having spent more than enough time staring at the pink pair in online shopping bags, even a slight price cut would help me consider the AirPods Max. I just can't bear to pay $49 for a pair of headphones I need, plus nearly $50 in local taxes.

However, a price cut is not guaranteed; the fact that the AirPods Max are backordered until March 2021 suggests that the company may not have to, but we don't know about Apple's inventory and how many they expected to sell in advance. about is not known.

My hope is that by the time the AirPods Max 2 comes out, it will have features that are more appealing to me. In other words, it's up to Apple to make the feature set of the AirPods Max commensurate with the price, or to adjust the price to be commensurate with the headphones as is.