Quite a while ago (at least in terms of the age of this site), I published a post arguing that the CMF Buds Pro 2 were fundamentally “better” than AirPods for the price. While the CMF Buds Pro 2 certainly hold up today, especially since a better model hasn’t hit the market yet, I was admittedly harsh on Apple’s flagship earbuds in that original review.

If you are looking strictly at raw audio quality, feature sheets, battery life, and specs, the CMF Buds are incredibly comparable to lower-cost AirPods models. Remember, the Pro 2 Buds are only $49! However, as my listening habits have evolved, my priorities have shifted. These days, it all comes down to convenience.

General Fit

Being able to just whip the AirPods in and out of my ears without having to worry about tip fit, angles and all that is probably THE most important distinction to me. AirPods just fit.

I currently have the AirPods 4’s with Active Noise Cancellation (ANC), and despite not having a “tip”, as most people call it, these suckers do not fall out. Maybe some sweat, sure, but I can shake my head like crazy without having to worry about them moving a centimeter.

Apple completely redesigned the acoustic architecture for this generation, utilizing 3D photogrammetry to map thousands of ear shapes to find a universal contour, and it shows. I can shake my head like crazy without having to worry about them moving a single centimeter. Combined with the upgraded H2 chip that handles the computational audio and ANC, the stellar sound quality easily justifies spending a bit more.

Sound Vs. Actual Tech Specs

Let’s not pretend the CMF Buds Pro 2 are lacking.

They sound good. Really good for the price. Strong bass, decent clarity, solid ANC for a budget pair. If you’re sitting down and critically listening, they absolutely punch above their weight. But if we’re being real, in life I’m not sitting still analyzing frequency response curves. I’m working, making calls (microphone!), walking etc. I just feel like the AirPods better fit the needs for this. They’re way more versatile and that opened my mind to look at more than just the specs sheet when buying any type of product.

Apple’s tuning, combined with that H2 chip, is just more adaptive. I don’t think most people are A/B testing earbuds in perfect conditions. You’re multitasking, moving around, taking calls. In those moments, AirPods tend to win.

Apple Ecosystem

AirPods are obviously an Apple Product. So the convenience doesn’t just come from the ability to easily take them in and out, but also being able to sync in with the Apple ecosystem. I use a windows computer, so I don’t know much about easy switch-off between an iPhone and another Apple device, but being able to connect so easily is such a plus. I know Google/Android has developed their own technology for this, and Windows has tried (which I hate), but something about the way Apple does it is so much better. Not being an Apple snob, but it is seriously convenient.

I somehow magically picked these up for $99… an absolute steal considering the AirPods 4 with ANC typically retail for $179. Apple deals seem to be getting more prevalent nowadays, so make sure to keep an eye on urbans.studio to get notified first when sales like this drop

So, compared to the $49-$69 price tag of the Pro 2 Buds, I would actually say that AirPods are the better investment for some people. I can AirPods everyday while working and I don’t have to worry about them not standing up to the elements, especially sweat. AirPods handle sweat really well, since they’re marketed for activity. I wouldn’t go absolutely summering yours in water for fun but they can handle quiet a bit.

Final Opinion?

The CMF Buds Pro 2 remain an outstanding budget pick, but the AirPods 4 offer a level of frictionless convenience that specs on a page just can’t quantify. Sometimes, paying a little more for something that simply gets out of your way is worth the investment.

Did I ever note that I absolutely hate the tips on the CMF Buds Pro 2? I had to get memory foam ones which also sucked! I just couldn’t win with fit, so ANC on the Airpods 4 surprised me a lot more since there was actually some sort of seal there.

Comparison

I really didn’t want to do a comparison chart for this post for a few reason. A) This whole post was basically saying that specs aren’t everything, and real world use is more important and, B) The CMF specs look better on paper. However, I think this would be a good way to show how similar the specs look and why it’s important that I still prefer the AirPods in most cases. Also, this wouldn’t be a true Urbans Studio post without an Interactive Post 😂

Photo by Sunil Ray on Unsplash