“ Watching “The Mandalorian,” you’ll hear a cruiser zooming past from the left side, starting in the distance behind you and zooming past you. And that audio placement adjusts as you move your head — all in real time. Think of it as a Dolby Atmos mix for your own personal enjoyment.”
Fair enough - although I think we can agree that the people who were saying that are likely to be kvetching about the price? 
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Yep. That or, “Beats but with an Apple logo and not so much bass.”
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Definitely meant to be fashionable. The distinctive design for the case that barely covers up these high-end headphones makes sure people around you know what these are. I guess a small market for third-party cases could eventually develop if people wanted more practical alternatives.
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Nilay Patel wasn’t impressed with the case. Here’s what he had to say (in the same Verge piece linked above):
I have no idea what’s going on with the AirPods Max case, which is a goofy one-piece contraption that’s folded and glued over on itself to form a case. It looks very much like a purse when wrapped around the headphones, which is at once fun and clever and also not the point of a headphones case that needs to survive in a backpack. It does not appear very protective, feels like it will get dirty fast, and generally does not hold a candle to the nice hard cases that come with almost every other set of premium headphones.
It is one of the cheaper-feeling things Apple has ever made, in my estimation — the second in a trend that started with the MagSafe Duo Charger. I hope there is not a third thing.
Yikes!
Although that review does bring up the question, did Apple design the case with the idea of it needing to survive in a backpack?
I’ve never owned a pair of $500+ headphones, so I don’t know if “toss them in your backpack with all the rest of your stuff” is a typical use case.
I’d say it’s not for typical mid to high end headphones which are wired and typically meant for home use, but I’d say it is for Bluetooth headphones with Active Noise Canceling.
FWIW, when I traveled with my full size Bluetooth headphones (V-Moda Crossfade), I left the case at home and wore them around my neck.
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They supposedly do work wired when it comes to charging and audio.
I’ll probably order one of these hard cases for mine.
https://www.amazon.com/Halliburton-Aluminum-Pursuit-Medium-Travel/dp/B084KKTQW1
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Regardless of whether the headphones are tossed in a backpack or not, one would want the case to protect them, no? Even more so if they cost the amount that these do.
It does not appear very protective, feels like it will get dirty fast, and generally does not hold a candle to the nice hard cases that come with almost every other set of premium headphones. It is one of the cheaper-feeling things Apple has ever made…
The above bit from the piece (emphasis mine) is especially concerning.
Just use the bra that it comes with… 
Beats have a crazy amount of bass, that’s for sure. Trying them on beside a pair of QC35s at a store a few years ago was enough to convince me that Bose were the way to go (at least that day).
With so many MPU listeners getting a pair, I might change my mind about forking over the $$$ if there is sufficient praise for them beyond the “new toy buzz” we all get. What will really be the determining factor is how much people are enjoying them after a month, knowing the limitations or least desirable issues.
As you can probably tell, I have a deep phobia of ever getting burned in a 1st gen purchase ever again 
Even listening to Christmas Carols, you have…
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Gruber’s thoughts:
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I like his take that these are more aimed at audiophiles than the typical AirPods user. That article has me doubting if I should buy a pair. I thought my V-Moda Crossfade Wireless 2 were heavy, but the AirPods Max outweigh them by a good 70 grams. I do trust Apple to make them more comfortable than V-Moda, but still that’s a lot of weight.
Who am I kidding? I’ll definitely take Apple up on their 14 day return period for the AirPods Max and see if they work for me.
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To me audio review are essentially useless. Your own ears should tell you what you like.
I remember once a guy wrote “movie reviews mean nothing until you find a reviewer that loves all the movies you love”
Music is even more difficult because our ears, canal and drums are all different. Once you understand the sound signature of some brands if it’s important you may find a review of similar tastes and can go more in depth.
I rarely spend time watching an entire video review of headphones. I wan’t to know the features, comments on build quality and a short subjective summary of audio quality. A reviewer a mile above sea level is hearing things differently than they would at sea level (acoustic impedance)
Headphones simply correlating with the trends happening in loudspeakers.
Active Designs - leverage DSP for smoothing out frequency dips/bumps and increasingly room correction via Dirac or Audessey amongst other. This is analogous to your ANC headphones.
Passive Designs - tried and true analog, you have to put the care into proper component matching, room dampening etc. Passive headphone also require ancillary components to performance
So to me the comparison isn’t with other ANC headphones but rather will the SQ of the APM let me jettison the idea of passive headphones/preamp combo which undoubtedly provide the pinnacle of sound.
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That depends on what “protect” means. Nicks, scratches, minor bumps, all of those could conceivably be handled by a fabric type case like Apple’s.
Any situation where you expect impact? Yeah, Apple’s case won’t cover it.
It almost feels like this case is more of a fashion-conscious way to tell the headphones “go to sleep” (without having a weird power button) than a way to make these survive rough-and-tumble EDC.
That they do. Apple should give purchasers a free subscription to Fitness+. You’ll need to get in shape to run down the thief that grabs these off your head 
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I ordered a pair. I told my wife they can be my Christmas present. Though I still feel supremely guilty for buying headphones this expensive. With my pandemic workspace now in the center of the house, one advantage of these is that everyone will be able to tell when I’m working and not reachable. I realize that could also be true for a $60 pair of over-ear cans but, alas, Apple.
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That is exactly the same line of reasoning that I used 
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