Apple lists the same H2 chip and the same Bluetooth 5.3 radio on every set of AirPods it sells, from the $129 AirPods 5 to the $549 AirPods Max 2. The price range across that lineup is more than four times, and none of it is explained by a different processor.
What does change is everything around the chip: how the product sits on your head, which sensors are inside it, what the case can do, and how many hours Apple rates. Those are the rows worth reading on a spec sheet where the headline silicon is identical.
Key facts at a glance
| Model | Chip | Bluetooth | Fit | Rated listening with ANC |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AirPods 5, $129 | H2 | 5.3 | Open-ear, no tips | Up to 4 hours |
| AirPods 5 with Wireless Charging Case, $149 | H2 | 5.3 | Open-ear, no tips | Up to 5 hours |
| AirPods Pro 3, $249 | H2, plus Ultra Wideband in the case | 5.3 | Silicone tips, five sizes | Up to 8 hours |
| AirPods Max 2, $549 | H2 in each ear cup | 5.3 | Over-ear | Up to 20 hours |
The H2 is not new to this launch either. Apple’s spec pages list it on AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC from 2024 and on AirPods Pro 2 from 2022, which makes the chip name the least informative row on the page.
Don’t miss the best of The Mac Observer
Set us as a preferred source and our Apple reporting ranks higher in your Google Search results and Discover feed — one tap, no account changes.
Where the difference actually sits
For AirPods 5, Apple credits the noise cancellation to a new multiport acoustic architecture, which it says is inspired by AirPods Pro 3, plus improved computational audio. That is an acoustic and software claim, not a silicon one.
The rest of the separation is physical. AirPods Pro 3 seals the ear canal with one of five silicone tip sizes and adds a heart rate sensor. AirPods Max 2 puts an H2 in each ear cup and wraps the whole ear. AirPods 5 does neither, and Apple’s own framing is that it leads open-ear designs rather than the category as a whole.
The shape is the specification
| Measurement | AirPods 5 | AirPods Pro 3 |
|---|---|---|
| Earbud weight | 4.3 g | 5.55 g |
| Earbud dimensions | 30.2 x 18.3 x 18.1 mm | 30.9 x 19.2 x 27.0 mm |
| Case weight | 32.3 g, or 34.7 g with wireless charging | 43.99 g |
| Case dimensions | 46.2 x 50.1 x 21.2 mm | 47.2 x 62.2 x 21.8 mm |
| Water and dust rating | IP57 | IP57 |
Two rows there are worth pausing on. The AirPods 5 earbud measurements and weights are identical to those Apple lists for AirPods 4, so the new model is a same-shell upgrade, and both AirPods 5 models share the IP57 rating with the far more expensive Pro 3.
The chip name does not come with numbers
Apple has never published a clock speed, core count or memory figure for H2, in any product. It describes the driver as a custom high-excursion Apple driver with a custom high dynamic range amplifier, and gives no diameter, no frequency response and no sensitivity.
Noise cancellation is described the same way, in multiples rather than decibels. AirPods 5 is up to 1.5 times the previous generation on the product page, or up to 50 percent more noise removed than AirPods 4 with ANC in the press release, and Apple’s comparison page reaches for another multiple again when it places AirPods Pro 3 above AirPods 5.
One number that is not the newest
Bluetooth 5.3 is the figure on every current AirPods spec page, including the set launching this month. iPhone 18 Pro ships with Bluetooth 6, so the newest AirPods and the newest iPhone do not list the same Bluetooth version.
Apple says nothing about what that pairing does or does not gain, which is consistent with how thinly it documents the wireless side of AirPods generally. Our AirPods 5 launch coverage and the full event recap cover what Apple did choose to quantify.
What Apple has not said
- No H2 specifications beyond the name: no clock speed, no core count, no memory, no generation number within H2 itself.
- No driver size, frequency response, sensitivity or codec list for any AirPods model.
- No decibel figure for noise cancellation, and no test conditions behind the multiples Apple does publish.
- No talk time rating on the AirPods 5 spec page, a figure Apple has published for earlier models.
- No statement on whether the H2 in AirPods 5 differs in any way from the H2 in AirPods 4, AirPods Pro 3 or AirPods Max 2.
AirPods 5 arrives in stores on Friday, September 18, and the features that depend on software rather than silicon start working on Monday, September 14, when iOS 27 ships as a free update.
