AirPods Max teardown reveals removable headband, iOS 14.4 shows ‘headband type’ id

iFixit shared a first look at their AirPods Max teardown last month, and they’ve now completed the complex process. The end result revealed some very interesting details about the AirPods Max, such as the user-removable headband, which might suggest some customization, how the electromechanical hinge hardware works, and that they are “actually quite usable.” “. 9to5Mac also discovered that iOS devices can see the “headband type” that AirPods Max use.

We learned more about the basics of AirPods Max components in the initial iFixit look. This revealed the dynamic 40mm drivers, H1 chips, battery cells and more.

Now iFixit updated their teardown with all the concrete details today. Notably, the AirPods Max have what iFixit calls a “slightly confusing and overly complicated opening process” and say they are “a delightfully confusing pair of headphones”.

From the packaged motherboard found in every earbud, to the digital crown, to the electromechanical hinge hardware to the clamp tension system, Apple has gone to great lengths to create and manufacture these headphones.

Detachable headband?

Interestingly, iFixit discovered that you can detach the entire headband with a SIM tool without having to take them apart:

Here’s the trick, and the best part: Despite the complexity of the joint, you can detach the entire headband from the AirPods Max with just a SIM removal tool or paperclip, without even opening the headset.

All that users would have to do is remove the magnetic earbuds and use a SIM (or similar) tool to remove the headband as shown below. This could indicate that Apple may have designed them with interchangeable headbands, as some reports have claimed.

IOS 14.4 tip

9to5Mac also discovered that iOS devices can see which “headband type” AirPods Max are using. This could be used to do things like properly display AirPods Max in the UI. However, it could also just be the remnants of firmware Apple was preparing in case it launched interchangeable headbands before removing the plans.

But a positive note is that the headband type identifier is present in iOS 14.4 beta 2.

Although Apple has not recognized it or launched any alternative headbands, it is possible that they will arrive in the future. Allowing for headband customization and being able to easily swap out the earbuds would make AirPods Max even more appealing.

Here is how iFixit describes the electromechanical hinge hardware:

Apple’s electromechanical hinge hardware is both complex and over-built, and could make the price of AirPods Max a bit easier to swallow.

This hinge should provide a strong but comfortable connection for the headband, while reliably passing a power connection from the battery.
Apple uses a flexible cable wrapped around the rotating part of the knuckle, with smart routing and built-in strain relief, then goes through the spring contacts for connection to the headband. What a flex.

Hopefully all of this helps reduce breakdowns due to cable wear. Durability is sometimes hard to predict, but it’s clear that this setup has been the subject of a lot of thought.

Overall, iFixit thinks the AirPods Max are “actually quite usable” and gave them 6/10 for repairability, the AirPods family’s first score above 0. Plus, after figuring out everything in between in AirPods Max, iFixit asks “Is $ 550 starting to appear… reasonable?”

For a fun finish to this super full teardown, iFixit has opened up a few popular Sony and Bose on-ear headphones and the comparisons really point out that the AirPods Max are in a different league. As iFixit says:

With all of their intricate and precisely engineered parts, AirPods Max remind us more of a mechanical watch than any pair of headphones.

Check Full Exploded View of AirPods Max on iFixit.

Via The Verge

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