Apple recently announced AirPods 4 and the "updated" AirPods Max with USB-C. The iFixt team of specialists has already gotten their hands on the new products and disassembled them.
None of the new AirPods models offer any improvements to maintainability. The small AirPods 4 require a special holder to hold them in place. You also need a hair dryer to help loosen the glue to open the top half of the headphones. Inside we see a speaker and a battery.
Opening the bottom of the earbud is much more difficult. It requires a knife to cut the earbud. The only difference between AirPods 4 and AirPods 4 with ANC is the larger internal microphone.
The charging case is also not easy to disassemble. It requires a lot of heat and effort. The 345 mAh battery inside the case is also very difficult to remove, as it does not have sliding tabs.
That is, the maintainability of AirPods 4 remains at the same level - 0 out of 10.
Repairing AirPods Max with USB-C is much easier, but still requires a lot of effort. Inside, the key components are almost identical to the original AirPods Max: a little more glue to fix the components and a USB-C charging port instead of the Lighting connector.