Practice with the AirPods Max Shield Case from WaterField Designs

Earlier this week, we highlighted a couple of third-party accessories looking to address some of the shortcomings of Apple’s AirPods Max smart case, including a new zippered case from WaterField Designs that does a much better job of protecting the earbuds when they’re away. In use. .

Our videographer Dan has had the opportunity to try out WaterField’s new $ 99 Leather Shield Case, and has been impressed with its quality and utility. However, it feels like this is the kind of thing that should have shipped with the ‌AirPods Max‌ in the first place rather than needing a third-party accessory purchase in addition to the $ 549 price tag for the ‌AirPods Max‌.

The Shield case is certainly bulky, but there’s not much WaterField could have done about it considering the design of the ‌AirPods Max‌ that only allows the earbuds to flip inward and doesn’t allow for a more compact folded arrangement seen on many other earbuds. ear.

If you can live with the volume, the Shield Case offers several nice features, including a zippered design that fully protects theAirPods Max‌, as opposed to Apple’s Smart Case that leaves the headband and even parts of the earbuds exposed.

In addition to the main compartment for the ‌AirPods Max‌, the Shield case includes three smaller pockets for cables and other accessories: a deep, padded one with a zip closure on the front of the case, a mesh one on the back and a small one with velcro closure inside the case.

One of the main benefits of the Apple Smart Case is that you can immediately put your ‌AirPods Max‌ in a low power mode to save battery life, making use of magnets built into the case to activate the mode. WaterField’s Shield case does the same, thanks to what it calls the Magnetic Leather Butterfly, a leather flap with embedded magnets that not only activates low-power mode, but also helps prevent the two ‌AirPods Max‌ earbuds from touching each other. yes while in the case. .

If you want to take your Smart Case along with your ‌AirPods Max‌, the Shield Case has you covered there too, as the ‌AirPods Max‌ / Smart Case combo fits well inside and the leather butterfly folds down.

All in all, the Shield Case from WaterField Designs is a quality product that does the job well. It’s a bit pricey at $ 99, but when you’re ready to spend $ 549 on the ‌AirPods Max‌ it could be a valuable add-on to help protect your purchase.

The Shield Case is available in four styles: Chocolate Leather and Waxed Canvas, Black Leather with Ballistic Nylon, Blue Leather with Ballistic Nylon, and Crimson Leather with Ballistic Nylon. Like the PAirPods Max‌ themselves, the Shield Case is in short supply, with new orders scheduled to ship on February 19.