As Prime Day has drawn to a close, most of these deals have now ended. To find an alternative, we have compiled a roundup of the best cycling headphones on the market, so check that out for help on choosing the right pair.
The Amazon Prime Day sale is nearing its end, and while some of the deals that made it into our roundup of the best Prime Day cycling deals have sold out already, a gaggle of great Prime Day Apple deals are going strong. Leading the charge among them are the ever-popular AirPods wireless in-ear headphones.
Deals are available across the entire AirPods range, including the older-model AirPods 2, the latest model AirPods 3, as well as the premium model AirPods Pro 2. The AirPods Max are also on offer, but we don't recommend wearing these on a bike. They definitely won't play nicely with a helmet, and they aren't overly suited to the sweaty nature of riding indoors.
With the popularity of Apple's wireless in-ear headphones and the sizeable discounts on offer, it is certainly a deal to snap up whilst there is stock available.
With Prime Day only a two-day event we can't be sure how long these prices will stick around.
In detail: Amazon Prime Day Apple AirPods deals
Prime Day AirPods Pro 2 deals
Apple AirPods Pro 2:$249.00 $168.99 at Amazon Save 32% - This is technically the best price we've seen, although only by a single cent, as they've been $169.00 before. They are the top-tier model in the Apple in-ear range, and although they've been around since 2022, we don't expect to see the Pro 3 launch until 2025.
Apple AirPods Pro 2: £229.00 £179.00 at Amazon UK Save 22% - In the UK the deal is slightly more enticing with the AirPods Pro 2 cheaper than ever; £10 cheaper than Amazon has ever listed the earbuds in the past. There are cheaper alternatives but if you are looking for Apple's premium in-ear headphones this is a deal not to be missed.
Apple AirPods Pro 2 (or 2nd Generation) wireless earbuds have been around since 2022 and offer more high-end performance than the standard AirPods. Along with an earbud design that blocks out more of the surrounding ambient noise, the Pro 2 model also features active noise cancellation (ANC).
Charging the AirPods Pro 2 is taken care of by USB-C meaning that if you have an iPhone 15 you only need to carry one cable to charge both your phone and AirPods whereas both the AirPods 2 and 3 both use the older Lightning connector.
Although the AirPods Pro 2 allows users to block out the surrounding world with ANC, something I am a particular fan of with this model is the ability to select 'Transparency' mode. In this mode, the earbuds actively let in the noise around you, which can be beneficial if you like to use earphones whilst riding or in general when you still want to hear your surroundings.
Some more pro features that I am a big fan of include Adaptive Audio and Conversation Awareness, these features automatically lower the volume of any media playing so you can chat without needing to remove the earbuds.
For those constantly on the go the AirPods Pro 2 can last around six hours from a single charge however this does drop to 4.5 if you are using it for calls with the case offering around 30 hours of additional battery life.
Prime Day AirPods 2 deals
Apple AirPods 2nd Gen:$129.99 $69.00 at Walmart Save 47% - The 2nd Generation AirPods underperform in comparison to the newer Pro or third generation models when it comes to sound quality and features but what it lacks in these areas, they more than make up for in price.
Amazon has sold out, but Walmart currently has them on offer at the same massively discounted price, although Walmart plays down the deal with an incorrect retail price.
Apple AirPods 2nd Gen: £129.00 £95.00 at Amazon UK Save 26% - The UK is not afforded quite the same bargain as the US however this Prime Day sale does bring them under the £100 mark to an all-time low price beating the previous best by £4.99. You can find them even lower than this at around £89.99 from places like techinthebasket.com however the legitimacy of smaller websites is always something to weigh up against the ease and trust shopping at Amazon.
The second generation of Apple's AirPods wireless earphones was released in March 2019 and although now five years old they still represent a great option for those looking for a set of fully wireless earphones.
Charging the AirPods is taken care of by the storage case that uses the now slightly outdated Lightning cable however for most users this will likely not be a deal breaker.
For those looking for AirPods on a budget, the AirPods 2 are the brand's cheapest offering and although it does lack the functionality of its pricier siblings, the AirPods 2 is still a decent option in the wireless earphone market.
The earbud design of the AirPod Pro 2 is not for everyone's ear shape or taste and if you are not especially bothered by not having active noise cancellation then the standard AirPod 2 could be right for you. The actual fit of the earphones is very similar to that of the old wired earphones that used to come with iPods and iPhones of yesteryear.
They also have Apply Find My enabled allowing you to find them when you inevitably put them down somewhere and then completely forget where that place was.
Prime Day AirPods 3 deals
Link: The start of this link looks broken.$169.00 $119.99 at Amazon USA Save 29% - Another best-ever price can be found in this AirPods 3rd Gen deal in the USA.
Apple AirPods 3rd Gen: £169.00 £129.00 at Amazon UK Save 24% - Unlike the US deal the UK sale is for both the Lightning and MagSafe models. The MagSafe option costs an additional £10 but if you have a wireless charging station could be a worthwhile investment. This looks to be the best deal for these earphones coming in £10 cheaper than Amazon's previous best price.
Coming to market in 2021, Apple's latest base model in-ear headphone features a similar profile to the AirPods 2 but packs in a bunch of additional features. The headline addition is what Apple calls spatial audio that mimics a surround sound experience creating the effect of 360-degree sound.
The third generation of the AirPods gets the choice between traditional Lightning charging or MagSafe wireless charging depending on your preference. The advantage of the MagSafe option is it supports both Lightning charging and wireless charging however this does come at a slight increase in cost.
Something to bear in mind if you like to use your earphones whilst exercising is that the AirPods 3 only have an IPX4 rating. This means that they can shrug off splashes of water but might not be best suited to a rainy day ride or a summer sweat fest.
Make sure you check out all of the hottest bargains available for a limited time by heading over to our roundup of the best Amazon Prime Day cycling deals. Here you can find a list of all the deals we think you need to know about.
Josh is Associate Editor of Cyclingnews – leading our content on the best bikes, kit and the latest breaking tech stories from the pro peloton. He has been with us since the summer of 2019 and throughout that time he's covered everything from buyer's guides and deals to the latest tech news and reviews.
On the bike, Josh has been riding and racing for over 15 years. He started out racing cross country in his teens back when 26-inch wheels and triple chainsets were still mainstream, but he found favour in road racing in his early 20s, racing at a local and national level for Somerset-based Team Tor 2000. These days he rides indoors for convenience and fitness, and outdoors for fun on road, gravel, 'cross and cross-country bikes, the latter usually with his two dogs in tow.
