Judge Dismisses Most Claims in AirPods Max Condensation Class Action

AirPods Max have a condensation problem. A handful of users have complained about moisture building up inside the over-ear headphones since they launched — enough that someone turned it into a class action lawsuit. But that lawsuit just hit a serious wall.

Judge Orelia Merchant of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York dismissed the vast majority of claims in a 24-page ruling, according to legal outlet Law360. The central question was straightforward: does condensation inside AirPods Max count as a defect, or is it just physics?

The lawsuit was first filed in 2025. Plaintiff Arthur Apichella of New York said he was watching a movie with his AirPods Max when he noticed moisture forming inside the ear cups. He claimed that after just 15 minutes of use, condensation had appeared inside the headphones. Another plaintiff, Dustin Amundson from Washington state, said he experienced the same issue every single time he wore them.

Both alleged that the moisture ruined their listening experience — degraded sound quality, frequent connection drops, audio pausing on its own, and reduced battery life.

Judge Merchant wasn’t persuaded on most of it. Under New York’s implied warranty law, she ruled, products only need to be fit for ordinary use — not flawless. She granted Apple’s motion to dismiss all of Apichella’s claims with prejudice, meaning he can’t refile.

Apichella is out of the lawsuit entirely. But Amundson still has two claims standing — one under Washington state law and another under the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. Apple’s motion to dismiss Amundson’s fraud claims under Washington common law was granted with prejudice, but other allegations survived.

Apple now has until September 4, 2026 to file its response to the amended complaint.

The bigger picture here matters more than the legal details. Condensation in closed-back headphones isn’t unique to AirPods Max. It’s basic physics — warm, moist air inside the ear cups meets cooler surfaces and turns into water droplets. Every closed-back headphone does this to some degree. When complaints first surfaced in 2023, repair industry analysis found no evidence that the issue was widespread enough to qualify as a batch defect. Store-level Genius Bar visits for condensation-related problems were low, and Apple never launched a dedicated repair program for it.

That doesn’t mean the experience isn’t frustrating for individual users. But the court’s ruling suggests that a frustrating experience and a legally actionable defect are two very different things.