The second-gen AirPods have dropped back down to $99 at Amazon

SAVE $59.01: As of Jan. 24, Apple’s second-generation AirPods are on sale at Amazon for only $99. That’s 37% off their suggested retail price of $159.99.

With no noise cancellation and a high price point, the AirPods 3 were one of Apple’s more disappointing launches of 2021. On the bright side, their lackluster specs have made 2019’s AirPods 2 a decidedly more compelling buy — they offer great sound and a decent battery life for way less money.

Speaking of, Amazon has those second-generation AirPods on sale for just $99 as of Jan. 24. (They usually retail for $159.99, so this is saving you a little under $60.) That isn’t their lowest price ever, to be sure, but it’s safer than waiting for the return of their $89 pre-Black Friday deal: Jeff Bezos has a really tough time keeping them in stock whenever they drop to that price.

As a quick recap, the AirPods 2 pack an H1 chip for effortless pairing with other Apple devices, support hands-free “Hey Siri” voice controls, and come with a wired charging case that pushes their battery life over the 24-hour mark. Former Mashable tech reporter Ray Wong called them “the gold standard for wireless earbuds” upon their release and wound up giving them our Mashable’s Choice Award — something we can’t say about their successors, for what it’s worth.

Amazon was the only retailer offering this $99 deal at the time of writing, by the way; Walmart and Target were selling them for $119.99 the last time we checked, while Best Buy had them listed for $129.99.