On live the armor absorb percent is used as a coefficient, when using AF buffs and charges.
On live the formula for an AF buff is buffvalue * (1+buffbonus) * (1+ armor_absorb)
An easy way to prove this is to take the armor off on live:
So a 75 buff charge would give 75 * 1.19 = 89 for a guy wearing studded.
If the same guy takes off the armor he'll only get 75.
On Eden there is no armor absorb in the calculation. Instead there is a hidden 12% buff bonus on all charges.
So everyone using an AF charge with 25% buff bonus on Eden will get 105 AF (75 * 1.12 * 1.25) no matter the armor type.
This is great for cloth and leather users, but for a guy in plate he will miss 22% (34%-12%) of the buff or 20 AF from an AF charge.