Beats Studio Buds Review: An impressive punch for $150

/in


As announced this morning, Apple’s lineup of truly wireless headphones is expanding today. Beats Studio Buds are available today for $149.99, and with features like Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency mode, they could just be the best option for buyers today looking for a more affordable option than AirPods Pro and Powerbeats Pro.

I’ve been using Beats Studio Buds for the past two weeks, and there are some interesting compromises here, including a mysterious custom Beats chipset instead of Apple’s own W1 or H1 chip. Head below for my thoughts.

Beats Studio Buds specs

  • Available in three colors: black, white, and red
  • “Hey Siri” support
  • Sweat and water resistant with an IPX4 rating
  • Fast pairing on iOS and Android
  • Find My app integration
  • 5 hours of battery life with ANC or Transparency enabled, 8 hours without either enabled. 24 hours of combined playback with the charging case, which features a USB-C port.
  • Available to order today for $149.99

Compact design

Beats Studio Buds feature a lightweight and compact design, which is one of the primary selling points compared to the bulkier and more expensive Powerbeats Pro. The trade-off here, of course, is that the Beats Studio Buds don’t feature ear hooks like Powerbeats Pro. This means Beats Studio Buds might not be as secure in your ear, but it’s what allows them (and their charging case) to be so compact.

The Beats Studio Buds feature an in-ear design similar to AirPods Pro, but without the stem. The lack of a stem is what differentiates Beats Studio Buds from AirPods Pro in terms of design, but rumors suggest AirPods Pro will be redesigned as soon as sometime next year with a similar stem-less design.

If it were me, I’d choose the compact and in-ear design of Beats Studio Buds over the larger and ear hook design of Powerbeats Pro. The more apt comparison here are AirPods Pro, which come in at $100 more expensive.

As far as fit is concerned, the Beats Studio Buds feature an in-ear design, again similar to AirPods Pro. You get three different ear tip sizes to choose from in the box, so there’s quite a bit of versatility when it comes to finding the perfect fit.

I’ve been testing Beats Studio Buds…

Source…