Beats Bluetooth headphones in comparison: This is how the models differ

Bluetooth headphones co-developed by the legendary top musician? That’s what Beats promised when the first product came onto the market in 2008. The company, founded by American rapper Dr. Dre was founded, but was bought by Apple just six years later and has had less of a presence in the industry since then.

The company primarily advertised its devices with the sound aspect. And while initially on-ear headphones still had the great recognition value at Beats, the company now focuses exclusively on Bluetooth in-ear headphones. The last on-ear headphones to come out – namely the Studio3 and Solo3 Wireless – are almost six years old. The brand is not really present on Apple’s website either – but we still looked at four different models.

1. Beat’s Studio Buds+

2. Beat’s Studio Buds

3. Beats Fit Pro

4. Beat’s Flex

Beat’s Studio Buds+

The Beats Studio Buds+ are characterized by what you can tell right away: They are small, light, stylish and, with the exception of the unique, transparent version, are rather inconspicuous. Behind it, however, is supposed to be a powerful, balanced sound and active noise canceling. Compatibility has been improved on both Apple and Android compared to the previous model.

This model works with Bluetooth 5.2, which is a sufficiently modern standard, as well as Apple’s in-house H1 chip for processing the data received and for controlling functions such as automatic pausing or recognition during pairing. The headphones offer a battery life of up to 36 hours – that’s decent. Apple will charge around 200 euros for the Studio Buds+, and retail from around 150 euros.

Beat’s Studio Buds

The basic version of the Beats Studio Buds is only ten euros cheaper in the manufacturer’s recommended price and is a bit older than the newer Studio Buds+. They are slightly larger, which makes them protrude more from the ear and make them more noticeable. However, the sound is said to be just as good, and the active noise canceling that is on board was also convincing in various test reports. However, it is not comparable to the ANC from Sony and Co.

A fairly large deterioration compared to the newer model is found in the battery life, which is around a third shorter at 24 hours. There is no H1 or W1 chip from Apple here, but that shouldn’t be a major disadvantage. You will also find Bluetooth 5.0 on board the headphones, which are available from third-party suppliers from around 125 euros. Multipoint is not supported, nor are high-quality audio codecs.

Beats Fit Pro

Beats Fit Pro

• Weight: 5.6g
• ANC?: ✔ Yes
• Bluetooth version: Bluetooth 5.2
• Multipoint?: ✘ No
• Construction: TWS in-ear

to offer

The Beats Fit Pro are specially designed for use by athletes with their small bracket, which ensures a secure fit in the ear cup. The headphones come with active noise cancelling, support for 3D audio and dynamic headtracking, which, together with a suitable Apple device, ensures even better sound and a wider soundstage.

The driving force in the Beats Fit Pro is the Apple H1 chip, which is also built into the AirPods Pro. It enables features like automatic device switching and pausing playback when an earbud is not in your ear. Thanks to Class 1 Bluetooth 5.2, the latency is particularly low and the range particularly high. The battery life is not outstanding at 18 hours, but sufficiently high. Apple charges around 250 euros for the Beats Fit Pro, elsewhere they are available in seven different colors from around 180 euros.

Beat’s Flex

Beat’s Flex

• Weight: 18.6g
• ANC?: ✘ No
• Bluetooth version: Bluetooth 5.0
• Multipoint?: ✘ No
• Construction: TWS in-ear

to offer

The Beats Flex are Apple’s cheapest Bluetooth headphones: With a RRP of only around 90 euros, the headphones fit into most wallets. They are equipped with a connecting cable between the two earphones, which are also equipped with magnets. They are operated via a control element in the middle. The music is automatically paused when you take one of the earbuds out of your ear.

This is made possible by the older Apple W1 chip, which was installed in the first AirPods generation, for example. The battery life of the Beats Flex is around 12 hours. Thanks to quick charging, you can use the headphones for around 90 minutes after just ten minutes of charging. Bluetooth 4.0 (an older standard, but compatible with Bluetooth 5.0 devices) is also used. You can get the headphones from various third-party retailers for as little as 40 euros – a bargain.