Apple has introduced the Beats Studio Buds+ today, which succeeds the Studio Buds that was released two years ago with a similar design, though audio performance has been significantly upgraded with a new custom acoustic platform that packs powerful, balanced sound.
In terms of comfort, the Beats Studio Buds+ introduces a reengineered acoustic venting that improves audio precision, while gently relieving pressure for a more comfortable all day fit, it also includes a two-layer transducer that flexes to deliver cleaner bass and ultra-low distortion, so users can expect richer and more immersive sound that the previous generation.
Like the AirPods Pro Second Generation, the Studio Buds+ comes with four eartip sizes of XS, S, M & L to offer wearers the best fit for their ears.
The microphones of the Studio Buds+ is 3x larger than its predecessor which Apple calls it voice-targeting mics, its processor has been trained on 7000 hours of different noises from all over the world, which can better pinpoint your voice in noisy environments.
As a Beats product, the Studio Buds+ isn’t limited to just Apple devices when it comes to its functionality, as it is the only earbuds that support both Apple’s and Google’s Find My device service, which lets users locate their earbuds over the respective cloud locating services should they misplace them.
On top of that, the Studio Buds+ natively supports One-touch pairing on Apple devices and Google Fast Pair on Android devices, audio switching between different Apple devices and Google-based devices such as Android phones and Chromebooks, and its firmware can be updated OTA automatically on Apple devices and over the Beats app on Android devices.
Unlike AirPods, the Beats Studio Buds+ can support Spatial Audio for Dolby Atmos on both Apple and supported Android devices, which makes this a great value proposition.
Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Mode comes as standard on the Studio Buds+, it also gains the AirPods Pro 2nd Gen’s adaptive active noise cancellation feature that can cancel noise more efficiently depending on your environment, these earbuds continue to be IPX4 rated against sweat and water.
Battery life has been improved over the previous model as Apple claims up to 9 hours of listening time on a single charge without ANC and total of 36 hours with the case, it charges over USB-C and offers up to 1 hour of playback with just a 5-minute charge, though sadly there’s no wireless charging for the case unlike the AirPods Pro.
In terms of color options, the Beats Studio Buds+ come in a new and cool Transparent case, alongside the regular Black/Gold and Ivory color, it goes on sale in the US for $169.99 and ships in 1-day, while it retails for RM699 in Malaysia, slightly more expensive than the previous model and Apple hasn’t started shipping here at this time of writing, which you can head here to buy one when it becomes available.