Apple Beats PowerBeats Professional Review: Throw away your AirPods



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If you are a fan of Apple or Beats, the real wireless Beats are finally here. The Powerbeats Pro can cost $ 100 more than the AirPods, but they offer far Better insulation, sound quality and comfort compared to the aforementioned headphones. Owners of the iPhone must absolutely get into this business if they want an audio product that not only offers the benefits of the H1 chip, but also the freedom offered by true wireless headphones.

Who are the Beats Powerbeats Pro for?

The Beats Powerbeats Pro rest in their charging case on a desk.

Put back the earpieces in the case of loading is more complicated than the Airpod, but remains effective.

  • Apple iPhone users dissatisfied with AirPod design flaws
  • Android users looking for genuine wireless headphones with an earloop design

What does the use of Beats Powerbeats Pro look like?

The Beats Powerbeats Pro Apple is an example of very good design for a category of products that suffers. True wireless headphones have seen a lot of newcomers in recent months, but few have addressed some of the biggest challenges in designing unconnected headphones. For example, how do you hold the earflaps in your ear if the fit is not perfect? If you have unsealed earplugs, you will find that they often fall out. The Powerbeats Pro ear hooks do just that – not only do they relieve pressure on your ear canal, they also hold your earplugs in place if the seal breaks.

If you have an iPhone, all you have to do to pair the Powerbeats Pro is to open the case and press the bubble that appears on your phone. Too easy. For Android, it's a bit more complicated. Open the case, and then press the pairing button almost inside the case. Hold down this button until the indicator on the front turns white, and then pair the device like any other Bluetooth device. Just be sure to leave the ear cups in the holster until they are paired.

Coupon of the Beats Powerbeats Pro logo.

Pro Powerbeats have the same hook-on-ear design as standard Powerbeats, but they give up the wire that connects them.

Once you are paired, you can slide the ear hooks behind your outer ear and gently tip the tip of the Powerbeats Pro into your ear. If you find this fit uncomfortable, there are two other sizes of sleeves and a pair of double bridle bits to replace the option of buying shares. Once the headphones are in place, push the hook to the ear to adjust the fit as desired.

Just like their Apple brothers, the Powerbeats Pro are charge with sensors. Each headset has a proximity sensor to pause your music when you remove them from your ears. In addition, each bud has accelerometers to detect when you speak, to better guide the microphone when you are in a noisy environment and to turn off when sitting on a desk.

Beats Powerbeats Pro shot in hand.

The new design of the earphone and hook is stylish and can hold them in place while wearing them.

Each headset has a multifunction button and a volume rocker with the same function for each side. So you can choose the easiest side to reach at the moment (a boon for new parents). The multifunction button offers the usual commands, but also allows you to enable / disable Siri with a long press.

Are Powerbeats Pro waterproof?

The Beats Powerbeats Pro are not waterproof, but they offer IPX4 protection against sweat and water. Of course, this may not be what you are looking for, but true wireless lacks good sealing options for the moment. If you like to train with ear buds, you may find that they are quite suitable because their earloose and sweat resistance can do more than follow you.

What is the battery life of the Powerbeats Pro?

The battery life on the Powerbeats Pro is a bit ridiculous. At a level of 75 dBlps, our test unit was able to play music for 10 hours and 52 minutes with an iPhone XS Max. C & # 39; foolish for a set of genuine wireless headphones. While this result can only be achieved with a newer iPhone, even on Android, the Powerbeats Pro survives most true wireless models after 10 hours, 34 minutes.

Close-up of the Lightning port on the Beats Powerbeats Pro wireless headphone charging case.

Fortunately (or unfortunately), the Powerbeats Pro loads via the included Lightning cable.

Whether it is the H1 chip or the larger size of the unit, or both, the culprit, it is clear from the giant battery case that longevity was a major concern from the design team. And given the poor performance of wireless headphones, with respect to battery life, this is a remarkable product so far.

The battery case uses a charging cable to charge, which is frustrating for those who do not use an Apple product for their computer or phone. However, this is not a major inconvenience, since the other side of the cable is a normal USB-A connection, which can be inserted into your computer or wall charger.

Editor's Note: We got these results with a credit unit from Apple / Beats. Once we get our hands on a retail copy, we will re-test and update if a difference is found.

What is the quality of the Powerbeats Pro connection?

True wireless headphones are strange at the moment, because their sound quality often depends a lot on the phone you use. Beats will work much better with Apple devices than with Android handsets, simply because of the Bluetooth codecs used and the hidden H1 chip inside. Without this chip, your phone will probably display extremely low latency and noise issues.

Bluetooth codec latency graph by Android smartphone

Android Bluetooth latency is ubiquitous on the map.

It's a fact of life that Android simply does not manage AAC, the main codec used by the Beats Powerbeats Pro, as well as it should. However, unless you are very young, you will probably not notice a huge difference. Probably.

AAC Bluetooth Noise Floor when playing from an AAC source file

When you listen to music via AAC, iPhones (in purple) produce almost no audible noise, while Android phones can struggle (in yellow, blue).

The Powerbeats Pro offers Apple's best efforts in true wireless connectivity, allowing each earphone to be paired independently, which means your iPhone can simply connect to each earpiece instead of just connecting to it. either. In addition, the Bluetooth 5 connection offers a much better connection with the life of the battery and the benefits of compression.

How does the Powerbeats Pro sound?

Objectively, the sound of Powerbeats Pro … rather correct. Certainly, the design of true wireless headphones poses some problems that raise some sound quality issues, but overall, the new Beats headphones offer a friendly sound that does not shake your head (see: how to read graphics).

Graphic showing the isolation performance of the Apple Beats PowerBeats Pro.

Although they do not really melt the world, Powerbeats Pro block much more noise than AirPods.

The earpieces provided provide much of the ability to maintain sound quality, isolation being by far the most important performance parameter for commuters. Although Powerbeats Pro offer a proper level of insulation, you may want to know if you can find third-party foam tips if you are having problems with silicone sleeves. The tips provided will not do much to block the usual "bass" sounds, such as engine noises or deep voices, but they will lessen the fears of a crying baby (tested by myself) or noise. suburban.

A graph of the frequency response of the Apple Beats PowerBeats Pro.

The accentuation of bass (pink) and boosted highs (cyan) is perfect for pop jams, but underliked mediums can make certain sounds do not sound "clearly".

The bass has a pretty noticeable bump, as is emblematic for a Beats product, and treble and high mids are a little boosted to help the instruments stand out a bit from the cluttered cacophony of a loud song. Although this may not satisfy the most difficult listeners, such an answer lends itself well to the most modern music.

However, this dip in the low mids is a bit of a problem, as it means that the highest half of a piano, most wind and string instruments, and that some voices sound about as loud than the first. bass or treble notes. In mixes with a lot of instrumentation, voices, especially high-pitched voices, can sometimes seem a little weak compared to the rest of the track.

For example, the voices tend to be very difficult to understand in The Midnight's Sunset. In the presence of a rather strong bass line and many treble, you will find that the voice of the singer is not as easy to hear in the chorus as it should be.

A graph showing the performance of the Beats PowerBeats Pro's microphone.

Those who have a more serious voice will sound a little thin in voice discussions, but the microphone is also really good.

The Beats Powerbeats Pro's microphone is surprisingly good for a set of true wireless headphones, and even if it does not measure perfectly: the flaws will not spoil your voice. I have a deep voice and, as such, it would be the kind of person most affected by this drop of 60-200Hz, but as shown in the clip below: it is not so serious.

https://www.soundguys.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/beats-powerbeats-pro-mic-sample.wav

With a microphone pointing downwards in either earpiece, the wind noise seems to be pretty well attenuated. That's great because if you're on the phone a bit like me, you can really annoy your friends and coworkers with the sound of the wind if you like talking when you're not locked in an office.

Why should you get the Powerbeats Pro on the AirPods?

Although the decision to use the AirPods or the Powerbeats Pro has more to do with money (for the most part), I am a fan of the AirPod Beats over because they correct some of the most glaring design flaws of a set Genuine wireless headphones on the market. While the initial cost of the Powerbeats Pro is between $ 50 and $ 100 more than the latest version of the AirPods, the Beats In-Ear headphones offer insulation, better sound quality, touch controls, sweat resistance, better fit and even ear hooks pressure on your ear canals.

New Apple AirPods 2 in an art magazine with the suitcase above, close it.

The new AirPods still have not been sealed to the ear, making it difficult to travel, let alone exercise.

There is really nothing in the AirPods that the Powerbeats Pro lacks outside of gestures, but if you're like many older listeners: it will not really make a big difference in your day.

Do you need to buy the Powerbeats Pro?

If you have money, of course. These things are expensive, and a stellar example for which people are willing to pay a lot for headphones in general. They can offer a lot, but you will have to spend to get it.

The Powerbeats Pro charging case is bulky and bulky, it dwarfs the Pixelbuds charging cases and even Airpods.

The Powerbeats Pro directly corrects the most glaring design flaws of Apple's AirPods and is on the market as a credible alternative for iPhone users. However, there are real affordable wireless headphones, and if you have an Android phone: AAC headphones tend to be a little out of the way.

That said, no other model of true wireless headphones is getting closer to the battery life, and they will be very popular for exercise. Really, their main fault is limited to the price and the lack of an equalizer application. Even without this last element, they remain one of the best headphones for iPhone that you can buy.

Disclosure: We may receive an Affiliate Fee in connection with your purchase of products via links on this page. Although we can receive compensation, we always give our opinions, findings, beliefs or honest experiences about each product. See our ethics policy for more details.

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