Design & Construction

Building on the success of the Studio Buds. Beats is back with a more premium version of the iteration. While some saw the Beats Studio Buds+ as creating competitions between itself and the AirPods Pro (2nd Gen), Apple saw it as an opportunity to convince more Android users to join the IOS ecosystem. So how effective is this move? Well, there is only one way to find out. The Beats Studio Buds+ shares the same rounded case design that fits nicely into the palm of your hands, it is as small and compact as the Apple AirPods Pro, Marshall Motif ANC 2 and the Sony WF-1000XM5. Like all true wireless earbuds, the case feature magnets inside that keeps the earbuds docked in securely. There is a USB-C port at the bottom side of the case and a front LED indicator to notify you of the case charge when closed. Inside the case, there is a button for Bluetooth pairing. One of the coolest new finishes has to be the transparent version of the earbuds which shows the inner workings of the earbuds and case and it is definitely rivalling what the Nothing Ear (2) has been doing for a while now. As for the earbuds, Beats went with responsive old-school buttons that work really well without the need to press too hard to get a click. A single press on either earbuds will play/pause your music, a double press skips forward and a triple press skips backwards, while a long press will toggle between Transparency Mode, Noise-Cancelling and Passive Noise Isolation. In terms of battery life, we are looking at strong 9 hours of music playback with ANC on. The case holds an additional 27 hours for ANC and music playback use, giving you up to 36 hours with ANC use. If you are in a rush, there is always quick charge which will allow for 1 hour of playback with a 5 minutes charge. In the box, there are extra-small eartips alongside the regular Small, Medium and Large sizes to ensure a tight seal and secure fit. Even though the Studio Buds+ isn't marketed as a sports earbud, it boasts an IPX4 water resistance for those intense workouts or rainy days, giving users the ultimate peace of mind.

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Sound Quality

Loud, lively and energetic is how I would describe the sound of the Beats Studio Buds+. The two-layer transducers on the Studio Buds produced an exciting sound signature out-of-the-box. So let's start off with the bass response. In short, it is deep, punchy, and tight. It never managed to distort at loud volume. The bass never bleeds into the mids when it is at a low volume level and it hits as deep as the Nothing Ear (2) but not as deep as the Sennheiser CX Plus SE or the Marshall Motif ANC 2. The highs sound very bright with plenty of details. The mids do sound very crisp and as with most earbuds, the Studio Buds+ are tuned to a V-shaped sound signature where the emphasis on the mids is reduced. The soundstage fair decently with Spatial Audio but it isn't quite on the level that the AirPods Pro (2nd Gen) can achieve. The instrument separation is decent with distinct left and right channels. If you are not a fan of the Beats out-of-the-box sound signature, it is with a heavy heart to let you know that it will not be easy to alter the equaliser unless you are using a third-party option. There is a compatible Beats app for Android users and built-in settings for IOS users. Inside, you will see the battery life of both the earbuds as well as the case. You can switch between Noise-Canceling, Transparency Mode or Off as well as update the software You can also customise the press and hold control on the earbuds to change between Noise Control or control the volume. The call controls can also be customised to end calls with a single or double press as well as automatically use both mics or use only one for calls. Since Beats is part of Apple, Find My detection is built into the buds for you to trace them back if you lose them, however the location tracking will only work when the earbuds are in use, otherwise the app will only show its last used location. The software should be update periodically in the background without you knowing as in typical Apple fashion. Based on user experience, the noise-canceling is comparable to the Nothing Ear (2) and thbe Marshall Motif ANC 2. I could not hear much of my surroundings when there was music was playing at a reasonable level. The noise-cancelling is said to be 1.6x better than before and blocks out most environmental noises apart from extremely loud construction noises. Wind noise reduction was not bad either with the ability to block out more wind noises in city commutes. Transparency Mode is a feature that allows you to hear your surroundings without removing your earbuds and Beats claims that it is improved its performance by twice from its predecessor. In day-to-day use, I found that the Transparency Mode is somewhat decent and not very useful with music playback. It is significantly robotic compared to the best of the best, the AirPods Pro (2nd Gen). If you are looking out for auto-play and pause when you remove one earbud, the Studio Buds does not have that feature either. To activate your voice assistant, a simple command of 'Hey Siri' will bring up the feature. In terms of call quality, the earbuds uses 3 larger beam-foaming mic array per earbud to capture your voice. In my opinion, the quality is pretty usable though I do sound a little robotic and needed to speak up when I picked up calls in outdoor environments. It is definitely comparable in quality to the Nothing Ear (2) and the Jabra Elite 5.

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Connectivity & Portability

The earbuds support the basic AAC and SBC codecs together with Class 1 Bluetooth. The earbuds also automatically power on/off when docked and taken out from the case. The battery life peaks at a solid 9 hours per use with ANC and a total of 36 hours with the case. If you noticed, there is still a lack of wireless charging on the Studio Buds+. The package also comes with a USB-C to USB-C cable for charging. Either earbuds allow for one-sided listening as they use an independent connection to your phone. Google’s Fast Pair feature is supported to enable effortless Bluetooth pairing with your Android devices as well as the ability to audio switch between your Android, Chromebook and other compatible devices. If you try to watch videos or movies with these, they do not have any latency in audio transmission.

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PROS​​

• Durable Construction

• Compact and Small

• Dynamic Sound Signature

• Active Noise-Cancelling

• IOS & Android Compatibility

• Transparency Mode

• Responsive Button Controls

• Quick Charge

• Find My Location Tracking

• IPX4 Water-Resistant Earbuds

• USC-C Charging

• A Range of Colours

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CONS​​​​​​

• No Sound Customisation

• No Wireless Charging

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The Bottom Line

In all, the Beats Studio Buds+ is a is a slight upgrade to the originals. It retains the essential features such as its signature sound quality, cross-compatibility and IPX4 water-resistance. Improved mics and battery life and ANC are the major change why the Studio Buds+ is the better option compared to the originals. It is indeed a seamless and hassle-free experience that Beats nailed for both IOS and Android users. The Studio Buds+ comes in a variety of colouirs including Transparent, White, Black, Cosmic Pink and Silver and in typical Beats fashion, we could expect to see new colour-ways to drop in the near future.