Apple yesterday announced Powerbeats Pro, a cord-free version of the Beats-branded Powerbeats fitness earbuds coming in May for $250, featuring the new Apple H1 headphone chip tap brings benefits like Hey Siri, faster device switching, a better fit and longer battery life.
But where do they fit in terms of pricing?
The Verge explains that the new Beats buds are firmly in the high-end tier of true wireless earbuds. “They’re not the most expensive, but they’re certainly up there,” reads the report.
Here’s The Verge’s handy comparison:
- Bang & Olufsen Beoplay E8: $300
- Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless: $300
- Master and Dynamic MW07: $299
- Beats Powerbeats Pro: $250
- Sony WF-1000X: $200
- Apple AirPods with wireless charging case: $199
- Bose SoundSport Free: $199
- Sony WF-SP700N: $179.99
- Jabra Elite 65t: $169
- Apple AirPods with regular case: $159
- Samsung Galaxy Buds: $129
- Anker Soundcore Liberty Air: $79
So what about the AirPods 2 vs. Powerbeats Pro comparison? And won’t the $250 Powerbeats Pro cannibalize the second-generation AirPods? In a word, no.
Conventional wisdom tells us that the two products serve different markets.
AirPods 2 with the new Qi wireless charging case are great all-around earphones and just awesome Bluetooth earphones, but they’re not particularly optimized for fitness activities. However, at $200, the new AirPods with the charging case are $50 cheaper than the $250 Powerbeats Pro while costing the same as the wired Powerbeats 3.
On the other hand, the new sporty earbuds are an attractive alternative to AirPods. In addition to offering noise cancellation that AirPods lack and a significantly longer battery life at nine hours, they’re specifically aimed at fitness-focused people rather than being general purpose.
And because these new earbuds are sweat and moisture resistant (which cannot be said for AirPods), they’re ideal for working out in the gym, running and other sporting activities.
The Verge:
Beats (and by extension Apple) view Powerbeats Pro as complementary to AirPods—not a direct threat. They’re in a different price bracket ($250 versus $159 or $200).
They isolate sound, which some people will prefer but others will not.
If you frequently run outside on busy city streets and like being aware of what’s happening, that might be a deciding factor. The Powerbeats Pro don’t have any kind of ambient noise mode to pipe in outside audio.
Powerbeats Pro are available in Black, Ivory, Moss and Navy while AirPods only come in White.
Powerbeats Pro will hit the US, UK, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Lichtenstein, Luxembourg, Macau, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland in May before expanding to additional countries in the summer and fall.
How do you like the new Powerbeats Pro so far? And do they offer a better value for your hard-earned cash than the new AirPods, do you think?
Let us know how you feel about the new Powerbeats in the comments down below.