Beats is no stranger to wireless headphones, but their first pair of truly wireless earbuds has been a long time coming – and fortunately, they have turned out to be worth the wait. To that effect, the Beats Studio Buds bring the powerful Beats signature audio profile to a tiny form factor.
The Beats Studio Buds don’t just sound good – they sound phenomenal. They offer nearly as rich and powerful a soundstage as their on-ear Beats headphones, which is quite an amazing feat given the size of these little guys. Yet, they are smaller than many other true wireless earbuds on the market.
The Beats Studio Buds perform well for nearly every genre but especially shine when it comes to pop music. We’re impressed with how powerful the bass is for a pair of wireless earbuds. The soundstage is equally impressive and rich with detail. The Beats Studio Buds even manage to outperform the AirPods Pro when it comes to audio.
The Beats Studio Buds are on the smaller side for a pair of wireless earbuds, which is something we can especially appreciate since we have smaller ears and often many wireless earbuds are too big and uncomfortable for us to use. On the other hand, these petite buds weigh just 5.1g per earbud.
Beats says that they worked hard to find an ergonomic fit that fits most ears. While we wouldn’t say that these are the most comfortable pair of truly wireless earbuds on the market, they are indeed extremely comfortable and we never felt any strain while wearing them for long listening sessions.
Android users can rejoice because for the first time ever, these Beats earphones offer native Android support in addition to native iOS support. This makes the pairing and overall experience with using Beats so much more pleasurable and convenient, and it’s now more like the seamless pairing experience that iOS users have been enjoying with Beats for years now.
When it comes to active noise cancellation, the Beats Studio Buds is no slouch either. Between offering a great seal and their ANC tech, these little buds do a great job of drowning out external noise. However, the ANC isn’t as powerful as what you get from some other competitors like Sony.
In addition to ANC, the Beats Studio Buds also offer a Transparency mode. You can easily cycle through ANC mode and Transparency mode by using the Beats app or by using the touch controls on the buds which operate similarly to many other competing wireless earbuds.
Call quality on the Beats Studio Buds is ok, but not great. We could hear callers clearly but they said that they heard lots of background noise and that our voice did not come through very clearly.
Battery life is a solid five hours with noise cancellation turned on or eight with it off. The charging cases charges via USB-C.
Bottom line
The Beats Studio Buds may be Beats’ first foray into the truly wireless earbuds market, yet Beats has managed to knock it out of the park on their first try. The Beats Studio Buds sound phenomenal, offer a comfortable fit, and they pack in all of the important features you would want from truly wireless earbuds – that includes everything from ANC to native Android support.
The Beats Studio Buds are currently available in a choice of black, white, or red and retail for just $99.95. We think this price is quite the deal.
Update May 25th, 2023: Beats has released an update to the Beats Studio Buds, the Beats Studio Buds Plus. These new Beats offer a similar form factor but with improved sound, voice-calling, and the addition of spatial audio. Check out our in-depth Beats Studio Buds Plus review