13

Beats headphones aren’t exactly known

for being affordable – what do you expect

when Apple spent $3bn on buying the

company from Dr Dre? – but at barely half

the price of a pair of AirPods Pro, the new

Studio Buds look like a bargain.

With active noise-cancelling, Siri-based

voice control and support for Apple Music’s

nifty new Spatial Audio tracks (see p21),

you don’t have to make do without any

of the fancier features you get on pricier

buds – although it’s got to be said the 5hr

battery life (with 10 more in the charging

case) is a little bit stingy. Switch the

noise-cancelling off and that jumps

to 8+16hrs, but why have ANC if you’re

not going to use it?

Each bud weighs just 5g, and with an IPX

rating they’re not bothered by water or

sweat, plus there’s a transparency mode

in case you want to eavesdrop on your

fellow commuters’ thrilling conversations

about seahorse mating rituals. Their

one-touch pairing also works with Android

phones, which is unusual for an Apple

product, but then these buds are all

about nice surprises.

As hot as... a randy seahorse

£130 / beatsbydre.com

DRE DREAM

BELIEVER

Beats Studio Buds

Alive and bricking
Think you can improve on
Adidas’s design? It’s possible
to take some bricks from your
Lego collection and add your
own flourishes. A couple
of Nike swooshes,
perhaps?

HOT

SIX