Beats Fit Pro vs. Beats Studio Buds vs. Powerbeats Pro: Which to Choose?

Overview of Beats Fit Pro, Beats Studio Buds and Powerbeats Pro

The Beats Fit Pro are best suited for those in the Apple world, as you’ll get all of the above perks as well as a very painless pairing process for iPhones, iPads and Macs. The Fit Pro also have among the longest battery life of Apple buds, lasting us nearly 7 continuous hours with ANC on and allowing you to go about three days of normal on-and-off use before having to charge the case. But unlike the AirPods Pro, the Fit Pro are also pretty great if you’re on an Android device. The Beats app for Android lets you take advantage of nearly all of the Fit Pro’s key features, including the ability to switch sound modes, customize the controls and perform an Ear Tip Fit Test. In addition, unlike the AirPods Pro, the Fit Pro set offers physical buttons that control track skip, phone calls, volume on Apple devices and and they come in several color choices. The only notable drawback of the Beats Fit Pro is its charging case, which is fairly bulky, though still pocketable.

| #2  Beats Studio Buds Totally Wireless Noise Cancelling Earbuds

Google Users Rating: 4.0/5

• B & H Photo: $149.95 (up to 1.5% cashback)

• Walmart: $143.95 (up to 4% cashback)

The Beats Studio Buds serves as the Beats company’s entry-level true wireless model. It comes with an all-new design, Bluetooth 5.2 and active noise cancellation, a first for wireless Beats buds. This tiny pair of buds also has a non-Apple chipset that was designed to play nice with iOS and Android, while leveraging high audio and ANC performance.The Beats Studio Buds  also support for Apple’s Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos format. It sounds great, with a lively sound quality that elevates the highs and lows of your music, and feel supremely comfortable to wear for long periods of time.

It is not without some drawbacks, though. Chief among them is their lackluster call quality and lack of an H1 Wireless Chip. Battery life with either ANC or Transparency mode turned on is a little short at only five hours (15 hours with the case), and their noise cancellation isn’t exactly class-leading, either. Since the Studio Buds don’t run on the H1 chip, it also miss out on some exclusive iOS features such as auto-switching between iCloud-registered devices and Siri Announce Notifications.

| #3  Beats Powerbeats Pro Totally Wireless Earbuds

Google Users Rating: 4.4/5

• Bestbuy: $179.99 (up to 0.5% cashback)

• Beats by Dre: $179.95

The Beats Powerbeats Pro Truly Wireless is one of the best wireless sports earbuds. Thanks to its ear-hook design, they should stay in place during tough runs or workouts at the gym. It is also comfortable, well-built, and are rated IPX4 for resistance against water splashes.The company's even gone as far as to include the new H1 chip, making seamless integration with all iDevices even faster. Automatic switching has been added as well via the iOS 14 update. The Powerbeats Pro has a balanced presentation sound that blends emphatic lows and tighter mids and highs which is versatile for a wide variety of music genres.

But it doesn't offer any sound customization features and also doesn't support Spatial Audio or Adaptive EQ offered by Apple AirPods Pro. Another regret is that it lacks active noise reduction, so it doesn't block out much in terms of background noise. But thanks to features like the pressure-reducing micro-laser barometric venting hole, it has long on-board battery life which generates  nearly double the playtime of the AirPods Pro.

Beats Fit Pro vs. Beats Studio Buds vs. Powerbeats Pro: In-Depth Comparison

Specs

Price

The Beats Fit Pro carries a highest price tag: $199. The Beats Studio Buds costs $149. The Powerbeats Pro has been out for a while and has seen numerous price drops over the year. It originally launched for $249, the same price as the AirPods Pro, but now you can get it at $179 on Beats offical site or at other online retailers.

Design

I favor the Powerbeats Pro for its more original design, granted it carries over the signature earhook look of past Beats earbuds. Even certain details like the logo and volume rockers give it some flair. The biggest difference between Beats Fit Pro and Beats Studio Buds  in terms of design is the former’s secure-fit wingtips. Take away these wingtips and they are practically the same, except for the colors and some other minor details.

While the Beats Fit Pro, Beats Studio Buds and Powerbeats Pro have an in-ear fit, only the latter has ear hooks.  In other words, the Powerbeats Pro is better for workouts because of said hooks, providing a more secure fit. But the Powerbeats Pro case is freaking massive, and heavy.  The Beats Studio Buds and Beats Fit Pro come with a smaller and more portable case which are cooler to carry around, not to mention lighter.

Beats Fit Pro offers four colors: Black, White, Sage Gray, Stone Purple.The Studio Buds’ color options are Black, White, and Beats Red. In contrast, the Powerbeats Pro are available in Cloud Pink, Glacier Blue, Lava Red, Ivory, Black, and Navy.  They all have an IPX4 rating for sweat and water resistance.

Comfort and Fit

These three wireless earbuds might look different, but they’re equally comfortable and fit-ready for workouts. The Fit Pro's eartips feel gentle on the skin and mold into the cymba, while the silicone tips produce a tight seal around the canal to keep the buds locked in. The Studio Buds design is comfortable too, except it features a new ergonomically tilted acoustic nozzle with laser-cut micro-vent that decreases pressure on the eardrum. Thanks to the ear hooks, the Powerbeats Pro provides excellent stability no matter what you're doing. But the angled sound port makes it easy to insert into the ear, but it also applies pressure to the concha, which can cause a little discomfort after workouts or within an hour of wear.

Sound Quality

Beats headphones, whether they be earbuds or over-ear headphones, have a reputation of having an overemphasized and exaggerated bass. But that’s not the case with the Beats Fit Pro. In fact, It has a slightly neutral sound with a consistent and balanced frequency response. The Beats Fit Pronot only pumps out impactful lows, but also offers up crisp mids and detailed highs, which makes it great for casual listening. The inclusion of Adaptive EQ mode is a game-changer, adjusting frequencies in real time so you can hear music more precisely.

On contrast, the Beats Studio Buds have that exaggerated and overemphasized bass that Beats is known for. The mids are flat and the highs are quite underemphasized. The Beats Powerbeats Pro is also the same,  lows are impactful and well represented when listening to tracks from contemporary music genres like EDM and hip-hop.Vocals are also prominent on acoustic tracks. But the trade off with having such powerful bass at the helm is that highs take a hit.

Active Noise Cancellation and Transparency Modes

Both the Beats Fit Pro and the Beats Studio Buds have active noise cancellation and a Transparency mode. Their ANC performance are on par with each other and they are quite similar. They will block out low and mid frequency noise but they won’t completely block out high frequency sound. Their Transparency modes also work similarly. The Powerbeats Pro don't feature active noise cancellation, but because they are earbuds that sit in your ear canal, they do feature noise isolation and thus will keep out some degree of external sound.

Special Features

With both models running on the H1 chip, the Fit Pro and Powerbeats Pro share lots of functionality including audio sharing and “Hey Siri” voice activation, along with others such as automatic switching, one-touch pairing, and FindMy for locating misplaced earbuds. In addition,  the Fit Pro comes with some other features not found on the Powerbeats Pro, like Adaptive EQ, Spatial Audio, ANC and Transparency mode.

In comparison, the Beats Studio Buds have neither an H1 nor W1 chip. Instead, they use a custom proprietary chip from Beats. The absence of the H1 chip in the Studio Buds means it's relatively lacking in the features department. But Beats Studio Buds offers active noise cancellation and ambient listening., which the Beats Powerbeats Pro lacks.

Call Quality

Both Beats Fit Pro and Powerbeats Pro have impressed call quality, nearly matching the AirPods Pro. The Fit Pro uses five mics and a voice accelerometer to minimize background noise for loud, clear calls. The beamforming mics of Powerbeats Pro can block out a good amount of ambient noise during calls too which allows for loud and clear conversations both indoors and outdoors. But both the wind resistance on these two sets of buds isn’t as strong as on the AirPods Pro.
It is shocking to see the Studio Buds underperform as a calling headset, especially since Beats stuffed some strong specs into the model. Voices sounded clearer when chatting in quiet environments, but cutout was persistent no matter the location. Wind only made matters worse.

Battery Life

The Fit Pro gets you 6 hours of ANC playtime and can extend to 7 hours with ANC off. It  has the higher battery life overall when factoring in the charging case, which holds between 27 to 30 hours. The Beats Studio Buds can last around 8 hours and a total of 24 hours with the case. But having ANC enabled will really eat up their battery life, reducing the total to only up to five hours on a single charge. The Powerbeats Pro can last up to 8 hours, and with its case, it will have enough power for more than 24 hours.

All the three wireless earbuds have fast charging as well, which Beats calls Fast Fuel. The Powerbeats Pro will have 1.5 hours after five minutes of charging.That is 30 minutes more than what the Beats Studio Buds and Beats Fit Pro generates in the same charging time.

Bottim Line

Beats Fit Pro vs. Beats Studio Buds vs. Powerbeats Pro: Which to Choose?

There is no doubt that the Beats Fit Pro are the best wireless earbuds among the three, especially if you're using it with the iOS ecosystem.The Beats Fit Pro come with all the bells and whistles the H1 chip provides, including adaptive EQ and audio sharing. In addition, this earbud also offers  balanced sound quality, active noise cancelation, and a super secure fit. Its ANC performs just as well as it does on the AirPods Pro and provides listeners with control over how much noise they want to block out or hear when running outside. But pay attention that some of the features that come with the H1 chip in the Fit Pro are not available to Android users. These include dynamic head tracking, audio sharing, and automatic device switching. In a word, for Apple users and those who like a more balanced soundstage, the Beats Fit Pro are some of the most advanced earbuds you can buy which comes with all the bells and whistles.

The Beats Studio Buds are an affordable pair of noise-canceling true wireless earbuds. It is also the most compact earbud produced by Beats or Apple. The Beats Studio Buds has a non-Apple chipset which give Android and iOS owners the same rewarding user experience.This earbud also brings a good solid bass sound and active noise cancellation. In addition, you can still enjoy spatial audio despite no H1 chip. In my opinion, the Beats Studio Buds are more suitable for Android users and people who prefer a more distinct bass in their music.

The Powerbeats Pro is still a go-to for  runners or people who really like to exercise and make sure the earbuds will never fall. Even lacking ANC or Transparency mode, they offer great sound quality and huge battery life.

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