Beats Solo Buds Overview: A No-Frills TWS Headset With Reliable Battery Life

Beats Solo Buds — the most recent really wi-fi stereo (TWS) headset from Apple’s subsidiary — was launched in India in August, two months after they had been launched within the US. This mannequin gives longer playback time on a single cost in comparison with its dearer siblings, however the charging case would not present any extra battery life. The Beats Solo Buds works with iOS and Android smartphones and options customisable buttons on every earphone. I’ve spent a number of days with the TWS headset, looking for out if it will possibly stand out in a extremely aggressive worth phase.

The Beats Solo Buds is priced at Rs. 6,900 in India, and it is obtainable in Arctic Purple, Matte Black, Storm Grey, and Clear Crimson color choices. The corporate despatched over the purple variant for this evaluation.

Beats Solo Buds Design: Appears to be like good, feels comfy

• Dimensions – 24x66x35mm (Case), 19x20x18.5mm (Every earphone)
• Weight – 22g (With case), 5.7g (Every earphone)

These are probably the most inexpensive TWS earphones made by Beats, however they sport the model’s signature design language. It intently resembles the dearer Beats Studio Buds+ mannequin when it comes to dimension and design, that includes a plastic physique with a stem-free design. The corporate’s emblem is prominently featured on every earphone.

The Beats Solo Buds headset has a lightweight purple plastic physique with a matte end, whereas the panel with the button on every earbud is a barely darker shade. It is simple to carry and twist into place, and you’ll select from 4 ear tip sizes for a cushty match — you may want to ensure the in-ear earphones match snugly, because it solely options passive noise isolation, in contrast to its dearer siblings.

Beats Solo Buds options customisable button controls

Just like the earphones, the carrying case has a two-tone design with a lighter shade inside. It is likely one of the smallest and lightest instances I’ve held to this point, and the lid snaps shut with an audible click on. Whereas the lid and the earphones are each held securely by magnets, it is simple to open the case and take them out with one hand.

Whereas TWS headset becoming may be subjective, I discovered that the Beats Solo Buds headset was fairly comfy, because of the rounded design. The earphones are very gentle, however I used to be at all times conscious of their presence in my ears, because of the in-ear design.

Beats Solo Buds Software program: Customisable Controls

• Supported platforms – iOS, Android
• Earphone controls – Name administration, media playback, mute/ unmute quantity controls

The Beats Solo Buds are suitable with each iOS and Android smartphones, and I examined them with an iPhone working on iOS 17.6.1 in addition to a smartphone working on Android 14. Apple consists of built-in controls for the TWS headset contained in the iOS settings app, however I needed to obtain a companion app for Android through Apple’s assist web site.

Once I opened the lid of the Beats Solo Buds for the primary time, I noticed a immediate to pair the headset pop up concurrently on iOS, Android and even a Swift Pair notification on my laptop computer that runs on Home windows 10. There is not any devoted button to provoke the pairing course of, which is computerized. If you wish to pair it with one other machine, you possibly can maintain the button on both earphone for 3 seconds till it emits a chirping sound.

Beats customisation choices on iOS and Android (faucet to increase)

By default, urgent the button on both earphone as soon as will reply an incoming name, whereas urgent it as soon as throughout a dialog will mute or unmute your microphone, and a double press will finish the decision. You may swap the mute/ unmute and finish name controls, however the single button push reply calls cannot be modified.

The Beats Solo Buds additionally embrace the choice to press and maintain the earphone button to lower (left) and enhance (proper) the playback quantity. Nonetheless, I turned off this performance because it allowed me to activate Siri (or Google Assistant on Android) by lengthy urgent the button.

The companion app would not embrace any equaliser controls or audio presets, so I needed to depend on the app-specific equaliser choices on Apple Music and Spotify on Android and iOS to customize the audio output of the wi-fi headset.

The app additionally features a function that allows you to see the situation of your earphones on Android, whereas iOS customers can use the Discover My app for a similar performance. On each platforms, you can see the final location when the earphones had been in use or linked to your telephone.

Beats Solo Buds Efficiency, Battery Life: Fairly Passable

• Bluetooth model – 5.3
• Energetic noise cancellation – No
• Battery life – As much as 18 hours

The corporate says that the Beats Solo Buds TWS headset is supplied with a dynamic driver with two layers and a customized acoustic design with vents that scale back air strain whereas carrying the earphones. Apple hasn’t included an H-series or W-series chip on the machine, so it would not assist seamless switching between Apple units, nor does it supply multipoint connectivity. 

Regardless of the shortage of equaliser controls on iOS and Android, I discovered that the Beats Solo Buds gives a relatively good soundstage, which implies that it will possibly deal with tracks throughout genres, together with rock, pop, R&B, and classical music. Whereas listening to Diljit Dosanjh and Sia’s Hass Hass, the duo’s vocals had been clear whereas the headset delivered the correct quantity of bass — it is just a little extra restrained than the corporate’s different wi-fi headsets.

The Beats Solo Buds TWS headset has a stem-free design

With its impartial sound signature, the Beats Solo Buds is ready to reproduce the extra complicated Hustle and Bustle of Ormos by HOYO-MiX, a observe with a spread of musical devices which might be all distinctly audible. It delivers just a little extra rumble on Esther Abrami’s The Gadfly, Op. 97 III Youth (Romance), however the violin is distinctly audible.

The Beats Solo Buds handles bass-focused tracks like The Weeknd’s Blinding Lights with ample separation between the mid and lows, permitting each to shine. Nonetheless, I observed a little bit of distortion whereas listening to Save Your Tears with the quantity turned up, though there was no “muffling” on that observe.

Whereas the lows on the Beats Solo Buds will not be as aggressive as the corporate’s different fashions, I discovered that it truly delivered extra balanced audio than its opponents in the identical worth phase that supply extra highly effective bass efficiency and even the unique Beats Studio Buds headset that was launched in 2021.

There is not any lively noise cancellation on the Beats Solo Buds, which implies that I used to be both turning up the quantity whereas listening to music or podcasts whereas travelling. It is just a little disappointing as a result of opponents supply assist for the function at a cheaper price level.

Beats Solo Buds includes a USB Sort-C port for charging

In keeping with the corporate, the Beats Solo Buds function a microphone on every earphone that utilises a customized machine-learning algorithm to cut back environmental noise. In my testing, individuals I spoke to on common telephone calls and WhatsApp and Google Meet calls mentioned they may hear me clearly, even once I was in a crowded, noisy space.

The Beats Solo Buds are claimed to ship as much as 18 hours of media playback on a single cost. I obtained about 12 hours of battery life, with a mixture of listening to music, calling, and gaming.

Whereas the earphones supply glorious battery life, the carrying case would not embrace a battery — this implies you may have to plug in a charger after putting the buds within the case when the battery is depleted. You may cost it through the Sort-C port on the case with a USB-PD charger and even join it to your telephone or different units.

Beats Solo Buds Overview: Verdict

The Beats Solo Buds is a singular TWS headset on this worth phase, because it delivers a balanced, impartial sound signature and works very properly with each iOS and Android units. It additionally gives the longest battery life on a single cost and assist for fast charging.

Nonetheless, the corporate’s most inexpensive TWS mannequin additionally has a few notable drawbacks. For starters, the earphones supply as much as 18 hours of battery life, however the compact charging case would not present any extra energy.

Beats Solo Buds would not ship with a charging cable within the field

One other notable downside is the shortage of ANC assist on the Beats Solo Buds. Today, almost each TWS wi-fi headset across the Rs. 5,000 mark gives a point of lively noise cancellation, stopping you from cranking the quantity too excessive open air and probably damaging your ears.

When you personal an iPhone or different units from Apple otherwise you simply need a pair of no-frills TWS earphones that supply good sound high quality, then the Beats Solo Buds are price contemplating if the shortage of ANC is not a deal breaker. Different options price contemplating on this worth vary are the Oppo Enco Air 3 Professional, Nothing Ear (a) (Overview) and OnePlus Buds 3 (Overview) — most wi-fi headsets on this worth vary additionally supply first rate audio high quality and ANC for the worth, together with assist for multipoint connectivity.