Beats Unveils Studio 3 Wireless Headphones With Apple’s W1 Chip
Beats, the Apple-owned headphone maker, has unveiled a new pair of headphones. The Studio Wireless 3 contains a W1 chip from Apple and according to the manufacturer has improved noise reduction and battery life.
In terms of design and materials, the new Bluetooth headphones look almost exactly the same as the predecessor, the Studio 1 and 2. Via the Apple chip, the headphones can easily be connected to, for example, iPhones, iPads or MacBooks. In contrast to the Studio 2, the Studio 3 uses technology that continuously monitors the ambient noise and dynamically adjusts the noise reduction based on this. In addition, the over-ear earcups should help to limit hearing ambient noise as much as possible.
Like other noise-cancelling headsets, the wireless headphones use two microphones that register ambient noise. The Studio 3 Wireless uses what it calls Pure Adaptive Noise Canceling, or Pure ANC. These are algorithms that compare in real time the music modified by the noise reduction with the original sound file being played. It also scans how well the ear cups fit; the noise reduction adjusts based on any sound leaks.
Any digital artefacts are removed as much as possible. Such artifacts are, for example, peaks in the bass caused by filtering out low frequency tones such as the hum of a bus. Pure ANC’s calibration is done 50,000 times per second, and should deliver a better audio experience blocking more than just the bass.
When this noise reduction is on, the battery life is 22 hours; that’s about 10 hours more than its predecessor. With the noise cancellation off, the wireless headphones last a total of 40 hours. There is also a quick charge function that ensures that the headphones will last for 3 hours after a 10-minute charge. There are control buttons on the device, for example for adjusting the volume or enabling voice assistant Siri.
The Studio 3 Wireless will be available in six different colors and can be ordered from Beats’ website for $350. The headphones should be available from mid-October.