If you just need something inexpensive that plays music, Beats Flex fills the role. Sound quality is where Beats Flex loses a lot of points, in my book. The dual-chamber acoustic design with laser cut micro-venting and digital processor make the Beats Flex sound … I never thought I’d say I like the sound of AirPods better, but in this case, I do.
Once you get used to wearing the buds, finding the controls becomes second nature. It took me a bit of time to get accustomed to how high up the controls are, but once I figured it out, it was smooth sailing from then on out. There was a time when the name “Beats” meant “these headphones have way too much bass.” That time has come and gone , with the Flex going lighter on bass than most other Beats I’ve heard recently. Whether you’re looking to buy your first pair of Bluetooth earphones, then, or you’re the type of person who regularly breaks or loses them, you really can’t go too far wrong with the Beats Flex. They offer unbeatable value for money and should really make you question whether you need to spend more. The only significant shortcoming considering their low price is that the Flex don’t come with any waterproofing.
The Flex, despite being drastically cheaper than the Beats X, sport upgraded audio, including a new driver and laser-cut vents on each bud to relieve ear pressure. Beats has also improved the digital processor that tunes your tunes, and the results are well-balanced. On a layered track with a lot going on like “I Know the End” by Phoebe Bridgers, the Flex easily separated the horns, rollicking guitar, drums, and Bridgers’ screams. The same was true of Fleetwood Mac’s “Silver Springs,” in which the percussion, piano, and guitars backing Stevie Nicks’ impassioned chorus were clear and distinct. We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service.
The boosted bass response is noticeable in the song No Fear No More by Madeon. When I sit in my quiet room, unencumbered by external noise, the bassline sounds overpowering. This makes sense because bass notes are tuned to sound twice as loud as low-midrange notes. However, it beats studio3 plays to my advantage when I walk to the grocery store because I can more easily keep tabs on the main beat. My ears work best with the double-flanged tips, but your mileage may vary. As long you don’t plan on working out with this, the fit shouldn’t pose much of an issue.
If the item details above aren’t accurate or complete, we want to know about it. 1 Compatible with iOS and iPadOS 14 or later, MacOS 11 or later, WatchOS 7 or later, and tvOS 14 or later; compatibility will vary on Android devices. So, engineers are limited by weight and size as to how much they can pack into a small package. But don’t get yourself a micro-USB cable or try to plug into one. Speaking of calls, the in-built mics are fine and perfectly adequate for taking calls as long as the conditions aren’t too windy. While these are surely built to replace the bundled EarPods with iPhones, they work very well with Android too and the app brings across some of the previously iOS-only shine.
There are four total pairs of silicone eartips included, in various sizes. In addition to the eartips, there’s a short USB-C cable for charging, which connects to an uncovered port on the left compartment. The Beats Flex earphones offers a bass-forward sound signature and the easy connectivity of Apple’s W1 chip for just $50. Although they’re just small earbuds, they pack a 14-hour battery life, 2 hours more than the Flex. On top of extensive controls, the app also lets you enable the auto play feature when magnetically attaching both earbuds. Of course, looking at the price, your expectations have to be relatively low.
The Apple U1 may, at this early stage, be a little too expensive. And even if it is not, the rumored AirPods Studio would be a much better vehicle for the day-to-day benefits of that hardware. This can make it tricky to know if you’ve pressed it accurately. You get used to this arrangement quickly enough and on the bright side, you’ll never risk accidentally yanking the left earbud out when you use them. What’s odd about the Flex is that while overall battery life is better than their predecessor, fast-charging is actually worse. You now need 10 minutes to get a 1.5-hour boost, whereas the BeatsX could dish out two hours of extra time after five minutes of charging.
We don’t love them as much as the top-tier AirPods Pro or even the Powerbeats Pro, but if you just bought a new iPhone and want a pair of affordable Beats earbuds to go with it, the Flex could fit the bill. The Beats Flex headphones are a slightly weird product in this way, because even at their price point, there are actual true wireless buds that you can buy. And naturally enough, Apple has a number of actually wireless buds at beats studio3 higher prices that you could also aspire towards. Inside the Beats Flex is Apple’s W1 chip, and it’s great to see this handy piece of silicon at the heart of these cheaper earphones. Bring the Beats Flex close to an iPhone and – as you do with AirPods – you’ll get instant pairing across all your connected devices. Don’t expect fancy new features like auto-syncing or Spatial Audio as neither of them are supported by this chip.