Beats Studio Pro: Better than AirPods Max and more affordable

Apple's Beats brand delivers a better overall experience at a fraction of the price

- JASON CROSS

Some of Apple's best AirPods aren't AirPods, they're Beats. The company's other headphone brand regularly breaks out products with nearly all the same features and technology as AirPods but with better style, compatibility, and pricing.

If you're in the market for a set of over-the-ear headphones and considering the AirPods Max (fave.co/3pfO0AuR), you now have a better option. The new Beats Studio Pro (fave.co/44Wh7rk) may not be made of aluminum and steel with a fancy mesh headband, but they cost $200 less and deliver better sound, broader compatibility, and most of the important AirPods features. Oh, and they come with a real carrying case.

EXCELLENT APPLE (AND ANDROID) SUPPORT

The main reason to get AirPods over other headphones is their seamless integration with your Apple ecosystem. They pair just by holding them near your iPhone, they switch easily to your Mac or iPad, and you can change settings and get firmware updates within Settings instead of requiring a separate app.

The new Beats Studio Pro do almost all your favorite AirPods stuff. They provide one-touch pairing, iCloud pairing (but not instant switching), Handoff to Apple Watch, hands-free "Hey Siri" support, and Find My support.

On your iPhone, iPad, or Mac, they're treated just like the first-party Apple product they are. You get native iOS connection indications, widgets, and indicators, and noise cancelling and spatial audio controls in Control Center, and you'll find all the settings in...er...Settings.

They even support personalized Spatial Audio and head tracking. The only feature you'll really miss is ear detection. The Beats Studio Pro don't stop playing as soon as you take them off and resume as you put them on, and you've got to press the power button for a couple seconds to turn them on or off.