Better call quality! 😲 Beats Studio Buds Plus Review vs Sony vs Samsung
The Beats Studio Buds+’s new transparent color scheme looked interesting but on top of that, I’ve also gotten many requests to review it from your guys. So in this article. We’re going to dive deep into its performance such as its sound, noise cancelling, call quality, and its pros and cons compared to some of the most popular TWS from Sony and Samsung.
Battery Life
Apple hasn’t provided much information about its specs save for what’s on its website, and they didn’t give any info about battery life with noise canceling, but based on my own testing, you can expect up to 6 hours of battery in the buds and up to 24 hours with the charging case.
They did say the buds have a new dual driver design with acoustic vents that’s supposed to relieve pressure on the ears when listening to audio. I have mixed feelings about such vented designs, because after trying different buds, some with vents and some without, there doesn’t seem to have much of an impact on comfort, and in some cases it could actually mean less bass.
But if we’re speaking about comfort, they feel pretty snug in my ears without feeling too plugged in. Quite comfortable and stable overall. They also have button controls instead of touch pads which means accidentally activating some controls is unlikely, nice.
I do like that you can use this equally as well on iOS as on Android with the Beats app. Although on Android, you can’t customize its sound at all whereas on iOS, you do get some options to play with its compression level.
(Furthermore, if you had previously custom tuned your AirPods through Headphone Accommodations, those same settings will carry over to the Beats Studio Buds Plus, although the Studio itself does not support Headphone Accomodations yet.)
Active Noise Canceling
When I compared its ANC to the Sony LinkBuds S and Samsung galaxy Buds 2 Pro under simulated noisy conditions, it’s pretty clear that the Beats ANC is more effective than both of them at canceling low frequency noises. This means more silence on the train, the bus, the plane, any vehicle that produces the lower rumbling, droning noises. Listen to the test samples here.
Transparency Mode
Also impressive is its transparency. In true Apple form, its transparency has very little noise and it almost feels like I’m not wearing buds at all. Essential if you need more awareness around you, or you want to have a conversation with the buds on. It also has peak protection against sudden loud sounds which kicks in immediately.
Call Quality Comparison
Comparing its call quality to the others using the same simulated conditions, its mic pickup and noise filtering is superior to that of the Sony LinkBuds S and Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro. It’s even able to handle the wind noise that many other earbuds are less able to filter.
I find its mic pickup quite similar to the Nothing Ear 2 in terms of clarity and loudness, And the Ear (2) does have one of the best call qualities out there. Impressive. Listen to the test samples here.
Sound Quality
To be honest, I had some preconceived notions about its sound as Beats has a reputation for heavy bass. Not a bad thing for me because personally, I do like a bit more bass in my sound. But, when I was putting it through my usual test tracks, I was surprised that it didn’t sound as heavy or thumpy as I expected. Samples here.
I know this might shock you, but the Studio Buds Plus isn’t really for bassheads. I ran my frequency sweeps and yes, it heavily rolls off the bass above the sub bass frequencies, and the roll off continues well into the mids.
This kind of tuning is great for squeezing as much crispness from the mids and vocals as possible. And these do sound very clear without much sibilance, especially for female vocals, wind and string instruments. I’m also very impressed with its soundstaging, it sounds more spacious than most other earbuds. But you’re not going to get much body, detail and texture in the vocals, or gravity in your music.
Another thing I will add is that it doesn’t have much decay in the mids and highs, which means you’re getting a tight sound as opposed to something more glowy and warm. So if the kind of sound you’re going for is more clean, crisp, has fast attack and fast decay, these are the buds to go for. But if you want a heavier, mellow, more detailed sound signature especially in the bass and vocals, you won’t find them satisfying.
Was it a waste of my money?
Overall the Studio Buds Plus doesn’t feel like a waste of money to me. It’s got amazing call quality, noise canceling and transparency, works just as well on Android as on iOS, light and comfortable fit, and clean, clear sound.
But if you compare it to competitors from Sony, Samsung and others, you’ll find lots of missed opportunities.
You can’t customize its sound, so if you need more bass, it doesn’t have the option for that. It doesn’t have customizable controls or volume controls, so you have to do volume adjustments via Siri, Apple Watch, or manually.
It doesn’t have wireless charging either. That isn’t a big deal for me but for some others who have bought costly multi-charging pads, they will not be able to charge the Beats on it.
Also, as of this video’s recording, it does not have multipoint pairing so it can’t stay connected to two devices at once, something that power users could find inconvenient.
If I’m a big Beats fan I’ll still get it. But if I had to pick between so many choices in the market, the LinkBuds S still feels like better value. It’s cheaper, but it supports multipoint, has Hi-Res wireless streaming, better bass, and it’s far smaller in size. Volume controls can be turned on if you need it on the LinkBuds S.
That being said. Between the Beats Studio Buds+ and the Buds2 Pro, I would probably still pick the Beats because even if their sound signatures are similar (the Samsungs do sound a little more mellow but they have similar bass response), the Beats fit better for me, and has much better noise canceling and call quality.
If you’d like to check the latest prices of these earbuds, maybe even purchase them, I have links to their Amazon pages here.
✅ Check latest prices:
Amazon
Beats Studio Buds+ - https://amzn.to/3XdEslM
Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro - https://amzn.to/3piWy5v (Amazon)
Sony LinkBuds S - https://amzn.to/3xNMab7
Lazada
Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro - https://s.lazada.sg/s.bMK1a?cc
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