The Beats Studio Buds leaks just keep on coming: German site WinFuture has posted what it claims are “official” renders of the unannounced wireless earbuds, pretty much confirming what we’ve previously seen around the in-ear design and revealing what could be the three likely color options.
Red, white and black models are all featured in these renders, and the charge case is shown connecting via USB-C — a departure from previous, Lightning-charged Beats headphones, as well as the Apple AirPods range.
- Check out the best wireless earbuds overall
- Summer is here, and so are the best outdoor speakers
- Plus: iOS 15's new 'Spatialize Stereo' feature adds 3D sound to any content
As evident in both previous Studio Buds photo leaks and Taiwanese regulator images, this new set of buds could be much smaller than any pair of true wireless Beats or AirPods earbuds to come before.
The more compact buds could also allow for a more pocket-friendly case, which should be a welcome improvement; the Powerbeats Pro remains among the best sports headphones you can buy, but its huge case is a bit of a pain to deal with.
USB-C charging might also make it easier to appropriate different chargers or cables, should you misplace the original.
And, while we’ve heard whispers of a red model, a more colorful alternative to the black and white models looks much more likely with these latest leaked images.
WinFuture’s render dump isn’t the only news to come out of the weekend. Regular Apple leaker Jon Prosser claimed that the Beats Studio Buds will be announced “imminently” and cost $149, a little less than the Powerbeats Pro.
That does seem realistic, given Apple would probably prefer to keep the higher price echelons clear for other rumored upcoming headphones like the AirPods 3 and AirPods Pro 2. Prosser also suggested the Studio Buds design is similar to that planned for the AirPods Pro 2, which would mean Apple could finally drop the distinctive stems from its next non-pro AirPods.
A lower price would also help the Beats Studio Buds undercut potential high-end rivals like the new Sony WF-1000XM4, though would likely result in a shorter feature list. Active noise cancellation may or may not be present, while head-tracking support for Apple’s spatial audio tech looks unlikely.
- More: Apple AirPods vs. Google Pixel Buds A-Series: which wireless earbuds win?
