Beats often teases upcoming new products via a social media post from one of its celebrity brand ambassadors. Previously, Lebron James was in on a reveal, for example. But ahead of the World Cup, it’s appropriately chosen Spain and Barcelona’s teenage phenom Lamine Yamal to give us a sneak peek at new over-ear headphones that should be announced in the near future if past Beats social teasers are any indication.
The teased headphones look quite different from Beats’ current flagship $350 Studio Pro headphones, but it’s unclear whether the new model is a successor to the Studio Pro or a step-down model that’s more affordable. Beats hasn’t fundamentally changed the design of its Studio headphones since the Studio 2 in 2013, and the Studio Pro, released in 2023, only had subtle design updates from the Studio 3 Wireless.
The new headphones attached to Yamal’s bag.
While the Studio Pro is due for an update, it wouldn’t surprise me if this were a non-Pro Studio model. Beats is owned by Apple, but some of its headphones and earbuds, including the Studio Pro, are not equipped with Apple’s H-series chips and instead use a custom Beats chip that allows the headphones to have more compatibility with Android devices while still offering Apple-centric features such as automatic pairing with any Apple devices on your iCloud account.
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The new headphones have a completely different headband than the Studio Pro’s and appear to have metal yokes along with a single hinge that would only allow the headphones to fold flat, not fold up. They also appear to have a glossy finish on the earcups, which reminds me of earlier Beats headphones. (I can’t say I’m a fan of glossy finishes.)
Recently, MacRumors analyst Aaron Perris spotted a new filing at the Federal Communications Commission for Apple A3577 “Bluetooth over-ear headphones.” Such FCC filings typically mean a product is a few weeks to a few months away from release. As I said, we should find out soon exactly what this new model is and how much it costs. I’ll have a full review of the new mystery Beats headphones as soon as they officially launch.
