The Best Running Earbuds for iPhone Owners Have a Surprising Feature

After over five years, Beats has finally unveiled its next-gen workout earbuds for iPhone owners.

Published February 11, 2025

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The Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 are finally here. After teasing them for months, Beats has officially announced the second-gen versions of its excellent and popular — very dated — earhook-style workout wireless earbuds.

As expected, the Powerbeats Pro 2 has been completely overhauled. They have a new look and fit, improved sound, and, thanks to Apple’s latest H2 chip, a host of new features similar to AirPods Pro, including active noise cancellation.

And for the first time in any Beats- or Apple-branded wireless earbuds, the Powerbeats Pro 2 have a built-in heart-rate monitor that’s really cool but also not a game-changer … if you wear an Apple Watch for workouts.

I’ve spent the last week testing the Powerbeats Pro 2 ahead of their launch. Here’s what you need to know.

Beats Powerbeats Pro 2

Better hooks

The standout upgrade with the Powerbeats Pro 2 is the fit. Beats redesigned the earhooks on the new buds to be more narrow. This way, they grip your ears more securely and fit noticeably more comfortably.

As somebody who exercised for years with the original Powerbeats Pro, whose earhooks are significantly bigger (wider?), the earbuds would occasionally get loose because I move around a lot during my runs and the earhooks didn’t grip as tightly.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 don’t have this issue. I’ve worn them on several runs and a few indoor bike workouts, and they fit fantastic.

AirPods Pro-esque features

Beats started integrating Apple-made processors into its wireless earbuds and headphones years ago, giving them AirPods-esque abilities. For example, the original Powerbeats Pro had Apple’s H1 chip and had fast iPhone pairing and support for Apple’s Find My network.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 take it to the next level by having Apple’s newer H2 chip — the same one as Apple’s newest AirPods Pro — and thus have even more abilities. The most notable additions are modes for active noise-cancellation and transparency, which their predecessor lacked.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 can’t do everything like AirPods Pro, granted. They don’t support advanced modes like Adaptive ANC, Personalized Volume and Conversation Awareness (learn more about those here). They can’t double as “clinical-grade” hearing aids, either.

Improved sound, but still not elite

Beats claims that it completely redesigned the acoustic architecture of the Powerbeats Pro 2 so they sound better than their predecessors — and they do. To me they seem to deliver more dynamic and louder sound, the latter of which is significant because I like my music loud when working out.

But they also just sound better because they’re new. They support spatial audio and have more new-age features, like dynamic head tracking. Back in early 2019, when the original Powerbeats Pro were released, these sound technologies and features didn’t exist.

It’s also worth noting that the Powerbeats Pro 2 don’t as good as the current AirPods Pro — nor are the ANC or transparency modes as effective. Despite having the same chip, Powerbeats Pro 2 are a rung below Apple’s flagship wireless earbuds.

Heart-rate monitoring isn’t a game changer

If there’s one unique feature that distinguishes the Powerbeats Pro 2 from other Beats or Apple-branded wireless earbuds, it’s heart-rate monitoring for workouts.

According to Beats, each earbud houses LED optical sensors that pulse over 100 times per second to measure blood flow. This can then show athletes more accurate real-time data on their performance.

However, it’s not really a game-changer … at least not to me. That’s because if you wear an Apple Watch during workouts, the feature adds nothing. The Powerbeats Pro 2’s heart rate sensors defer to your Apple Watch’s sensors (which probably are more accurate).

Additionally, heart-rate monitoring only works for workouts. It’s unlike with an Apple Watch, where you can check your heart rate at any time via the Heart Rate app.

At launch, the Powerbeats Pro 2’s heart rate monitor feature will work on several workout apps, including Open, Peloton, Runna, Slopes, Ladder, Nike Run Club and YaoYao.

A (slightly) smaller case

One of the biggest issues with the original Powerbeats Pro was that its charging case was absolutely enormous. It was roughly 3x the size of the AirPods case, and fitting into a pants pocket was a real struggle (not to mention the obvious bulge it created).

The good news is the Powerbeats Pro 2’s charging case is smaller … but not that much smaller. It’s roughly two-thirds the size of the original’s.

Beats made some other positive headway with the charging case. It supports wireless charging — a first for Beats wireless earbuds — but doesn’t support MagSafe (there’s no built-in magnet, so it can’t stay on a charging stand). It also charges via USB-C instead of Lightning.

The earbuds and case promise up to 45 hours of battery life with the charging case, and each earbud can last up to 10 hours on its own.

Works with Android, too

I tested the Powerbeats Pro 2 using my iPhone, but, just like Beats’s other wireless headphones and wireless earbuds, these new models promise to work well with Android, too.

According to the brand, Android smartphone owners can access many of the same features via the Beats companion app. These include one-touch pairing, Locate My Beats (a Find My alternative) and the ability to activate or disable Heart Rate Monitoring.

Still wickedly expensive

The other big issue with the Powerbeats Pro 2? Price.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 cost $250, the price as the originals and Apple’s flagship AirPods Pro, which is admittedly a tough pill to swallow considering most people will be buying them as workout earbuds.

For those looking for more affordable alternatives, I love the Beats’s other workout earbuds, the Beats Fit Pro, which have an ear-wing design, many of the same features and are considerably cheaper.

If you’re looking for more affordable earhook-style wireless earbuds, the Nothing Ear (Open) ($200) or JBL Endurance Peak 3 ($100), are both solid.

The Verdict

The Powerbeats Pro 2 are excellent wireless workout earbuds, but that’s not exactly a surprise. Beats (and Apple) has a tried-and-true formula for success, and even if these next-gen models were long overdue, they’ve been upgraded in all the right ways.

That said, $250 is a high price for wireless earbuds for working out, and there’s a lot of competition in today’s market. If you have an iPhone and want the crème de la crème of workout earbuds, these are at the very top of the list.

The Powerbeats Pro 2 are available for preorder now — they’ll start shipping later this week on February 13th. They come in four: Jet Black, Quick Sand, Hyper Purple and Electric Orange (shown).