Beats Studio Pro vs Apple AirPods Max: What’s the Difference?

Released last summer, the Beats Studio Pros are the company’s first new wireless noise-canceling headphones in years. As the successor to the 2017-released Beats Studio3 Wireless, they’ve been a long time coming. They have a similar look and the exact same $350 (non-sale) price tag as their predecessors, but Beats have given them six years’ worth of internal upgrades.

They have new custom 40mm drivers, more powerful mics, a bunch of new features — and they are currently on sale for $199.95. (Meanwhile the Beats Studio3 Wireless headphones are even more discounted, as low as $169.)

Beats, which has been owned by Apple since 2014, has leveraged a lot of Apple’s technologies in recent years. For example, its newest wireless earbuds, the Beats Studio Buds+ ($150) and Beats Fit Pro ($200), work a lot like AirPods — at least when paired with an iPhone. And the Beats Studio Pros are very much the same. They support fast iPhone pairing, hands-free “Hey Siri” and Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking.

Essentially, they work a lot like Apple’s own AirPods Max (a product that is also slightly discounted at the moment: $479.99, $69 off its regular price of $549).

Given that the Beats Studio Pros and the AirPods Max are so alike in their feature set and how they work, we thought it’d be a good idea to compare the two. There are some big differences between them, obviously (which we’ll highlight below), but given the Beats–Apple relationship, these are the two wireless noise-canceling headphones that work best with iPhone — and here’s everything you need to know to decide which of the two products is best for you.

Beats Studio Pro Vs. AirPods Max: What We Think

Tucker Bowe

The Beats Studio Pros and AirPods Max are standouts in the pack of wireless noise-canceling headphones because they work so well with iPhones. Thanks to the exclusive relationship between Apple and Beats, both wireless headphones are integrated with technologies that allow them to work seamlessly with Apple’s ecosystem of devices and share many of the same exclusive features.

The AirPods Max are still the superior option, in my book. They have a more luxurious build and feel, and they have the edge in terms of sound quality, noise-cancellation and transparency — but the gap isn’t that big, and the AirPods Max are still significantly more expensive.

Meanwhile, the Beats Studio Pros do edge out the AirPods Max in a few ways. They’re lighter and more comfortable. They work better with Android devices. They support more forms of wired playback, thanks to their USB-C port and 3.5 jack. And they actually have a physical on/off button.

In a nutshell: The Beats Studio Pros are essentially a more budget-friendly alternative to Apple’s AirPods Max — and when they are on sale at well under half the price, as they are now, it makes all the sense in the world to pounce on a pair.

To learn more about our testing methodology and how we evaluate products, head here.

Beats

Beats Studio Pro

A more budget-friendly alternative to Apple’s AirPods Max, the Beats Studio Pros have a lot of the same features, such as fast iPhone pairing, hands-free “Hey Siri” and support for Apple’s Find My network. The sound quality and noise cancellation isn’t quite as good, but they are more comfortable and work better with Android phones.

Specs

Processor	Custom Beats chip
Battery Life	Up to 24 hours (w/ ANC)
Charging Port	USB-C

Pros

• Work really well with Android smartphones, too
• Physical power button is nice

Cons

• Mostly the same design as Beats's previous noise-canceling headphone
• Lack support for Bluetooth multi-point for Apple's ecosystem

• $199.99 at Amazon
  $349.99 (43% off)

Apple

Apple AirPods Max

The AirPods Max are Apple’s over-ear wireless noise-canceling headphones. They have luxurious stainless steel design and, since they’re integrated with Apple’s H1 chip, they work exceptionally well with iPhones. Even a few years after their release, they remain among the best noise-canceling headphones you can buy.

Specs

Processor	Apple H1 chip
Battery Life	Up to 20 hours (w/ ANC)
Charging Port	Lightning

Pros

• Superb sound quality and support for spatial audio
• Excellent noise-cancellation, the best you can get for iPhone

Cons

• Works best with Apple devices
• Design might not be your vibe

• $479.99 at Amazon
  $529.00 (9% off)

Beats Studio Pro vs AirPods Max: What’s Similar?

1. They both work really well with your iPhone

Tucker Bowe

The Beats Studio Pro shares a lot of the same “magic” as AirPods Max in terms of working with an iPhone as well as other devices in Apple’s ecosystem. They both support fast iPhone pairing so you don’t need to deal with opening Bluetooth settings. They also both support automatic iCloud pairing, which makes it super easy to wireless connect the headphones to your other Apple devices — such as your MacBook, iPad or Apple TV — so long as they’re registered to the same iCloud account. They also both work with Apple’s Find My network and support hands-free “Hey Siri.”

2. They both have impressive active noise-cancellation and transparency modes

Tucker Bowe

It might seem like a given for flagship noise-canceling headphones to also have a transparency mode, but the Studio3 Wireless, which Beats has been selling for the past six years, did not. That has changed with the Beats Studio Pros, which allow you to switch between noise-canceling and transparency modes just like you would via your iPhone’s Bluetooth menu with the AirPods Max.

As for how these noise-canceling and transparency modes stack up, I can tell you that the AirPods Max still reign supreme in both categories — but it’s closer than you might think. Beats has clearly taken advantage of Apple’s technologies and the Studio Pros do an almost identical job at blocking out the ambient sounds; I did a lot of testing while mowing the lawn, watching TV and exploring the grocery store, and both headphones have impressive noise-canceling skills.

The same is true when it comes to transparency modes, but the AirPods Max is still the best in the business. With transparency mode turned on, the AirPods Max makes it sound like you’re not even wearing headphones — it’s incredible. The Beats Studio Pro’s transparency mode is very good and better than most other options out there, but it’s still a tier below elite.

3. They both support Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking

Tucker Bowe

Just like AirPods Max, the Beats Studio Pros support Spatial Audio (and Dolby Atmos) with dynamic head tracking. This means that when you’re listening to music or watching a show on your iPhone or other Apple device, the headphones will adjust the audio depending on your head movements. For example, if you turn your head to the right, the sound will become more prominent in your left ear because it’s closer to the action (the iPhone screen).

Essentially, both of these headphones are able to support the best of Apple’s immersive sound technologies and deliver the most immersive listening experience possible when listening on an Apple device.

(Note: Neither of these headphones have Apple’s newer H2 chip like the AirPods Pro, and therefore don’t new-age features such as Personalized Volume, Adaptive Audio and Conversation Awareness. )

Beats Studio Pro vs AirPods Max: What’s Different?

1. The Beats Studio Pros work well with Android, too

Tucker Bowe

The big advantage of the Beats Studio Pros over the AirPods Max, aside from price, is that they’re appealing to non-iPhone users, too. Their special Beats-made chip allows them to support many of the best Android features as well. For example, they support one-touch pairing thanks to Google Fast Pair and will automatically get registered to your Google account. They work with Google’s Find My Device network, as well, so you can more easily locate them when misplaced.

Maybe the biggest difference with an Android device is that the Studio Pros actually support multi-device Bluetooth pairing. That’s right, the Studio Pros don’t support Bluetooth multi-point when used within Apple’s ecosystem, but if you have an Android smartphone and a Chromebook or Android tablet, you can more easily switch audio between your devices.

2. The AirPods Max win on sound quality

Tucker Bowe

It’s not a night and day difference, but the AirPods Max are the superior-sounding headphones. They deliver a sound with more clarity and more depth. The Studio Pros sound good, too, but there’s a definite difference in the two headphones’ sound profiles. Beats is known for its bass-heavy sound that lends itself more towards hip-hop and R&B, and the Studio Pros stay true to that. The biggest difference, I think, is that the AirPods Max just sound bigger — there’s a wider soundstage — and just more immersive.

3. The Studio Pros win on comfort, but lose on style

Tucker Bowe

I’ve owned the AirPods Max for nearly two years and, although I love a lot of things about them, they’re not the most comfortable. They’re heavy and the weight is disproportionately distributed on the earpads (instead of the headband) so I don’t typically wear them for longer than an hour at a time. This has a lot to do with the fact that the AirPods Max are made of more premium materials like aluminum, steel frame and a woven fabric. It gives them a luxurious look, but definitely weighs them down.

The Beats Studio Pros are made with less premium materials — basically there’s more plastic and faux leather — that makes them lighter; for comparison, the Beats Studio Pros weigh 260 grams and the AirPods Max weigh 385 grams. The lighter design is more similar to other flagship noise-canceling headphones in the $350 price range, like the Sony WH-1000XM5 or Bose Headphones 700.

4. The Studio Pros have more wired playback options

Tucker Bowe

The other nice thing about the Beats Studio Pros is that they support wired connections via USB-C and 3.5mm cables. This makes it really easy to connect the headphones to an analog source like a desktop audio setup or an in-flight entertainment system. If you use the USB-C cable, the Studio Pros are able to take advantage of a built-in DAC and will support lossless audio up to 24-bit/48kHz.

The AirPods Max only have a Lightning port for charging and using it as a wired mode. To connect to an analog source, you need to use the AirPods Max’s included Lightning-to-USB-C cable (or buy a separate Lighting-to-3.5mm cable) and this can play near-lossless audio. (You can learn more about AirPods Max’s wired mode via Apple’s support page.)

5. The Studio Pros have an on/off button

Tucker Bowe

One of the biggest complaints with the AirPods Max is that they lack a dedicated power button. Instead of turning off, they enter a low power mode when you take them off your head; then they automatically wake up when you start wearing them again. They also come with a non-protective Smart Case that, when placed in it, the AirPods Max go into an even lower-power mode. It’s all a little complicated, but the gist that you can’t really turn them off.

The Beats Studio Pros are a lot more straightforward in this regard. They have a little power button that’s located on their right earcup to turn them on and off. It sounds simple, but it’s nice to know that your headphones are actually on or off.

That said, one of the things that enables the AirPods Max’s low power mode is its built-in optical sensors which allow it to detect whether you’re wearing them or not. The Beats Studio Pros do not have these, meaning your music won’t automatically stop when you take off the headphones and then start playing again when you place them back on your head. You have to use the on-ear controls to play/pause music (or use your smartphone).

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