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Apple refreshes Beats Solo3 colors, leaves internals unchanged

Apple refreshes Beats Solo3 colors, leaves internals unchanged

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How about some actually new headphones, Apple?

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Photo: Apple

Apple has a new summer collection of Beats Solo3 variants, but you shouldn’t worry about them obviating your existing Solo3 pair as these are all merely new colors, not new tech. That being said, the foursome of fresh color combinations might be Apple’s best to date, with summery and expressive red and yellow options alongside more subtle white and navy blue models. Calling this the Club Collection, Apple rightly calls these designs bold and vivid, underlining an attitude of “If it makes you happy, wear it” to streetwear styling.

What Apple doesn’t provide is much good reason for why it’s still putting fresh paint on headphones that are nearly three years old. The Solo3 are a solid pick among on-ear headphones, with long battery life and that signature seamless operation when paired with other Apple devices. However, they are indeed aging, no longer have Apple’s best wireless audio chip inside them, and competitors like Beyerdynamic and Sony have brought out more compelling alternatives since the original Solo3’s 2016 release. Noise-canceling headphones that used to be significantly pricier have also fallen in price, putting additional pressure on the Beats offering from a technical and performance perspective, if not necessarily for style reasons.

The four new Solo3 models will be available in Apple retail stores from June 12th and are on Apple’s online store now, costing $199.95.

Photo: Apple
Photo: Apple
Photo: Apple