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Apple Notifies Service Provider Network of Upcoming Support for Beats Products

Digital Skunk said:
The sad part about this is that nothing you say matches up with the industry. i.e. Bose and Beats aren't exactly loosing money. I would agree, but I've tried them out and they aren't bad.

I'll admit, even as a broadcast professional, I am no audiophile. I can only tell a minute different between certain rather medium grade headphones. For field audio, the industry standard is the Sony MDR-7506. They're everywhere on set for film and broadcast news / ENG. Crisp, clear, audio; comfortable cups.

I see only AKGs in the ProTools post houses I visit, and only Sennheisers in the post-production houses.

The Bose give me the clearest sound, as close to any of the $300 AKGs or $100 Sony's I've used . . . . but overall, they aren't worth the $150+ I paid for them. I have to turn my volume all the way up and the sound is flat. Flat is great for post-production and field work, but not for chilin' listening to personal audio.

I wouldn't mind the added bass, and the Beats sound great. It's either those, or the Sennheiser Urbanites but they aren't out yet.

Now that Beats is owned by Apple, I am leaning more towards them.

All that to say, could you tell me the difference if any between the Sennheiser Urbanites and the Momentums and how they compare to the equally priced Beats?

More than just, "I'll get better sound because they aren't Bose or Beats? Or should I be looking at the stuff that AKG sells, even though most of their line is designed for post production audio monitoring and reference?

Or worse yet, they recommend garbage.



True, those folks were FAST!

And I agree. If nothing else, folks are bashing Beats because it's the popular thing to do.

When they were on the rise, I had negative feelings toward them because I was teaching at a university, and kids would monitor their final mixes for audio and video production using them, and their audio was almost always too low, because they wouldn't watch the meters and they'd monitor with Beats instead of the WAY CHEAPER Sennheiser HD 380s, 280s, or at the least the HD 419s.
Click to expand...

I can't speak to the urbanites, but the momentum on-ear, which I'd consider upper mid-end in sound & value priced compare favorably to Beats, which I'd consider solid mid-end, but priced as if they were a high-end product.
 
peterdevries said:
Do you really think Apple buys a piece of software for several billions of dollars? It is about market share, both of the headphone market share AND beats community.

Also look at Apple's actions since the acquisition. The focal point of their efforts with regard to Beats have been on the headphones and not on Beats Music. What does that tell you about their priorities?
Click to expand...

My guess is that integrating accessories
Is easier to implement than whatever heir vision is for streaming.
 
Nunyabinez said:
Hello tech support? My headphones must be broken, I paid $200 and they sound like crap.
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Thank you for calling Apple Technical Support Line. The product you are inquiring was designed only for a look and marketed as a high fashion accessory. It's only meant to be used as a wearable fashion accessory, not to used as a listen device.

Again, thank you for calling Apple Technical Support Line and do appreciate your business.
 
SPUY767 said:
Why didn't apple by Klipsch?
Click to expand...

Because Klipsch doesn't have a giant market share of the youth crowd and urban market, as compared to Beats. Apple wants to obtain a bigger majority of the younger market for growth and for other obvious reasons like building brand loyalty
 
Digital Skunk said:
The sad part about this is that nothing you say matches up with the industry. i.e. Bose and Beats aren't exactly loosing money. I would agree, but I've tried them out and they aren't bad.

I'll admit, even as a broadcast professional, I am no audiophile. I can only tell a minute different between certain rather medium grade headphones. For field audio, the industry standard is the Sony MDR-7506. They're everywhere on set for film and broadcast news / ENG. Crisp, clear, audio; comfortable cups.

I see only AKGs in the ProTools post houses I visit, and only Sennheisers in the post-production houses.

The Bose give me the clearest sound, as close to any of the $300 AKGs or $100 Sony's I've used . . . . but overall, they aren't worth the $150+ I paid for them. I have to turn my volume all the way up and the sound is flat. Flat is great for post-production and field work, but not for chilin' listening to personal audio.

I wouldn't mind the added bass, and the Beats sound great. It's either those, or the Sennheiser Urbanites but they aren't out yet.

Now that Beats is owned by Apple, I am leaning more towards them.

All that to say, could you tell me the difference if any between the Sennheiser Urbanites and the Momentums and how they compare to the equally priced Beats?

More than just, "I'll get better sound because they aren't Bose or Beats? Or should I be looking at the stuff that AKG sells, even though most of their line is designed for post production audio monitoring and reference?

Or worse yet, they recommend garbage.



True, those folks were FAST!

And I agree. If nothing else, folks are bashing Beats because it's the popular thing to do.

When they were on the rise, I had negative feelings toward them because I was teaching at a university, and kids would monitor their final mixes for audio and video production using them, and their audio was almost always too low, because they wouldn't watch the meters and they'd monitor with Beats instead of the WAY CHEAPER Sennheiser HD 380s, 280s, or at the least the HD 419s.
Click to expand...

Well there a quite a few good reasons to not like Beats. The biggest being price... but anyone who buys Apple Products should understand this already. I guess one could argue that a majority of Apple products live up the the price tag. Beats as a whole brand does not live up the the $.

But as I said in an earlier post they do make the best looking headphones on the market. Like the Apple did with the Macbook, Beats has definitely left it's mark on the design-scape of the modern headphone.
 
teslo said:
anything sennheisser, AKG, audiotechnica, klipsch... if you spend about $100-$150 on any of these brands you're spending about $200-400 in beats-money. maybe more, depending.

full disclosure: i have not tried beats 'top tier' headphones in about 2 years, though i barely ever see them being worn. people gravitate to the $200 pairs and probably learn about the general lack of performance at that cost after they buy them, so are the most inclined to chime in on discussions hoping to receive confirmation from others who have buyer's remorse. these discussions are always so skewed... but i will be more interested in hearing beats cans once apple has had engineering input on a couple iterations.

----------



not really, these are comparable suggestions to beats. better suggestions don't include bose, skullcandy, or sony. aim higher.
Click to expand...

Many thanks, duly noted.
 
leroypants said:
You can repeat your false claim as many times as you want but it will never be true.
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tell me why apple didnt acquire Beats until they rolled out with the App then?

Tell me why apple looked into them because their drop in sales in iTune.


tell em why every article was based on apple acquiring them because of the streaming app. Apples vision was to offer beats streaming for less than $10.



Why didnt they acquire them much before? when the broke off from monster? Why? because they weren't interested from the profit margins of Beats headphones.


Oh, Lets wait until they can estimate their worth till $3 billion before we buy them.

LOL, tell me please.


This is you're way of thinking "Oh beats headphones is popular THATS WHY THEY BOUGHT THEM!!! FOR SURE!!"

great logic
 
Funny

I have actually repaired a set of Beats headphones for a co-worker and it was ridiculously difficult to the point I refused any further repairs. My bet is that most "repairs" are just replacements because the profit margin on Beats is outrageous. Cheap plastic shells and inexpensive drivers. I'd like to see some official iFixit repairability scores for these headphones!
 
Tycho24 said:
I can't speak to the urbanites, but the momentum on-ear, which I'd consider upper mid-end in sound & value priced compare favorably to Beats, which I'd consider solid mid-end, but priced as if they were a high-end product.
Click to expand...

Very good to know. I am a big fan of Sennheisers.

----------
MrXiro said:
Well there a quite a few good reasons to not like Beats. The biggest being price... but anyone who buys Apple Products should understand this already. I guess one could argue that a majority of Apple products live up the the price tag. Beats as a whole brand does not live up the the $.

But as I said in an earlier post they do make the best looking headphones on the market. Like the Apple did with the Macbook, Beats has definitely left it's mark on the design-scape of the modern headphone.
Click to expand...

Yes indeed and even now that I am back in the iPhone gang I see that Apple wants your cash for silly things. A charger for $40 is ridiculous. Even more so for the $20 adapters.

He Beats do look and feel and sound nice but I would agree that only the $279 and $329 models really "truly" impress me. And walking around Baltimore with $$$$$ around my head just doesn't appeal to me.
 
winston1236 said:
Thats a joke right? Those two images are the same.
Click to expand...

No, they're different. They were redesigned in 2013. Look closer.

This might make it easier.

beatsheadphones.jpg

beats_studio_headphones_2013_l.jpg
 
dannyyankou said:
No, they're different. They were redesigned in 2013. Look closer.
Click to expand...

They also changed the sound a lot. The first version of the Studios was really bad, mainly because they were so loud from the outside (bad sound shielding). You couldn't wear them on the train or bus. And the sound was quite dull.

With the 2013 version they fixed these things, the shielding is way better now and the sound more balanced and clear. Also the Studio 2.0 sells for 50$ less.

So to me it seems the first generation of Beats headphones (especially the Solo and Studio) were mainly focused on the looks. Now with the new generation they improved the sound quality a lot (consumer-speaking). Some of you might give them another try.

Another thing is that most Beats-users I see on the train or bus own the Beats Solo headphone, the entry-level-model. I've only tested the first generation and yes, they sound really cheap. There's a huge gap to the studios and another gap to the Pro headphones. But i think the Solo 2.0 might sound a lot better.

That'y my experience with them so far.

Are Beats still overpriced for the consumer headphones they are? Yes, of course.
 
Most Beats sound pretty bad, but don't compare them to Bose. They're lightyears ahead of the terrible sound of Bose. That said, the Beats Mixr's sound pretty good, I like the sound of them. If I had $199 to blow, I'd get a pair of pink Beats Mixrs...
 
Internal memo ??

You can't keep anything a secret now days :rolleyes:

and now the public knows, it no longer "internal"

(Edits: Headphones look :cool:)
 
green tea said:
Because Klipsch doesn't have a giant market share of the youth crowd and urban market, as compared to Beats. Apple wants to obtain a bigger majority of the younger market for growth and for other obvious reasons like building brand loyalty
Click to expand...

I'm only going to reply to the last one, because it was a joke, but christ I had not expected people to rise to the defense of Beats. Beats is literally what everyone claims Apple is, a company whose products are more about marketing than engineering.
 
I am personally not a huge fan...but my kids love (loved) them.

My son has had two pairs of on-ear models - which both broke just outside of warranty. (even he has given up - his latest pair are Sony)

My daughter had some on-ears and they broke just out of warranty. She wanted a new set and decided on the Beats in-ear buds - I bought them for her in July - and they broke (one side not working) a week ago! Arghh!

I bought them at the Apple store in Vancouver - but we live in the UK. Do Beats have a worldwide warranty - or can I take them to Apple?? Any ideas???

Thanks!
 
tMac7 said:
They also changed the sound a lot. The first version of the Studios was really bad, mainly because they were so loud from the outside (bad sound shielding). You couldn't wear them on the train or bus. And the sound was quite dull.

With the 2013 version they fixed these things, the shielding is way better now and the sound more balanced and clear. Also the Studio 2.0 sells for 50$ less.

So to me it seems the first generation of Beats headphones (especially the Solo and Studio) were mainly focused on the looks. Now with the new generation they improved the sound quality a lot (consumer-speaking). Some of you might give them another try.

Another thing is that most Beats-users I see on the train or bus own the Beats Solo headphone, the entry-level-model. I've only tested the first generation and yes, they sound really cheap. There's a huge gap to the studios and another gap to the Pro headphones. But i think the Solo 2.0 might sound a lot better.

That'y my experience with them so far.

Are Beats still overpriced for the consumer headphones they are? Yes, of course.
Click to expand...

Yeah, they went from sounding like crap to sounding average. Still needs more improvements before I spend $200 on a pair.
 
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dannyyankou said:
Yeah, they went from sounding like crap to sounding average. Still needs more improvements before I spend $200 on a pair.
Click to expand...

Well, what you consider average some consider great (I don't think Beats are great FYI). It's like the whole iPhone/Android debate, which is better? The Always needs to be tweaked Android or the Boring as collectible spoons iOS?

All boils down to preference. Some people might appreciate the style of Beats and like the head rattling bass over clarity.
 
teknikal90 said:
lol. just so you know... the P5 is known for very rolled off high end frequencies, and a massive bump on the midrange, with very little bass extension.

not exactly a great benchmark
Click to expand...

Maybe not, but nothing from Beats was good enough to make me forget I own these.
 
Apple, according to me purchased beats for what they could do with the brand (already established) in terms of both hardware, and pushing music sales up in the long run. Now did they do beats just because of the beats music app (which I personally use and love)? I do not think so. The App itself had a very very small market share even after apple's acquisition. At Re-Code, JI said they had 250,000 paying customers. Compared to close to 10 million for Spotify. I guess by WWDC, apple will work very closely with beats to incorporate the app into the existing iPhone/iPad setup, and i would think they would re-brand it to somehow merge with either the music app or as a stand alone app. I don't think they'll start pulling away customers from Spotify (hundreds of thousands at a time) just by doing that, so they'll probably have to repackage and figure out a strategy to generate more paying customers.

On the headphone front, I can see apple and its core team of designers really spending some time and re-doing beats lineup of headphones and bluetooth speakers etc. Perhaps Apple will look to branch into accessories more aggressively using the beats brand. Its not about what Apple had, or what beats had when Apple acquired them, its about what they can do together that would have taken each much longer to do separately (or rather apple since they were the ones with the cash). Eddie Cue was pretty clear about that.

Therefore, I think it is rather unwise to think of this Acquisition as "Apple acquired them for the headphones" or they "acquired them for the app". Those probably did have some influence, but I feel we'll know a lot more when apple announces more details on its plans on how to integrate the beats brand into its existing setup. Perhaps next year, some of those products and services will start rolling out
 
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