Beats surrender

With the fourth generation of these distinctive over-ears, is it finally time for the sceptics to succumb?

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BEATS STUDIO PRO (2023)

£350/go.stuff.tv/BeatsSP

A grey from the numbers 

These headphones are available in black, deep brown, navy and sandstone (pictured), and fold away in a carry case.

Beats tends not to go too crazy with product releases, so when the Apple-owned brand does a new set of headphones it's a big deal. And a lot of the tech on show here betters what's in Apple's own pricey AirPods Max. We expect those 'phones to be refreshed soon, so there are some pointers here towards what to expect.

New here are USB-C charging and personalised spatial audio support with head-tracking (when connected to Apple devices), plus improved active noise-cancellation with transparency thanks to a new chip. Despite the new innards, they still have the familiar Beats look, even if more soft-touch materials have been used than before.