Apple's Beats Fit Pro are here to make you forget the AirPods Pro 2 are not
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Apple is technically not selling as many different true wireless earbuds options as the likes of Samsung, Jabra, or JBL under its own name, but if you also consider the Beats brand, there's basically something for every type of iOS... or Android user you can get from the Cupertino-based tech giant.
The hot new Beats Fit Pro, however, don't exactly have a direct equivalent in the Galaxy Buds lineup due primarily to their somewhat unusual design including an "innovative" wingtip guaranteeing "all-day" comfort and stability.
Gym-friendly AirPods 3 with ANC, anyone?
Said wingtips are flexible, mind you, fitting all ear types, sizes, and shapes, at least based on the rigorous tests Apple purportedly conducted together with athletes of "all kinds." It's therefore needless to point out that the Beats Fit Pro will bid for the title of best workout headphones and earbuds available this holiday season rather than competing against the recently unveiled AirPods 3 for the overall wireless earbuds crown.
At a recommended price of $199.99, these noise-cancelling bad boys are certainly not cheap, but somehow, they're 50 bucks more affordable than the Powerbeats Pro, which actually do not feature state-of-the-art active noise cancellation technology.
Of course, it's pretty easy to get the 2019-released Powerbeats Pro at a hefty discount of up to $100 right now, not to mention that their battery life is not rivaled by the Beats Fit Pro.
The true wireless newbies are apparently capable of keeping your favorite tunes going for up to six hours with no interruptions (even with ANC or Transparency mode always enabled), boosting that number to as much as 30 hours when taking the bundled (wired) charging case into consideration and switching off noise cancellation.
That's largely on par with what the non-Pro AirPods 3 can offer, and the same goes for the Apple H1 chip, IPX4 sweat and water resistance, Spatial Audio with dynamic head tracking support, and Hey Siri assistance.
To wait or not to wait for the AirPods Pro 2
At least at first glance, Apple seems to suggest the Beats Fit Pro will sound better than the latest AirPods, with a proprietary, dual-element diaphragm driver residing within a two-chamber housing to deliver "clear sound with outstanding stereo separation."
Much like the undoubtedly humbler $150 Beats Studio Buds, these winged Pros are specifically advertised as compatible with both Android devices and iPhones, which means connectivity should be a breeze either way. Class 1 Bluetooth is naturally supported, and thanks to Fast Fuel technology, a 5-minute charge will be enough for a solid hour of continuous music playback.
On top of everything, it's definitely nice to see the $199.99 Beats Fit Pro go up for pre-order already in a grand total of four paint jobs, including a very snazzy Stone Purple flavor in addition to a more straightforward trio of Beats Black, Beats White, and Sage Gray hues.
US shipments are scheduled to kick off as early as this Friday, November 5, with official availability expanding to the all-important Chinese market in early December and "additional regions" at some point next year.
Some point next year, of course, is also when we expect the long overdue second-gen AirPods Pro to see daylight with a more... conventional design than these gym-friendly puppies, so if you don't like wingtips (or chromatic diversity), you may as well wait for that and be prepared to spend a little more than two Benjamins.
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