AirPods vs. Powerbeats Pro: what are the differences between them?

A few hours ago, Beats announced the long-awaited Powerbeats Pro – your first fully wireless headphones. They arrive a few weeks after the second generation of AirPods (which is already in our hands) reach the market.

Next, we’ll understand how these new headphones from the Apple subsidiary differ from the white officials of the brand.

Design

The design of these headphones is, without a doubt, what most differs them. AirPods are the classic white, small, classy Apple headphones; the Powerbeats Pro are much larger, rubberized, with a much more sporty feel.

Right away, Powerbeats Pro solves the “problem” of those who do not feel safe with AirPods, that is, those who have problems with them falling from the ear. Powerbeats Pro have a strap that goes over the ear, so it’s impossible to fall.

Powerbeats Pro in navy blue color

In addition, the Powerbeats Pro comes with several removable pieces of silicone of different sizes to make them very comfortable in the ear canal. AirPods are “one size fits all” and that’s it.

Even bigger, the Powerbeats Pro also have a much more “common” design when it comes to headphones. So if you still haven’t gotten used to the white appearance with the AirPods’ “leg” down, this may be a better option.

Loose AirPods

Finally, while Apple continues to offer AirPods in a variety of colors (as long as it’s white), Powerbeats Pro will have four variations: ivory, moss green, navy blue and – possibly the most popular of all – black.

Controls

AirPods have absolutely no physical buttons. When they’re in the ear, you can double-tap each of the headphones to perform certain pre-configured actions: fast forward or rewind the track, play / stop or activate Siri. In this second generation, the assistant can now also be called by voice, without even touching them.

Woman enjoying second generation AirPods

Powerbeats Pro, on the other hand, have physical buttons on the top of each phone. On the one hand, you control reproduction; on the other, the volume (something that AirPods really miss). As they now incorporate the same H1 chip as the AirPods (with Bluetooth 5.0 and everything), the “Hey there, Siri” command is also available.

Both headphones also have sensors to detect when one is removed from the ear, causing playback to be stopped automatically.

Sound quality

Beats claims to have worked hard on the internal components of its new headphones to provide quality sound, rich in bass. And this is even a characteristic of the brand’s headphones.

The mere fact that the Powerbeats Pro functions as an in-ear headset already isolates the outside sound more and should, yes, provide an audio experience superior to that of the AirPods.

In this regard, AirPods would only be more recommendable for those who prefer a headphone design without sound insulation – which is good, for example, for those who enjoy listening to music riding a bicycle around the city.

Resistance

Apple doesn’t talk much about resistance levels compared to AirPods, but several tests out there have shown that they can take quite a bump.

Powerbeats Pro being used in a gym

The Powerbeats Pro are really aimed at sportsmen, with resistance to water and sweat. That is, if you use headphones a lot in the gym, the Beats option is the most recommended.

Battery and recharge

There’s no magic: the more physical space, the bigger the battery size that you can put inside electronic devices.

Obviously, the Powerbeats Pro has a larger battery than the AirPods and can handle up to 9 hours of continuous playback, while Apple headphones go up to 5 hours.

On the other hand, the charging case of the Powerbeats Pro is much more clumsy than that of the AirPods (not least because the headphones that go inside itself are bigger) and have the same extra 24h capacity. In fact, no matter what color you choose for Powerbeats Pro, the case will always be black.

Powerbeats Pro

In addition, the second generation of AirPods has a version of its case equipped with wireless charging. The Powerbeats Pro case can only be recharged via cable, through its Lightning port.

Powerbeats Pro has a quick recharge system; only 5 minutes of feeding gives 1.5h of playback, while 15 minutes of recharge is enough for 4.5h of music. Apple promises 3h of playback with 15 minutes of recharging AirPods; in any case, not bad.

Price

Last but not least, we have the price factor. And, here, each one needs to put the pros and cons of each phone in the balance to decide which one is more worthwhile – if the person will choose one of these two, that is.

Powerbeats Pro will hit the market next month for $ 250, while AirPods in their version without the wireless charging case (for fair comparison) come out for $ 160. With the wireless case, they are still $ 50 cheaper.

Here in Brazil, the difference between them will be similar: R $ 2,150 for Powerbeats Pro, R $ 1,350 for AirPods with normal case and R $ 1,680 for AirPods with wireless charging case.

That is, the new Beats alternative may be better in a number of ways, but it is also much more expensive.