Ten years after Beats was acquired by Apple in 2014, the audio brand finally debuted in the Indian market in August 2024. Popularly known as Beats by Dr. Dre, its audio products are popular for their attractive designs and bass-heavy sound profile, which attracts people. Young, trend-conscious audience. In India, Beats launched three audio products: Beats Solo 4 headphones, Beats Pill Bluetooth speaker and Beats Solo Buds. I’ve been using the Beats Solo buds for a few weeks, and they have one of the most compact cases I’ve seen so far.

It’s also interesting that apart from AirPods, Beats earbuds are the only other audio product that syncs automatically and seamlessly without your iPhone, because Apple.

Priced at Rs 6,900, the experience with the Beats Solo Buds is largely positive. It has an ultra-compact case, offers up to 18 hours of battery life, has strong audio, and is compatible with both Android and iOS. That said, at its price, the earbuds don’t feature ANC, whereas many of its competitors do. Is that a deal-breaker? Or do its advantages outweigh its disadvantages? Read full review for answers.

The most compact case ever

The size and form factor of the Beats Solo buds is one of its most attractive and impressive features. It has a capsule-shaped design measuring 2.6 inches long, and is small enough that it can easily fit in anyone’s palms. The case is quite light and weighs only 22 grams with the earbuds. Beats says the Solo Buds have the lightest and most compact case ever.

Aesthetically too, the TWS are beautifully designed and come in four colors: Matte Black, Arctic Purple, Transparent Red, and Storm Grey. I tested the matte black option, which looks quite premium. The case has the brand’s logo on the top of the lid and a Type-C charging port on the back. It has a flat base, so you can place the buds on its base or it can lie on its side.

Opening the charging case reveals the buds, with the brand’s logo on both buds. Surprisingly, even with that smaller case, the earbuds are the same size as your regular TWS earbuds. There are two magnets on the bottom of both buds so they sit perfectly in the charging case. They get in easily without any effort on your part.

The Beats Solo case also has a clickable button on each bud. This multifunctional button can be customized to pause, play or change songs, answer calls, hang up, and more. These features can be customized in Settings on your iPhone or in the Beats app on your Android phone. I’ll talk about customization in detail in a minute.

The earbuds fit well in my ears even when I was on a walk or at the gym. You also get three additional pairs of eartips. The medium ones come on buds by default. You will get extra small, small and large eartips in the retail box. I’m using the medium one and it fits my ears perfectly. What’s more, the buds don’t hurt even when used for an hour straight.

That said, while I like how compact the design is and the look and feel of it, I do wish the Beats Solo Buds case had a charging indicator. You’ll always need to check your phone to see the current battery percentage of the buds. Even while charging, there is no charging indicator on the case of the buds.

fast pair

Connectivity is fast on the Beats Solo buds. As soon as the lid of the buds is opened, you will get a pop-up on all nearby devices including your phone and laptop.

Let’s first talk about iPhone connectivity. I connected the Beats Solo buds to my iPhone 13 and it was smooth. The only condition here is that your Bluetooth is on. Once this is done, the Beats Solo Buds pop-up will appear on your screen as soon as the lid of the buds case is opened. Just click connect and voila! This is done. For iPhones, no additional apps are needed to change settings. When connected, the Beats Solo Buds option will appear in Settings, just like AirPods. In Settings, you can customize the multifunction button and change call controls.

I also tested the Beats Solo buds with Android. Here, users need to download the Beats app to make full use of TWS. Otherwise, the one-touch pairing process is the same as above. The app is also a replica of what you see on the iPhone Settings page.

Great sound but no ANC

The sound quality on the Beats Solo Buds is fantastic. It delivers powerful audio and has full-range sound with clarity and depth. I listened to a variety of songs, from Imagine Dragons’ “Believer” to Diljit Dosanjh’s “Ikk Kudi”, and it captured every beat, beat and tempo. The bass on the earbuds is fantastic, and for anyone looking for TWS specifically for bass-heavy audio, the Beats Solo Buds are a great option.

The only downside I saw was that the Beats Solo Buds lack an active noise cancellation (ANC) feature. That’s why other TWS in the same price range, like the OnePlus Buds Pro 2, Realme Buds Air 7 Pro, JBL Tune Buds, and Sony WF-C700NI, offer ANC. Having said that, while the Beats Solo Buds don’t have an ANC feature, during testing, I noticed that it does have some passive noise cancellation, as long as it fits well in your ear. I was using the buds while traveling in the metro and I had to take out the earbuds to listen to the announcements.

battery status

Beats says that the Solo Buds can deliver up to 18 hours of battery life. This seemed like a big claim, but after testing the device for over a week, I can say that it lives up to the promise. I used the device for at least 4 hours a day, and it took me 4 days to drain the entire battery life. For charging, the earbuds took 80 minutes to charge from 0 percent to 100 percent.

Notably, while there’s no battery or charging indicator on the case, Beats does offer an interesting way to indicate the charging level of the case. When you open the lid, if the buds make a high-pitched sound, it indicates sufficient battery. If there is a descending sound, it is a call to plug them in for more charge.

Beats Solo Buds: Is it worth it?

The Beats Solo Buds are a great new option on the market. However it lacks ANC, and it would be great to see it on these earbuds as many of its competitors in the same price segment offer this feature, however, the sound quality of the Solo Buds definitely stands out with a punchy bass and a She comes. Crystal clear sound. The Beats Solo Buds feature great battery life, a beautiful and compact design, and super-fast connectivity on both Android and iPhone. At Rs 6,900, I recommend the Beats Solo Buds only if you don’t know too much about ANC.