Apple has discontinued three Beats products in the wake of its newly-announced Beats Fit Pro. The three discontinued items are older models that are more-or-less replaced by newer products, though not always in the same line.
The Beats Solo Pro, lightweight on-ear headphones with noise-cancellation, were introduced in 2019 and at $299 offered a nice upgrade over the Beats Solo3. Now, with the Beats Solo3 less expensive and the Beats Studio3 over-ear headphones at $349, there’s not as much reason for them anymore.
The $149 Powerbeats, introduced only last year, cost $100 less than the Powerbeats Pro and were similar in design, but had a cable running between the buds. Now that the Beats Fit Pro have been released, the Powerbeats Pro got a drop in price to $199, and the less expensive wired version is retired.
The third product on the chopping block today is the ancient Beats EP. Now five years old, these headphones used a 3.5mm jack and lacked any smart features.
These products may still be found at some retailers and online shops, but their products pages on the Apple and Beats sites redirect you to other products.
Apple hasn’t issued any statement on the discontinued products, but looking at the entire Beats lineup, its prices, and the products no longer offered, it seems likely that Apple is just simplifying the lineup by removing a few products that no longer fill useful spots in the product lineup.
The current Beats lineup now includes:
- Beats Flex ($50)
- Beats Studio Buds ($130)
- Beats Pill+ ($180)
- Beats Fit Pro ($200)
- Beats Solo3 ($200)
- Powerbeats Pro ($250)
- Beats Studio3 ($350)
The Beats Fit Pro are Apple’s newest earbuds, with noise-cancellation, hands-free Siri, Adaptive EQ and spatial audio. They have a flush in-ear design with flexible, secure-fit wingtips that adjust to fit inside your ear. The feature Apple’s H1 chip for advanced features such as Find My support and automatic device switching.
I have written professionally about technology for my entire adult professional life – over 20 years. I like to figure out how complicated technology works and explain it in a way anyone can understand.
