Of all Apple’s product categories, the music gadgets are the most volatile.

But have they been abandoned?

Or are these new Beats Studio Pros a preview of the AirPods Max 2?

Young woman wearing beige Beats Studio Pro headphones, looking at camera

Beats

The drivers (speakers) have been upgraded, but it’s the Apple-flavored tech that’s interesting here.

First, they act just like AirPods.

you could also enjoy Apple’s excellent transparency and other ANC modes, plus personalized Spatial Audio.

Man in a cool beige sweater with batwing sleeves, either taking apart, or trying to put together Beats Studio Pro headphones on a long blond wood table

Beats

It then tailors the 3D Spatial Audio surround sound to be even more convincing.

It’s surprisingly effective.

So far, this is exactly what you get with Apple’s various AirPods.

Man in a beige batwing jumper who, having fixed his Beats Studio Pro headphones, is wearing them while smiling and looking at a tablet, which lights his face in a dark room

Beats

But then we get to the new stuff.

And unlike other Apple tech, these USB-C sound profiles work with non-Apple hardware, like Android phones.