Apple Reveals Limited Edition Powerbeats Pro Earbuds Inspired By NBA
Apple's Beats audio brand has revealed a new limited edition pair of Powerbeats Pro wireless earbuds designed for basketball fans. The new style, which will be released on February 19, is based on the NBA logo (which is also featured on one of the earpieces). According to the company, the special version — dubbed "NBA75 Ivory" — is intended to celebrates the NBA's 75th anniversary season.
The new special edition design is arguably nostalgic in nature, offering a high contrast look with ivory-tinted plastic and two distinctly saturated silicone ear tips, one bright red and the other deep blue. The NBA75 Ivory variant has appeared on the Beats website, plus the brand's Twitter account shared an additional image alongside the Saturday release date. As expected, the NBA-themed version of these earbuds will come at a premium — while the regular style options are currently priced at a discounted $179.25, the NBA75 Ivory sports the full $249.95 price tag.
Only the design has changed
This new special edition version of Powerbeats Pro is purely cosmetic in nature; the hardware itself remains unchanged from the regular model, offering the same over-ear buds design, water resistance, and charging case. As we noted in our Powerbeats Pro review, these earbuds pack the same Apple H1 chip found in some AirPods, making it particularly easy for iPhone owners to pair the device with their handset.
Unlike the AirPods, Powerbeats Pro has over-ear clips that help fix the buds in place, making them more suitable for cyclists, athletes, and anyone who moves around frequently during work. Adding to the convenience is a control button, automatic pausing when the earbuds are removed, and up to nine hours of battery life not including the case, which adds a couple of full earbud charges before you have to find an outlet.
The Powerbeats Pro have proven popular, though if they do have one big downside, its the lack of active noise cancellation. The in-ear design offers noise isolation, but that may not be enough for those times you need to concentrate at work or get some quiet time in a noisy household. For those who need noise cancellation, Audio-Technica's new ATH-CKS50TW may be worth checking out.