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Apple announces three new Beats headphones, all using its W1 chip

By Kris Wouk September 7, 2016

After unveiling the new iPhone 7 and AirPods during Apple’s event on Wednesday, CEO Tim Cook briefly announced three new Beats products: the Beats Solo3 Wireless, Powerbeats3 Wireless, and an entirely new product known as the Beats X. For the time being, many of the specifics around the headphones are unclear, but we do know that the W1 chip — the same chip powering Apple’s new AirPods — will also be used here.

The new iPhone 7 might have been the star of the show, but the removal of the headphone jack meant audio, and wireless audio on particular, plays a big part in the company strategy.

This marks the first time that Apple technology has been used in Beats products, but it likely won’t be the last. The W1 chip keeps the headphones more energy efficient, and allows for improved battery life, with the Solo 3 Wireless offering up to 40 hours of play time. Battery life for the other models currently isn’t known, but should likely be higher than the AirPods’ five hours.

While the Solo3 Wireless and Powerbeats3 Wireless are the latest iteration of existing products, the Beats X are more of a mystery. They use a “neckbud” design, but until more information is released, that’s effectively all anyone knows.

The Apple AirPods will sell for $160 and are launching in October, but for the time being, there is no information on when the upcoming Beats headphones will launch or what the price will be. The Beats Solo2 Wireless currently sell for $300, while the existing Powerbeats2 Wireless initially sold for $200, so prices for the updated models will likely be the same. As for the new Beats X, we’ll just have to wait and see.

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Kris Wouk is a tech writer, gadget reviewer, blogger, and whatever it's called when someone makes videos for the web. In his…

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