Beats Solo 4 review: A long overdue upgrade that goes just far enough

Macworld

At a glance

Expert's Rating

Pros

Cons

Our Verdict

It’s been too long since Beats updated its more affordable on-ear Solo headphones, and while there are lots of improvements in this version it feels like a missed opportunity to really push the category forward. A dated design and “just okay” sound make this a good buy on sale, but not at full price.

Price When Reviewed

$199

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The Beats Solo 3 were released in late 2016, and 7.5 years is definitely too long to wait for a refresh of the “affordable” on-ear model of one of the world’s most popular headphone brands.

As you would expect, a lot has changed. Gone is the ancient Apple W1 chip in favor of a proprietary technology platform that supports lots of modern features for both Apple and Android devices. Sound quality is improved and the battery lasts 25 percent longer.

But they still look like Beats, and sound like Beats, and do very little to move the brand or category forward. There’s nothing wrong with the Solo 4 headphones—they’re good. But with such a long gap from the prior model, they only just meet expectations rather than surpass or redefine them.

Same old Beats look and feel

Beats headphones have a certain look. The vibrant plastic, lowercase “b” logo on each side, and the general shape of the earpieces. When you see someone wearing Beats, you know it.

Having said that, the new Solo 4 look and feel just a little too familiar. Outside of the new Slate Blue and Cloud Pink colors, you’d be hard-pressed to recognize this model from the one designed almost 8 years ago, without taking a close look at the ports.

Foundry

I don’t expect Beats to abandon its design entirely, but it’s time for a refresh, and the thought that we might be stuck with this same look and feel for the next seven years makes me cringe.

As with the Solo 3, I find the headphones don’t quite contract small enough for my small head, and just a couple of millimeters less headband on each side would be more comfortable. The earpads are soft enough but the spring tension makes the pressure a little uncomfortable after long listening periods when I wear my glasses. That’s a common problem with on-ear headphones and another reason why I prefer over-the-ear cans.

Foundry

As before, the Beats Solo 4 fold up to fit into a little carry bag. In fact, the bag is nearly identical to that of the Beats Studio Pro. I had to do a close side-by-side comparison to confirm that the Solo 4’s bag is just a tiny bit smaller.

They come with a USB-C cable and 3.5mm audio cable, but no power adapter.

New features

Of course, we would expect the Solo 4 to have a big update to their feature set after almost 8 years, and they do. This is true for Apple users, who get personalized spatial audio with head tracking and hands-free “Hey Siri” support in addition to all the older stuff (one-touch pairing, iCloud pairing, and Find My support).

The move away from Apple’s W1 chip to Beats’ much newer electronics now supports Google Fast Pair, cloud pairing with your Google account, Find My Device and multi-point pairing for seamless audio switching.

Beats hasn’t changed the way you control the Solo 4, though. There’s a power button on the bottom of the right earpiece (no on-ear detection means you have to power them on and off by hand), and the left earpiece has a big button where the “b” logo is that is used for play/pause/forward/reverse and to trigger the voice assistant. Pressing above or below that button changes the volume.

Gone is the annoying micro-USB plug in favor of USB-C. You’ll be glad to know it’s not just for charging, too. The Solo 4 supports USB-C audio output and input, and can even charge and play USB-C audio at the same time. Over USB-C or 3.5mm you can listen to lossless audio, even (not that the sound reproduction of these headphones is anywhere close to good enough to tell).

Foundry

All this and better battery life, too. Beats claims 50 hours of battery life, up 25% from the Solo 3. I certainly haven’t had long enough listening sessions to verify that, but modest drop in battery life over several days of testing makes me think it’s a reasonable claim. It’s just fantastic battery life, enough to take you through an entire weekend trip without plugging in.

Of course, that’s partly because the Solo 4 offers no active noise cancellation, and ANC is what really stresses battery life in modern headphones and earbuds.

Mid-tier sound for a mid-tier product

That’s right, there’s no ANC, which is just barely on the cusp of acceptable for $200 wireless headphones these days. It’s a feature that is rapidly becoming expected on all but the cheapest earbuds and headphones, and the price of the Solo 4 is right about where you might start to expect it. Any more and they’d have to have ANC.

Beats says they’ve done a lot to improve the acoustics, lowering distortion, tuning output, and improving voice call quality with better microphones. It’s definitely a step up from the Beats Solo 3, but it’s 2024 and we expect more.

Foundry

But the sound quality is what I would only consider good for this price range, not great. Nothing is way out of balance or anything like that, there’s just a general lack of crispness and punch to it all.

To some degree that can be expected from on-ear headphones, which don’t have the larger diaphragms of over-the-ear models or the tight in-ear fit of earbuds. In a song like OK Go’s “This Too Shall Pass,” they just can’t keep up with the booming bass, which instead sounds a little mushy. The bright mids on Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Tin Pan Alley” are crisp and clean, but a “crank it all to 11” metal song like “Kickstart My Heart” starts to lose clarity in some of the instruments.

Should you buy Beats Solo 4?

None of these things are dealbreakers, not in a $200 pair of wireless headphones. But it’s not impressive, either. It’s just…fine. Good, even. But not great. That’s not very much fun to write about, but some things are just good, and the Beats Solo 4 fits the bill.

At the $200 price, they’re only a good buy if you’re in love with your aging Solo 3 headphones and have been dying to update them. For everyone else, wait for a sale. The Beats Solo 4 are inoffensive at the list price, but a steal at $150 or less. If you’re willing to spend a little more, you’ll get a lot more out of the Beats Studio Pro. If you’re willing to wait, the Beats Solo 4 will be a great buy by Black Friday.