Beats Studio 3 Wireless headphones have Apple’s W1 chip and improved noise cancelling

The new Beats Studio 3 Wireless feature new, proprietary Pure Adaptive Noise Canceling (Pure ANC) technology that claims to continuously monitor your listening environment in order to more efficiently block out external noise.

The technology also adjusts itself according to how the headphones fit on your head – taking into consideration leakages caused by hair, glasses and different ear shapes – and the music that you’re playing. Beats claims this Pure ANC real-time calibration operates up to 50,000 times a second.

Like Apple’s own AirPods and Beats’ Solo 3 Wireless, the Studio 3 Wireless feature Apple’s W1 chip, which, as we experienced in our time with the AirPods and Solo 3s, brings several benefits – especially to iOS users, such as those with an iPhone 7 (or an iPhone 8).

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For one, it enables proximity pairing – a one-step Bluetooth connection to the iPhone. Additionally, iPhone users can switch between devices logged into the same iCloud account to, say, move from an iPhone conversation to watching a film on their MacBook.

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Then there’s Class 1 Bluetooth connectivity, which theoretically ups the range you can move from your source from 10m (the distance limited by Class 2 Bluetooth) to 100m.

The chip also promises 22 hours of wireless playback with noise-cancelling on (and 40 hours with it off), which is slightly more than the 20 hours offered by the class-leading Bose QuietComfort 35, Sony MDR-1000X and Sony WH-1000XM2, and the 15 hours claimed by the AKG NC60 Wireless.

A battery bonus: Fast Fuel charging grants three hours of playback from just 10 minutes of charging via the included Micro-USB cable, too.

As is the norm for Beats’ – and its rivals’ – wireless fare, the Studio 3 Wireless have built-in earcup controls and a microphone that allow you to make calls, control playback and activate Siri.

Beats is also, predictably, promising better sound. No bad thing considering our review of the Beats Solo 3 headphones left us a little unconvinced in that department.

Not one to shy away from offering its cans in several colours, Beats is offering the Studio 3 Wireless in black, white and red, plus two special edition finishes: Porcelain Rose and Shadow Grey.

The Beats Studio 3 Wireless are available now for £300, which is broadly in line with the cost of its rivals. We look forward to seeing how they perform.

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Becky is the managing editor of What Hi-Fi? and, since her recent move to Melbourne, also the editor of the brand's sister magazines Down Under – Australian Hi-Fi and Audio Esoterica. During her 11+ years in the hi-fi industry, she has reviewed all manner of audio gear, from budget amplifiers to high-end speakers, and particularly specialises in headphones and head-fi devices. In her spare time, Becky can often be found running, watching Liverpool FC and horror movies, and hunting for gluten-free cake.