Previewed at WWDC, launching in the fall.
Apple Announces Beats Pill+ Speaker Available in November for $229
Apple today announced a new Beats Pill+ Bluetooth wireless speaker with a simplistic design, stereo active 2-way crossover system and 12-hour battery life. The speaker will be available for $229.95 in black or white through the Apple Online Store and authorized Beats retailers beginning next month.
Beats Pill+ Bluetooth Wireless Speaker will retail for $229.95 (Image: The Verge)
The new Beats Pill+ companion app will enable users to control the speaker using a smartphone, with features including the ability to control music from two Bluetooth sources and sync two Beats Pill+ speakers together for either simultaneous or dedicated right and left playback.
Beats Pill+ companion app for iOS and Android
The Verge went hands-on with the new Beats Pill+ speaker, calling it "the most attractive looking and sounding speaker that Beats has ever made" after listening to a brief demo of songs from various genres, including tracks by The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar, Tom Petty and punk rock band PUP.
The new Beats Pill+ companion app will enable users to control the speaker using a smartphone, with features including the ability to control music from two Bluetooth sources and sync two Beats Pill+ speakers together for either simultaneous or dedicated right and left playback.
"When you obsess about sound the way that we do at Beats, portable Bluetooth speakers can be very tricky," said Beats President Luke Wood. "We spent countless days, weeks, months testing for that perfect combination of form and function - small enough to travel but still big enough to feel the emotion of the music. That’s what you get with Pill+.”The new Beats Pill+ replaces the original Beats Pill unveiled in October 2012, and is the company's first new speaker since being acquired by Apple for $3 billion in May 2014. The new Beats Pill+ is larger than the original Pill speaker, but smaller than the recalled Beats XL speaker, and weighs 1.5 pounds (0.68 kg).
The Verge went hands-on with the new Beats Pill+ speaker, calling it "the most attractive looking and sounding speaker that Beats has ever made" after listening to a brief demo of songs from various genres, including tracks by The Weeknd, Kendrick Lamar, Tom Petty and punk rock band PUP.
More important than the look and build is the sound, and judging from my brief demo the Pill+ is likely the best-sounding Pill ever. That’s apparently all thanks to what’s called a two-way active system, meaning that amplifiers are built into the speakers — two in fact, one for each pair of woofer and tweeter. This helps better assign the different frequencies of music to the right parts of the speaker, resulting in better sound.The Beats Pill+ is equipped with both Lightning and USB ports on the back for charging your iPhone or other devices. The speaker has a rubberized power button and volume controls and a metallic Beats logo that doubles as a play/pause button. There is also a line in audio port.
[ 138 comments ]
Top Rated Comments
(View all)
37 months ago
People are still paying $200 for speakers? No wonder everybody's credit is messed up.
37 months ago
Ah, the Beats Pill. Tool of the insufferable and inconsiderate jerks who like to play their music in public. These things should be illegal.
You don't strike me as someone who'd ever have fun in public.
37 months ago
Beats always sounds good to everyone except people who know what good-sounding audio sounds like. :)
37 months ago
I use my Bose Soundlink Mini II in my car that has no radio, so I connect it to my phone to play offline music. Would love to have digital radio in there, but that's probably never going to happen.
Love the Soundlink for its build quality (heavy and aluminum make it feel so premium - which it is at $200), size and sound. Curious how the Pill+ compares.
Love the Soundlink for its build quality (heavy and aluminum make it feel so premium - which it is at $200), size and sound. Curious how the Pill+ compares.
37 months ago
There sure are a lot of people saying other speakers sound better than this speaker they've never heard before.
37 months ago
People are still paying $200 for speakers? No wonder everybody's credit is messed up.
At least it's not a $350 to $10,000 watch that's tied to a phone in your pocket.
37 months ago
Ah, the Beats Pill. Tool of the insufferable and inconsiderate jerks who like to play their music in public. These things should be illegal.
37 months ago
I had a Beats Pill XL and sent it back...should've kept it...loved the design and handle.
[ Read All Comments ]
MoviePass today announced new restrictions for its ever-changing movie service, with the company now limiting its subscribers to a choice of what appears to be six to seven movies per day.
On...
Microsoft Office appears to be experiencing activation issues on both Mac and PC today, according to several user reports on Twitter. MacRumors also received emails from multiple readers affected.
...
Sony today introduced its new XAV-AX210 receiver, which doubles as an aftermarket CarPlay and Android Auto system.
The XAV-AX210 is an update to Sony's year-old XAV-AX200 receiver, with...
Toyota has confirmed on its website that CarPlay is a standard feature in all 2019 Sienna models sold in the United States. This is the first model year of the Sienna equipped with Apple's in-car...
A Melbourne schoolboy has pleaded guilty to hacking into Apple's secure network after the company notified authorities of the intrusion (via The Age).
The teen, who can't be named for...
Google today launched its new cloud storage pricing scheme under the moniker Google One, which replaces all paid storage plans under the Google Drive brand.
The new plans include 100GB storage...
Calendar subscriptions offer a convenient way for you to stay up to date with everything from national holidays to the match fixtures for your favorite sports team. In this article, we'll show...
Apple recently updated its Maps app to expand the availability of transit directions to several new states.
Transit data is now available in areas of Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, and Michigan....
