The multifunction button is play/pause with a single press, track forward with a double press, track back with a triple press, and calls up your device’s digital assistant with a long press. As you’d expect, they come with a range of different earbud sizes in the box – four to be precise – to help ensure a snug fit. Rather surprisingly, they charge via USB-C, not Lightning, as has been the norm with recent Beats products and battery life is impressive. When fully charged, Beats claims the Flex will deliver up to 12 hours of playback and you can also get 90 minutes of usage from a mere 10-minute charge when the battery gets low. With only eight hours of battery life, the BeatsX were not only getting crushed by other wire-connected wireless earbuds, but also by some of the new true wireless earbuds.
If you want true nosie cancelling earbuds, check out the Sony WF-1000XM3 . Generally we found the Beats Flex offer excellent audio clarity, both when listening to music as well as YouTube videos and podcasts. It makes them an ideal pair of headphones for your morning run or gym session. While Beats have long been known as the stylish choice when it comes to headphones, they’ve also had something of a reputation when it comes to sub-par audio performance.
The inside of the left pod has the mic and a multi-function playback and voice assistant button. Nick Pino is the Senior Editor of Home Entertainment at TechRadar and covers TVs, headphones, speakers, video games, VR and streaming devices. He’s written for TechRadar, GamesRadar, Official Xbox Magazine, PC Gamer and other outlets over the last decade, and he has a degree in computer science he’s not using if anyone wants it. Surprisingly, though, we didn’t find any of that to be a deal-breaker. The W1 Chip is less advanced than the H1 but it still gets the job done, and the semi-wireless form factor is manageable if a little unwieldy. Still, the overall performance the Beats Flex gives you should warrant a higher price, so consider these buds an uber-generous offer from the trailblazing audio brand.
If you’re using something else, then the pairing process is simple. All you need to do is hold down the power button, and wait for the headset to enter pairing mode. From there just look through Bluetooth settings in your source device, and select the Beats Flex. No matter what operating systems run your life, you won’t have any issues with playback or connection stability.
Another thing to be aware of is that the Beats Flex aren’t rated for sweat or water resistance. If you need that reassurance, you’ve got to pay more money for the Powerbeats — also a neckband-style design — or the completely wireless Powerbeats Pro. Beats doesn’t include any kind of pouch with its $50 earbuds, so you’ll just have to carry them loose. Apple has stuck with its W1 headphone chip inside the Beats Flex, giving them the usual instant setup process and synced pairing across devices tied to your iCloud account. It would’ve been nice to have the newer H1 chip, since that’s required for the automatic switching feature between iPhone, iPad, and Mac that’s included as of iOS 14 and macOS Big Sur. Losing that touch of convenience is the tradeoff you make for the $50 price.
For the price, however, the Beats Flex deliver a commendable user experience and solid audio for anyone who wants added bass depth with balance. With the Flex, Beats is replacing its BeatsX, another neckband-style set from its wireless audio lineup that was priced at $100. On the Flex-Form cable, you have buttons for play/pause, volume, Siri , and Bluetooth pairing. For folks who routinely need to go back and forth between listening to music and listening to the world around them, it’s a much more convenient design. Everyone knows the audio brand Beats, first created by Dr Dre and later sold on to Apple, it’s one of the top dogs in music listening tech.
You can also summon Siri on your phone without having to touch the screen using the buttons. The upgraded Beats Flex headphones also last longer between charges. Beats Flex are rated for up to 12 hours — up to four hours longer than BeatsX — so you can get through a long workout or study session without interruption.
They reduce some bass-range sounds like bus and plane engines but still aren’t ideal for cutting out noise during a trip or commute. Ηowever, they do a good job of reducing mid-range noise like ambient conversations, and they can also cut out a significant amount of higher-pitched noise like the hum of an A/C unit. Like most in-ear headphones, the Beats Flex Wireless are very breathable.
Personally, I thought the buds staved off excessive sweat well during cardio workouts. But the other reason why the Flex buds are an important product is, well, Android. Instead of using Apple’s beats studio3 proprietary Lightning connector for charging, as many Beats headphones have since the acquisition, the Flex have a USB-C port. Beats’ Android app has already been updated to support them.
There’s a decent amount of bass here, but these earbuds lack the pleasant thump that can keep you energized at the gym. Ditto for appropriately recreating the kick drum or drum machine from your favorite artists. I’d even say this is the least amount of low-end tone I recall in a Beats product. Sure, these are meant to have general appeal, and the tuning is certainly more middle of the road. In the interest of symmetry, and I would assume to help with battery life, there’s a second rectangular casing on the right side.