4 ms·
Lots of people equate weight with quality. Good for selling them in store, bad for actual use.
by jerlam 7mo ago
Lots of people equate weight with quality. Good for selling them in store, bad for actual use.
- killingtime74 7mo agoI remember a teardown where weights were taped inside. I think it was a beats headphone.
- chihuahua 7mo agoIt was Beats. At first it was found in counterfeit Beats, but later the same was found in genuine Beats. And then guess who bought Beats for their exquisite metal weight technology? That's right, it was Apple.
- whynotminot 7mo agoThey bought them for the streaming service that came with it. Not for fake weights in headphones.
- tech_hutch 7mo agoStreaming service?
- menno-sh 7mo agohttps://www.theverge.com/2014/1/11/5298562/beats-music-arrives-january-21st-family-plan-exclusive-to-at-t https://www.theverge.com/2014/1/11/5298562/beats-music-arriv...
- georgespencer 7mo ago> And then guess who bought Beats for their exquisite metal weight technology? That's right, it was Apple. It's self-evidently extremely disingenuous to claim that Apple bought Beats for their "exquisite metal weight technology", so I thought I'd double check your claim that there are "metal weights" inside Beats headphones. All of this appears to stem from two blog posts, written by the same VC.[^1] The first time they accidentally tore down counterfeit Beats, and when they managed to repeat the process, they "stuck by [their] claim" that: > "…these metal parts are there to add a bit of weight and increase perceived quality with a nice look." The BOM estimate they provide lists the following metal parts: * Inner cast metal separator * Springs * Torx screw * Self tapping screw * Cast metal supports * Stamped metal ear cup None of these are extraneous weights not serving a purpose. The claim of the author might be better presented as: "Beats headphones use heavier metal components instead of plastic ones, and I think it's because they add weight." There are a lot of very good reasons to use materials that dampen unwanted interference like parasitic vibrations. Stiffer materials such as metal parts typically flex less, and have fewer (but usually more pronounced) resonances than plastic parts, which have intrinsic damping but might distort. A good example of this is that the driver in your headphones is moving. Therefore the housing it is placed in must consider sprung/unsprung mass. Adding metal components increases the mechanical impedance. So: 1. It is entirely possible that your claim about the weights is correct, and Beats chose to use metal components rather than plastic purely to add weight to the product. 2. There are a great many other possible explanations for using metal rather than plastic, and I don't think that you're likely to be party to them. For example: maybe they had the parts in-chain already and didn't want to have to tie up hardware engineering or supplier quality engineering for a new plastic part. [1]: https://beneinstein.com/how-it-s-made-series-yup-our-beats-were-counterfeit-but-they-cost-about-the-same-to-make-as-the-364cc6808d18 https://beneinstein.com/how-it-s-made-series-yup-our-beats-w... (the one where they tear down real Beats)
- UqWBcuFx6NV4r 7mo agoThanks for doing the legwork. Any “nehhh apple BAD they make products for IDIOTS!” comment should be treated with skepticism, as usual.
- whaleofatw2022 7mo agoIdk im not sure why they bought Beats aside from marketing hype in the first place...
- raw_anon_1111 7mo agoFor Apple Music
- JSR_FDED 7mo agoBeats is a $1B+ a year business. Investment-wise it was a no-brainer. Cultural cachet of Beats - note how Apple kept the brand. Jimmy Iovine & Dr Dre showed them how to tap into a new demographic. It helped Apple get up and running with streaming faster, they needed to compete with Spotify.
- AdamN 7mo agoThe Beats brand was a great entrée to an entire market segment that Apple was trying to better access. I'd say it was a masterful acquisition (and integration).
- KoolKat23 7mo agoI completely disagree. Beats brand basically disappeared after that or at the least has become "uncool". Apple had iTunes already, they very well could've acqui-hired and improved their service themselves. Apple music slowly died and is only becoming resurgent now, many years later.
- menno-sh 7mo agoBeats (or I guess Apple under the Beats name) still make H1/2 based in-ears that are generally well received.
- cozzyd 7mo agoThe weights are an impedance match to your wallet
- Waterluvian 7mo agoOh is that why my wife’s cheapo crappy Beats earbuds have a special UI for pairing with my iphone…
- raw_anon_1111 7mo agoAll genuine Beats as far I know come with the H1 chips and pair just like AirPods - even my cheap $60 Beats Flex I use on planes since I don’t have to worry about them falling out - they just fall around my neck
- deleted 7mo ago[deleted]
- SanjayMehta 7mo agoBeats. But my favourite hack was a Sennheiser model which had foam inserts to dampen the sound. 555 - foam = 595
- nickpeterson 7mo agoThe weight is sign of reliability -Boris the bullet dodger