9to5Mac has discovered references to a new pair of Beats earbuds in iOS 16.4 Release Candidate. For reference, Apple should soon issue a stable version of iOS 16.4, assuming it finds no bugs in its Release Candidate build. According to 9to5Mac, Apple is set to complement the Beats Studio Buds with the Beats Studio Buds+. Given the naming, we suspect that Apple will sell both earbuds simultaneously rather than discontinuing the current Beats Studio Buds.
Reputedly, Apple has based the Beats Studio Buds+ on a custom Beats chip rather than an in-house chipset. Still, the Beats Studio Buds+ is likely to be capable of automatically pausing playback when an earbud is removed, which the current Beats Studio Buds lacks. Additionally, the Beats Studio Buds+ should support Bluetooth Multipoint, as well as Hey Siri functionality.
Moreover, it should be possible to synchronise a pair of Beats Studio Buds+ between devices connected to the same Apple ID. 9to5Mac alleges that the Beats Studio Buds+ will also support active noise cancellation (ANC), transparency mode and will feature touch-sensitive areas for playback controls. 9to5Mac adds that Apple has codenamed the Beats Studio Buds Plus '8214', although it is unclear when the earbuds will be released, nor how much they will cost.