Beats Fit Pro

Apart from their retention wings and the presence of Apple's H1 chip, the Fit Pro differs little from the Studio Buds. However, an improvement in sound rendering and the effectiveness of the active noise reduction would have been desirable.

 

Presentation

In addition to their new design, the Fit Pro integrate for the first time at Beats the H1 chip from Apple, which allows them to have all the features previously reserved for AirPods, such as audio sharing or automatic switching between different devices linked to the same iCloud account. The Fit Pro are still fully usable on Android, thanks to their compatibility with Fast Pair and the Beats app for Android.

 

Manufacturing & accessories

The Fit Pro are very classic earphones with a compact and rather discreet design that is very similar to the Studio Buds. However, the plastic shell has been slightly revised to include a soft silicone wing in the extension of the control button. The quality of the design is unchanged: the whole thing looks robust, the assembly traces are quite discreet and an IPX4 certification is still on the agenda.

Where the headphones are ultimately quite similar in terms of design, the cases differ significantly. The Fit Pro is a little larger and shaped like a square with rounded corners. It's quite portable in a pants pocket, but much less easy to use with one hand than the Studio Buds. The comments made about the build quality of the headphones remain valid here, with the exception of the IPX4 certification.

 

 

Comfort & fit

Like the Studio Buds, the Fit Pro are semi-in-ear headphones with a very comfortable feel. The size of the Fit Pro allows it to seal the entrance to the ear canal without intruding like in-ear monitors. To maximize comfort and at the same time ensure proper functioning of the active noise reduction, it is of course necessary to carefully choose the right size of ear tip among the three pairs provided. In addition, the Fit Pro incorporate a venting system that allows air to filter to limit the feeling of pressure, the famous "cap" effect.

Unfortunately, the Fit Pro inherits the reservations we raised when we tested the Studio Buds. Smaller listeners may feel a pronounced pressure on the cone of the ear, or on the root of the helix during extended listening sessions. This discomfort is due to the design of the earphones, which rely on this area for support.

This last one is moreover reinforced by the flexible wings out of silicone coming to slip in the high cavity of the conch. These allow the earphones to hold perfectly in place, whatever the conditions, and thus to be completely ready for the practice of sport. We also have a small reservation here: although we did not meet any person bothered by the fins, they could be too short or too long depending on the morphology of each. Beats could have made the effort to provide different sizes of fins as do competing brands, but we recognize the philosophy of Apple, namely to impose a design that corresponds to its vision, even if it does not suit everyone.

 

User experience

The user experience offered by these Fit Pro is almost identical to the one granted by the Studio Buds. The controls, connectivity, pairing system and the vast majority of features are very similar between the two models. We therefore recommend that you refer to the Studio Buds test for further explanations on this subject.

The Fit Pro differs from the Studio Buds in several ways, including the integration of Apple's H1 chip. They have access to all the features previously reserved for AirPods, such as automatic switching between different devices linked to the same iCloud account or audio sharing. The Fit Pro also includes a proximity sensor similar to that of the AirPods (3rd generation), as it only works on skin contact. Another new feature: it is possible to configure the long press on the buttons to control the volume, change the listening modes or activate the voice assistant.

 

Autonomy

We measured a battery life of 7 hours without active noise reduction and 6 hours with it on. So the Fit Pros do slightly worse than the Studio Buds when noise reduction is not activated, but they manage to handle the RBA activation better. In any case, the Fit Pro can be used for several days in a row thanks to the three extra charges provided by the case. That said, it's a shame that this one doesn't offer induction charging.

 

Hands-free kit

Unfortunately, Beats doesn't seem to have improved the quality of the microphones between the Fit Pro and the Studio Buds. We invite you to consult the test of the latter for more details.

 

 

Latency

We measured a latency of 250 ms in Bluetooth communication, which is far from ideal for consuming video content or playing video games. Without being catastrophic, such a latency induces a lag between sound and image that is quite annoying. Fortunately, the good integration of Bluetooth makes it possible to compensate for this delay to the point of making it imperceptible on apps and sites such as Disney+, Prime Video or YouTube. Unfortunately, video games are not compensated for and are therefore impractical.

 

Audio

The sound performance of the Fit Pro is very similar to that of the Studio Buds, so once again we suggest you refer to the latter's test to get a good feel for these Fit Pro. However, they are slightly more reserved in the upper midrange and treble than their counterparts. The precision of the highs is also a little less perceptible and the rendering is less sparkling, therefore slightly more pleasant.

 

Active noise reduction

Due to the built-in port sensor in the headphones, which cannot be switched off, we were not able to perform our usual isolation measurements with our dummy. Fortunately, this does not prevent us from giving you our analysis.

Not surprisingly, the Fit Pro's active noise reduction is very similar to that of the Studio Buds. The low-frequency attenuation is sufficiently effective to adequately reduce muffled noises such as the hum of an engine or the rolling of a train. The Fit Pro's midrange attenuation is a little better than the Studio Buds, however, and they do a better job of covering the surrounding chatter. But even with this subtle improvement, the Fit Pro's active noise reduction is still a long way from what the WF-1000XM4, Devialet Gemini, or AirPods Pro, the current champions, are offering.

The Fit Pro's quality in Transparent mode is even better than that of the Studio Buds. Here, the highs are not as muffled, which allows a much finer and airy rendering. However, these highs seem to be artificially boosted, making it rather difficult to appreciate the distances. The integrated electronics also have a little trouble managing this Transparent mode, as we noticed a very slight latency between the moment a word is spoken and the moment it is reproduced by the speakers. No need to panic either, this latency remains minimal and does not prevent you from holding a conversation with the earphones screwed into your ears.

 

Conclusion

Without much surprise, the Fit Pro innovates little compared to the Studio Buds. In addition to a few minor improvements, they are distinguished by their wings that ensure a perfect fit and the integration of Apple's H1 chip, which gives them a user experience on par with AirPods on iOS. The Fit Pro are therefore quite capable true wireless headphones, which could nevertheless find it difficult to find buyers as their price positioning is high. Many competitors are equal or even better at a much lower price.