I review a lot of headphones, but one of my favorites from the last year are now at a great price. You’re no doubt familiar with the extremely popular AirPods, but Apple makes a lot more headphones. My pick for Apple’s best over-ear headphones isn’t AirPods Max, but rather the Beats Studio Pro.

This much cheaper pair of headphones were launched in 2023 – two years after the AirPods Max. What’s more, they’re basically the same as AirPods Max inside – even capable of wired lossless audio which AirPods Max aren’t.

In the US, you can score Apple’s best over-ear headphones for 50% off – now $170 instead of $349. Though, they’re only 10% off in the UK, priced at £314 instead of the usual £350.

Following on from the previous versions, the most recent Beats Studio Pro offer USB-C charging and personalised spatial audio support with head-tracking. Plus, you get improved noise cancellation (with transparency) thanks to a new custom chip and completely redesigned hardware. I scored these top headphones a full five stars in my review.

40 hours of battery life is cited (2 hours to full charge) but that is with the ANC off – the life is 24 hours with it on. Of course, Apple owns Beats, so these headphones are very happy with Apple devices. However, as with other Beats gear they play nicely with Android and support Google Fast Pair. They also support auto-switching on both platforms and also work with Apple’s FindMy and Google’s Find My Device.

The ‘b’ button on the earcup of the foldable headphones enables you to control music (pause/skip/back) and conduct calls. To control volume, press above or below the ‘b’ button. Then there’s also a multi-function button to switch between listening and EQ modes, check battery life with the LEDs, pair your device and power the headphones on/off.