Review: Beats Flex Wireless Earphones- Comfortable neckband headphones

While the fashion is for true wireless headphones , the manufacturer Beats, an Apple subsidiary, is creating a surprise with a new Bluetooth model in neckband format. The Beats Flex replace the BeatsX and also surprise by their price: less than 50 euros! Good news when we know that Beats has a reputation for offering rather expensive headphones. Do the Beats Flex Wireless Earphones have what it takes to convince us? We tell you right away.

Externally, the Beats Flex are very similar to the BeatsX with a cable that connects the two headphones and has two small housings. The first contains the control keys and microphone, while the second has an on / off button and a charging port.

First difference with the BeatsX: the Lightning connector gives way to the USB Type-C. The manufacturer delivers a USB Type-C to Type-C cable, but does not provide a USB Type-A adapter. We also regret the absence of a transport bag. 
Another difference with the BeatsX: the autonomy goes on paper from 8 hours to 12 hours, with a volume at 50%. In addition, the Fast Fuel function provides 1 hour 30 minutes of listening time with 10 minutes of charging. During our test, we measured an autonomy of 9 h 39 minutes, which is a very good score for enjoying your music for a long time.

Easy pairing on iOS and Android

The Beats Flex feature the Apple W1 chip, which makes Bluetooth pairing on Apple devices as easy as on AirPods. But the manufacturer has also thought of Android smartphone users and offers the Beats application for free. It allows you to pair the headphones without going through the Bluetooth settings, in a way as simple as on iOS (quick pairing). It also indicates the battery status and allows you to activate or deactivate the automatic pause function .

On the other hand, unlike the H1 chip, present in AirPods (2nd generation), Pro , and Max , in particular, it does not give access to certain advanced functions, such as the detection of the famous  “Say, Siri” , or the connection automatically from one device to another using the same Apple account.

Beats headphones are of the in-ear type. It is therefore necessary to carefully choose the size of the end caps to obtain good comfort, but above all good passive insulation. You shouldn’t have a problem, because Beats delivers four pairs of eartips in different sizes. The headphones fit well in the ears and deliver a satisfactory sound, but lacks a bit of depth. The measurement of the bandwidth reveals that the Beats Flex give pride of place to the mediums, but cannot correctly reproduce the highs from 4000 Hz, nor the bass below 200 Hz. But for a model at 50 euros , this is quite acceptable.

Control keys do not immediately fall under your fingers

You have to fumble a bit at first to find the playback and volume controls on the case, but you get used to it quickly. However, we would have liked the cable between the two boxes to be a little longer, especially if it rests on a jacket and not directly on the neck.

When you remove the headphones from your ears, a magnetic system “sticks” them together, back to back, and automatically pauses music playback, which is very convenient.