This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it.Learn more What we lovePowerful, detailed soundSmart features with iPhone or AndroidLong battery lifeWork wired when battery diesLossless audio over USB-CWhat we don'tOverpricedUncomfortably tight fitNo EQ tuning optionNo noise cancellation techDon’t auto-pause when removed Buy the Beats Solo 4 for the best price in the UKYou can buy the Beats Solo 4 from several trusted UK retailers here.It’s hard to believe it took Beats eight years to bring out the Beats Solo 4, the Apple-owned company’s sequel to its Solo 3 headphones from 2016.Maybe I should applaud Beats for not needlessly reinventing its self-professed most popular product every year, like Apple does with the iPhone.Perhaps the Solo 3 sold so well that Beats didn’t feel it needed to replace them, but after using the new Solo 4 for more than a week, I’m not convinced the upgrades here make these headphones a must-buy.While they sound great most of the time, there’s a lot wrong with the Beats Solo 4 considering their £199.95 price tag.
The fit is too tight so they're uncomfortable to wear for long periods, particularly with glasses.The sound over Bluetooth usually sounds solid, but there’s no EQ tuning option.There’s also no noise cancellation, and they are missing auto-pause and multipoint, features you would be right to expect for the price.The Solo 4 come in black, blue, or pink, the latter two pastel in tone.
I reviewed the blue model, but don’t love the shade, and the plastic build does not feel premium.They fold down into a nicely small package for on-ear headphones though, and the soft material carry case should be protective enough.Unfortunately I found the on-ear fit - which sits on your ears rather than completely over and enveloping them - uncomfortable.The Solo 4 clamp onto my (admittedly quite big) head with a vice-like grip that means they didn’t move an inch when on a run, but they make my ears hurt after less than an hour.
I also wear glasses, adding to the discomfort as the ear cups push the glasses’ arms into my skull.If you have a smaller noggin you might be OK but I highly recommend trying these out in a shop before you buy.While they sound great most of the time, there’s a lot wrong with the Beats Solo 4 considering their £199.95 price tagWith a bit of adjustment the soft ear cups can block out a lot of outside sound, but there’s no active noise cancellation tech you get with many other over-ear headphones at this price.In a quiet space though, the Solo 4 sound solid over Bluetooth.
Streaming from Spotify, they output a balanced, powerful soundstage that is tuned well, though the mids are often a little too bright at times but I am being picky.That could be down to the wireless connection.One of the best features of the Solo 4 is that you can plug in and listen to music over the included USB-C cable at up to lossless quality.I tried this using Qobuz and found the headphones sounded noticeably better.
The brightness went away and there was far more detail and warmth to recordings.This is down to the better quality audio files on Qobuz compared to Spotify, but you still need the headphones to perform well enough to show that - and the Solo 4 pass the test.Spotify sounds better plugged in, too.One of the best features of the Solo 4 is that you can plug in and listen to music over the included USB-C cable at up to lossless qualityWith all that said, the Solo 4 easily sound a lot better than the old Solo 3, and pack an audio punch that will please most people listening to most genres of music.You also get a headphone jack cable so you can plug the headphones in to in-flight systems (or any devices you have that still have a headphone jack!), and another top feature is that the Solo 4 are passive headphones, which means they will work over the 3.5mm headphone jack cable even if they have run out of battery, with no loss in sound quality.
Fully charging them over USB-C will give you a very impressive 50 hours of playback over Bluetooth, which is what the battery is for.The Beats Solo 4 lack Apple’s W1 chip that will quick-pair with Apple devices.Instead, Beats offers quick pairing for both Apple and Android devices, so you can rest assured these will work well if you don’t live in Apple’s world.I tested the ‘phones connected to an iPhone and Android device as well as my laptop and pairing was easy, but there’s no multipoint tech so you can be connected to multiple devices at a time.
If you want to move the connection from one to another you must do it manually in that device’s settings menu.You also don’t get auto-pausing of audio when you take the headphones off, and there’s no way to tune the EQ and adjust the sound of them.All these absences add up to the point at which the Solo 4 are quite a simple plug-in-and-play style of headphones.That might suit you as they are very no-nonsense, but other headphones in this price range offer most of these missing features, such as the excellent Sennheiser Accentum Plus Wireless.… the Beats Solo 4 are not a bad pair of headphones but they simply cost too much when you consider the features they lackWhen paired to an Apple device you can tap into Spatialised Audio and head tracking, though this only works with Atmos content in Apple Music or Netflix.
I tested out the Personalised Spatial Audio on my iPhone that requires a quick head scan, and found compatible music from Apple Music then sounded more expansive.No such luck on Android, where your connection is stuck on stereo playback.Overall, the Beats Solo 4 are not a bad pair of headphones but they simply cost too much when you consider the features they lack.Those with smaller heads than mine might find them more comfortable, but they should cost £150, not £199.
Keep an eye out for a sale or buy a much better headphone for about the same price.Either the aforementioned Sennheiser for £199 or the excellent Sony WH-1000XM4 for £229 are my picks.Buy the Beats Solo 4 for the best price in the UKYou can buy the Beats Solo 4 from several trusted UK retailers here.MORE LIKE THISiPhone 15 Pro reviewSamsung Galaxy S24 Ultra reviewOnePlus 12 reviewHonor Magic 6 Pro reviewGoogle Pixel 8 Pro reviewAsus Zenfone 11 Ultra reviewNothing Phone 2a reviewSamsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus reviewHonor Magic V2 reviewMacBook Air M3 review
