Beats by Dr. Dre has at all times been about going huge on sound high quality with loads of kinds. Whereas its focus has at all times primarily been on its headphones and (extra just lately, TWS earphones), Beats has additionally launched some attention-grabbing transportable audio system prior to now (albeit only a few in quantity). Nonetheless, this previous didn’t embrace India, which solely just lately received entry to Beats’ audio merchandise. With an official India launch now performed, I received to check out the model’s just lately launched Capsule transportable speaker and it certainly makes an enduring impression.
Beats Capsule Overview Design: Seems nice, works nice
- Dimensions – 218.44mm x 71.12mm x 71.12mm
- Weight – 680g
- Sturdiness – IP67
The Capsule-shaped speaker has a refined capsule-shaped design in comparison with earlier fashions from the line-up. The Beats Capsule has its tweeter and woofer laid out facet by facet and is angled with a 20-degree upward tilt in order that the music is at all times dealing with the listener and never bouncing off objects in entrance of it, particularly when positioned on one thing as little as a espresso desk.
The Beats Capsule speaker has a premium feeling rubberised texture with a contoured steel grill defending its tweeter and woofer beneath
The delicate rubber coating is sort of grippy and offers it a way of sturdiness. The speaker grille with the Beats emblem within the center is well-rounded. I am glad that the underside is flattened out a bit. Due to this, the speaker stays in place, given the deep bass it will possibly ship. I additionally just like the dimples for management buttons, which I did initially discover a bit tough to find at first however I received used to them after per week. I actually wished that these buttons had a backlight, as they are often onerous to seek out in dimly lit setups, particularly when you could have the Matt Black end.
The bottom of this pill-shaped speaker is flat. Additionally seen right here is the USB-C port used for charging and lossless audio
Its pill-shaped design is as broad as an Apple iPhone 16 Professional, which is not too broad. This, together with its rounded design, makes it very simple to slip right into a backpack. Other than the loop for the lanyard, there’s just one cavity, and that is for its USB-C port, which stays nicely hidden and out of sight on the again.
Its detachable lanyard is simple to connect or detach
There is a detachable lanyard that is simple to connect and detach and type of makes up for the speaker’s completely horizontal orientation. In case you do not occur to have a spot to put it down someplace, you may at all times dangle it off a hook or perhaps a tree department. The IP67-rated design means it will possibly simply stand up to heavy rain and even submersion in water (for about quarter-hour) or sand, so do not be afraid to take it poolside or to the seashore.
Weighing over half a kilo, this transportable speaker certain is heavy. It is not an issue, although, except you intend to hold one out of your backpack whereas mountaineering.
Beats Capsule Overview Specs and Software program: Characteristic-packed
- Connectivity – Bluetooth v5.3 (multipoint)
- Companion app – Android/iOS
- Ports – USB-C (audio out and charging)
The Beats Capsule has 4 buttons. The ability button can be used to place the system in pairing mode (brief press for checking battery life), whereas the common management button, aside from getting used to reply, finish and even mute and unmute calls, additionally doubles up as playback controls. However since there’s only one button, it will possibly get fairly advanced and fidgety because it includes remembering a number of press patterns. A built-in mic can be used as a stable convention speaker in case you want to attend a piece name on trip or in an workplace.
Its 4 buttons have numerous overlapping capabilities, which may get annoying at instances
Beats has additionally included a proprietary chip (no, it is not an H-series chip from Apple) that lets it seamlessly talk with each iOS and Android-powered units. It is good to have this over the earlier (Apple-first strategy) as it will possibly now help each Discover My (Google) or Discover My Machine (Apple) and even throws up the Quick Pair pop-up window on each Android and iOS units.
The Beats companion app accessible on iOS and Android (proven above) units don’t provide an equaliser
There’s additionally a companion app known as Beats, which is out there on Android and iOS units and principally tells you the battery standing. It additionally allows you to rename the speaker, customise the capabilities of the management buttons and, extra importantly, replace your system’s firmware when wanted.
Beats Capsule Overview Efficiency: Two’s firm
- Battery – Non-removable lithium‑ion
- Charging cable – Sure
- Stereo mode – Sure
The amount degree from the Beats Capsule speaker is greater than ample to ship wealthy room-filling sound for a big corridor room and even when outside within the open in a pool space. The speaker does get sizzling when the amount degree is maxed out, however I confronted no points even when utilizing it this manner for just a few hours.
If you happen to nonetheless really feel that one speaker is not ample in your outside wants, Beats allows you to join two of them collectively to ship extra energy in Amplify mode or higher separation (and a a lot wider soundstage) in Stereo mode. I skilled this stereo mode on the India launch and I need to say it is vitally spectacular, provided that two audio system work with near-perfect precision wirelessly because of the customized chip. Nonetheless, stereo mode solely helps two Capsule audio system in the intervening time, and so they must be in the identical room (not too far aside).
Its tweeter and woofer are laid out facet by facet and are angled with a 20-degree upward tilt
Coming to the sound, I cherished separating the lows, mids and highs, even at max quantity. I listened to Flaer Smin’s Want You Had been Right here (which is understood for its mids and highs) at max quantity and I seen that the mids do get suppressed by the bass, whereas the highs sounded a bit distorted. Curawaka’s Noku Mana additionally sounded nice regardless of the marginally bass-heavy strategy as a result of this speaker delivers bass that’s clear and well-defined, not muddy or boomy. Listening to the identical monitor at 50 % quantity, I realised how the bass overpowers primarily at excessive quantity. At 50 % quantity, the vocals, together with the mids and highs, sounded fairly pronounced, retaining issues balanced.
What I missed is a few type of preset EQ mode, which, on the press of a button (we want extra of these right here), might both lower down the bass or enhance it every time wanted or relying on the event. Regardless, the present sound signature will nonetheless enchantment to the lots fairly nicely. The speaker can even ship lossless sound when linked in wired mode, however I didn’t discover any noticeable change in sound high quality upon doing so.
Battery life is sort of stable for a conveyable Bluetooth speaker, particularly given its compact dimensions
Battery life with the Beats Capsule speaker is sort of stable. I took it for a weekend journey, blasted tunes at most quantity for about 4-6 hours a day, and nonetheless had a 35 % cost left. With common use at 50 % quantity (which is sort of ample for indoor use), Beats claims that this speaker will final 24 hours of steady playback time. The corporate additionally claims that Beats’ Quick Gas charging tech offers 2 hours of utilization with a 10-minute cost.
Beats Capsule Overview: Verdict
In case you are searching for one thing higher than the everyday muddy bass-heavy sound that’s simply accessible at round Rs 7,000, then there are all kinds of high quality audio system from Bose, Final Ears and JBL to select from (at round Rs. 10,000-12,000) earlier than you may even think about the brand new Beats Capsule at Rs. 16,900.
The benefit the Beats Capsule has over different audio system is that it really works nicely and seamlessly connects with each Android and iOS smartphones. It is among the extra premium-looking audio system accessible at this worth level, and its capsule-shaped design makes it simple to slip right into a tote or backpack. It gives wonderful battery life, and pairing two of them in stereo mode allows you to take pleasure in them even higher.
The Beats Capsule has clearly not been designed to impress audiophiles however to ship wealthy, fulfilling bass (for a compact speaker), retaining issues thrilling for the common listener who enjoys all sorts of music genres. Music on it’s best loved at round 50-70 % quantity, and this implies it is excellent for having fun with music subsequent to you at a pool however not at a pool occasion.
