Dr. Dre and Monster unveil a big pile of new Beats ear candy
In the two years since it was launched, the Beats by Dr. Dre headphone line has grown into quite a monster. That's not such a surprise when you realize that founders Dre and Jimmy Iovine hooked up with Monster Cable's Noel Lee to develop the line. Now there's a bunch of new stuff, including their first non-headphone product.
At yesterday's star-studded press launch, Dre, Iovine, and Lee introduced two new celebrity branded products.
Powerbeats endorsed by LeBron James is an earbud style headphone designed for the active sports user, that has been specifically designed to stay put during strenuous activity while also remaining sweat resistant. Available in red, white, and black, the retail price will be $170 a pair.
Justbeats endorsed by floppy-haired teen pop singer Justin Bieber is a line headphones aimed at younger kids, which will come in both over-ear and in-ear versions. Best of all, Bieber chose a fetching shade of purple for the design, which he said "best represented his personality"... uh o.k. Retail prices will be $120 for the in-ear, and $200 for the over-ear version, or a whole lot of baby sitting jobs.
If you really don't want to look like a pubescent girl, the in-ear version will also be available in a less purple-ish gray and red version branded iBeats.
In addition, Dr. Dre introduced two new products of his own.
The Beats Pro is sort of an upscale version of the original Beats (now renamed Beats Studio), featuring all-metal construction, and an over the ear fit that's supposed to be more comfortable for extended use. Price is $450 a pair.
Finally, the Beatbox is the first product from Beats that really captures Dre and Iovine's original plan to create "speakers not sneakers". This is an iPod dock that makes pretty much every other dock look kind of wimpy, with a pair of 5.25-inch woofers along with two tweeters to deliver what they describe as the "Beats sound profile". Luckily for those of us with sensitive ears, the Beatbox doesn't run on batteries, so it won't be like a return to 1980 when every urban kid was judged by the volume of the boom box on his shoulder as he walked through town. The Beatbox will sell for $450.
Check out the gallery for pictures of each product. All will be available in October.
Via Beats by Dre
View Images
Beats Pro
Powerbeats
Justbeats in-ear
Justbeats over-ear
iBeats
Beatbox