Beats Solo 4 Wireless On-Ear Headphones in Matte Black: A Full Review

I wore the Beats Solo 4 on a crowded subway train last Tuesday just to see how much background rumble they could actually block out. If you are hunting for the best noise cancelling headphones, I need to be upfront right away: these do not have active noise cancellation. They are strictly on-ear headphones that rely entirely on passive isolation, meaning they physically block sound by pressing against your ears rather than using internal microphones to digitally cancel it out. That said, for around a hundred and thirty bucks, they offer a surprisingly tight seal. The ear cushions do a decent job of muting standard office chatter or street noise, even if they won't completely silence a jet engine. The real draw here is the endurance. Fifty hours on a single charge means I only plug them in about once a month, which is incredibly convenient. They are also ridiculously light. This makes them great for tossing in a backpack or walking around town, but there is a distinct tradeoff. The clamping force required to keep on-ear headphones stable starts to pinch my ears after about two hours of continuous listening. Sonically, Beats has thankfully moved away from the muddy, overpowering bass of their early days. The audio profile is much more balanced now, and the spatial audio feature adds a fun, immersive layer to live albums. They connect easily with both Apple and Android phones, but keep your expectations realistic regarding the noise blocking.