Beats Solo 4 headphones listed by US regulator, suggesting launch is imminent

(Image credit: X / MacRumors)

We already expected that a new pair of Beats headphones were on the way, thanks to code hidden in the latest iOS release, but now a listing at the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) website makes that all but certain. There's a fresh registration for Beats Solo 4, made by Apple (via 9to5Mac) – and if the FCC registration is public, that means they'll likely launch real soon.

By the standards of the best wireless headphones, the Beats Solo 4 are well and truly overdue. The Beats Solo 3 Wireless were released in September 2016, and eight years is a whole epoch when it comes to tech releases. They launched before the original AirPods, for example, and we're expecting the AirPods 4 to arrive this year…

But hey, at least they're on the way now, and are said to include an upgrade in sound quality (as you'd hope, after that long) plus features borrowed from the AirPods Max, such as Personalized Spatial Audio. Beats' recent headphones can be hit and miss in terms of exactly which AirPods features make it over – fast pairing is guaranteed, but Find My support and Audio Sharing are not, for example, so we'll see exactly what's on the menu for Beats Solo 4 whenever they become official.

However, unlike the AirPods Max, the Solo 4 are said to include lossless audio over USB-C, which is also available on the Beats Studio Pro, and which could make them a nice fit for iPhone 15-toting audiophiles with Apple Music. You don't generally expect Beats and audiophiles to be a natural fit, but if these new headphones are capable of actually showing off the extra resolution over USB-C, then who knows?

How much will the Beats Solo 4 cost?

There's no extra info about the Beats Solo 4 from the FCC filing (unless you love to read compliance reports about Bluetooth Low Energy), but we can make an educated guess about their likely price.

The Beats Solo 3 launched at $199, but that was eight years ago, and inflation has been… a little spicy since then. The Beats Studio Pro, released in 2023, are priced at $249, so we can assume that there will be some daylight between the Solo 4 and the Studio Pro's price. I think we can assume $249-$299 for the Solo 4, and let's all hope it comes in towards the lower end (but I probably wouldn't bet on it).

I should note here that the Beats Studio Pro dropped to half price in a sale almost immediately after they launched – it may take a bit longer for us to see similar deals on the Solo 4, but I wouldn't be surprised to see them get similar discounts within a couple of months of release, so even if they launch at nearly $300 you may only need to pay $200, or even less, if you're patient.

As for when you can buy them – as I said, there's no official word yet, but I'd expect it to be within the next couple of weeks, and it may only be days before they're announced, and can join the ranks of the best Beats headphones.

Matt is TechRadar's Managing Editor for Entertainment, meaning he's in charge of persuading our team of writers and reviewers to watch the latest TV shows and movies on gorgeous TVs and listen to fantastic speakers and headphones. It's a tough task, as you can imagine. Matt has over a decade of experience in tech publishing, and previously ran the TV & audio coverage for our colleagues at T3.com, and before that he edited T3 magazine. During his career, he's also contributed to places as varied as Creative Bloq, PC Gamer, PetsRadar, MacLife, and Edge. TV and movie nerdism is his speciality, and he goes to the cinema three times a week. He's always happy to explain the virtues of Dolby Vision over a drink, but he might need to use props, like he's explaining the offside rule.