Beats puts metal weights in its headphones to make them feel more premium

YOU know those $300 headphones you just bought? Beats has a sneaky trick it uses into thinking they’re premium.

YOU don’t have to look too far to find someone wearing a pair of Beats headphones, just like you don’t have to search far and wide for someone who despises the brand.

The headphone brand has made billions by pushing marketing over absolute quality with their headphones, and a new document has revealed just how much Beats skimps over with quality.

The original (and now discontinued) Beats by Dre Solo headphones were torn apart by Avery Louie, a prototype engineer for a start-up company to see what’s inside the expensive headphones. What he shockingly found was that about one third of the overall weight of the headphones came from four metal parts that were there “for the sole purpose of adding weight,” he wrote.

The added weight is done to give the consumer the impression that what they’re buying is something that’s sturdy and premium, justifying the $300+ spent on the headphones.

His teardown also found that parts were stuck together with snaps and glue instead of screws and is almost entirely made of injection moulded plastic, “which is essentially free at high volumes,” Louie writes.

The estimated cost to make one set of Beats by Dre Solo headphones, not including shipping and labour is $21.70, while they retailed well over $300 when they were released.

Despite this lack of quality, the power of the brand still allowed Dr Dre to sell millions.

“This is the power of brand; Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine have leveraged their personal backgrounds and a sleek design to launch a remarkable brand that’s become fundamental to music pop culture,” he concluded.

Beats’ Solo 2 headphones are now made in another factory, with quality finally coming closer to matching the price tag.