Beats 1 demise (again) suggests Beats retirement is approaching

Apple Music Radio 1 Hero (Image credit: iMore)

Back in April, Jon Prosser suggested the Beats name would soon be retired by Apple for all of its audio products. Though not everyone agreed with this assessment, today's announcement that the Beats 1 Apple Music radio station was being rebranded suggests the sometimes controversial man in the know might have been onto something.

On Tuesday, Beats 1 was rebranded Apple Music 1. Additionally, two new radio stations on the subscription-based Apple Music service were revealed, Apple Music Hits and Apple Music Country. The changes were made beginning at 9 a.m. PDT, today, August 18.

Months ago, Luke Filipowicz said, "good riddance" to the Beats name, a position that sounds about right. Since acquiring Beats Electronics in 2014, Apple has steadily improved the Beats product lineup to match the hype. At the same time, it released a popular line-up of Apple-branded audio products, including AirPods, AirPods Pro, and HomePod. There's no doubt "Apple" bests "Beats" in name recognition, and streamlining the company's audio lineup makes sense.

As the shift from Beats 1 to Apple Music 1 shows, any current Beats product name change would be seamless and probably won't come until new models arrive, perhaps as early as this fall. Some name changes would be easier to make than others, however.

The BeatsX, urBeats3, and Beat EP are probably history, while the Powerbeats and Powerbeats Pro could live on with "Apple" in each product's name. Something tells me the Solo Pro, Beats Solo 3 Wireless, and Beats Studio 3 Wireless will all ditch "Solo," and rebrand with "AirPods" in the name. Finally, the Beats Pill+ is likely to morph into a lower-priced HomePod.

We should find out whether Apple retires the Beats name entirely soon enough, as the company is expected to begin announcing new products starting next month and into October. In the meantime, you can subscribe to Apple Music at anytime online and through your mobile devices, including Android!

Do you want Apple to rebrand Beats audio products? Let us know below.

Bryan M. Wolfe has written about technology for over a decade on various websites, including TechRadar, AppAdvice, and many more. Before this, he worked in the technology field across different industries, including healthcare and education. He’s currently iMore’s lead on all things Mac and macOS, although he also loves covering iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch. Bryan enjoys watching his favorite sports teams, traveling, and driving around his teenage daughter to her latest stage show, audition, or school event in his spare time. He also keeps busy walking his black and white cocker spaniel, Izzy, and trying new coffees and liquid grapes.

1 Comment

I may be on an island here but I think it's a HUGE mistake to sunset the Beats brand. Do you remember the cache, street-cred, and design buzz that Beats had before apple acquired them? They were a cultural phenomenon, and were primarily responsible for ushering in the headphone zeitgeist of the time. That Apple chose to focus on lending the Beats to name stations on their music service instead of focusing on the design of the product seems like a rare lack of focus for them. They've made some great Beats products like the Powerbeats Pro, and I love my Beats Studio3's but it feels like the really missed a chance to make an investment in the brand and take it to the next level. Just think if something like the AirPods were introduced as a Beats product? What if Apple made Beats the moniker for all of their high end audio efforts? I don't know...seems a lot more interesting than adding "Air", "Pod", and "Apple" to every new offering. Jus' saying...