Apple Class Action Lawsuit Alleges Beats Headphones’ Built-In Microphone Is Defective

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges Apple’s premium-priced Beats headphones suffer from a defect that inhibits a user’s ability to reliably communicate via the device’s built-in microphone.

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The 71-page Apple lawsuit contends that the Beats headphones, including the Studio Pro, Solo Pro, and Studio3 models, are not well-made and function at a much lower quality than the tech giant advertises. Specifically, the filing says, many consumers have reported that their voices sound muffled and distorted, as though they are “in a tunnel under water,” when talking through the headphones’ internal microphone.

“[Consumers] purchased headphones based on Apple’s false promises and paid a price that does not reflect the defective product’s actual value,” the case summarizes.

Related Reading: Apple AirPods Max Lawsuit Claims Headphones Are Prone to Condensation Build-Up, Functionality Problems

The plaintiff, a California resident, bought a pair of Beats headphones in November 2024 for $159.99, with the intention to use them primarily for work, class and video meetings. According to the suit, Apple promoted the device’s high-quality call performance as a key feature of several Beats products.

However, when the plaintiff began using her headphones, she quickly learned that those on the other end of her calls repeatedly could not hear her properly, the complaint says.

After bringing the issue to the attention of the Apple Genius bar several times, the plaintiff was issued two separate replacements for her original pair in early 2025, all of which had the same microphone defect, the case continues. During a customer support chat conversation in March 2025, the case relays, an Apple representative told the plaintiff that “headphones of this style are not designed to talk through calls or meetings. Because these do not have microphones such as a headset that incorporate [sic] a plastic bar that is direct to the microphone.”

This response contravenes how the Beats headphones were marketed by Apple across several ad campaigns and promotions, the lawsuit charges. The suit notes that Apple frequently mentions the “six total microphones enabling high-quality call performance” when promoting the product.

The plaintiff believes that Apple’s response to the apparent Beats headphones problems has been largely insufficient, given the promotion of Beats as a quality, premium brand in the headphone market since its launch in 2006 and acquisition by Apple in 2014. The status of Beats headphones has been further reinforced since the pandemic with the rise of remote and hybrid work, where headphones like Beats have launched campaigns that highlight the “clear, high-performing microphones and consistent audio quality for communication purposes,” the suit claims.

Apple has yet to publicly acknowledge the alleged Beats microphone issue or make any effort to resolve it, and still sells the afflicted Beats on its site, the complaint shares. When consumers contact Apple support to report microphone malfunctions, the lawsuit claims, they are told basic troubleshooting steps (like resetting the headphones) or that Apple is “aware of the issue” and “working on a fix,” with no timeline provided.

Several consumers, such as the plaintiff, have also been offered replacement headphone sets, but many still possess the same issues, the suit says.

The Apple class action lawsuit looks to cover all United States residents who purchased Apple Beats Studio Pro series headphones from July 9, 2021, to the present.

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