How do you make a USB-C cable interesting? Apple’s second brand, Beats by Dr. Dre, thinks you do it by releasing what it calls its cutest cable yet. Here’s why “cutest” could serve the company well.
Never underestimate the power of color: back in 2003, when 3G was launching, the big seller at one holiday season should have been 3G handsets. But the real head-turner? A new version of the Motorola RAZR flip phone in a new color: hot pink.
Three cables have just been released in a new color, “that’s impossible to ignore: Power Pink,” the company said. It’s not like Apple doesn’t make its own cables already, though it’s true that they are only available in one color, white. And while there’s nothing to stop Apple becoming more colorful in its cables, it seems to like to defer that to Beats.
On a similar note, the iPhone cases Beats makes are strikingly different in tone from Apple’s own.
Color doesn’t mean much if the quality isn’t as high as on Apple’s own products.
After all, we use USB-C cables more than ever, to charge everything from AirPods to phones to cameras to tablets and laptops. So, they need to be durable as well as attractive.
Having tried the existing Beats cables, I can say that they are carefully crafted and, because they are woven, offer strength and longevity.
The Beats Color Strategy And Athlete Leaks
Color isn’t anything new for Beats. The current range of cables come in four shades: Bolt Black, Surge Stone, Nitro Navy and Rapid Red — the last one matching the original Beats headphones.
Perhaps that’s a clue as to why the pink cable is here now. In recent weeks, Beats has deliberately leaked images of new, unreleased headphones via the social media channels of World Cup footballers, for instance, and pink has been to the fore there, too.
There are already Beats Powerbeats Fit and Solo 4 headphones in pink, so you could pair the cables with these to match.
The pricing for these cables, which are available from Apple online and Apple Stores, is the same as the current colors. For a 5ft (1.5 meter) USB-C to USB-C or USB-C to USB-A cable, the price is $18.99 (£18.99 in the U.K.) while a 10ft (3 meter) version costs $29.99 (£29.99).
Another quality concern is addressed in the speed of these cables. The 1.5m USB-A to USB-C cable charges at up to 15W, the 1.5m USB-C to USB-C can support charging up to 60W, while the 3m cable, presumably aimed at laptop charging, supports charging up to 240W.
Why High-Visibility Tech Accessories Are Winning
Color, then, is a way to make a statement — or at the very least to know which is your cable and not somebody else’s in a public space or a shared apartment, for instance.
And if you’re anything like me, you’re glad to have a cable that’s easier to find, and harder to leave behind, because it’s not plain black, hiding in a dark corner.
Other brands have their own answers to these issues. Nomad, for instance, has a USB4 data cable which uses Kevlar in its construction for extra strength.
The same company also builds an Apple Watch puck built into a USB-C to USB-C cable, has a Universal cable which connects to USB-A, USB-C and Lightning and a keyring accessory, called ChargeKey which is tiny and comes in a color as timely and eye-catching as the new Beats shade: Stellar Orange.