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- Beats and Nike launch a special-edition Powerbeats Pro 2.
- They cost AUD$399.95 and are scheduled to release on March 20, 2026.
- LeBron James stars in the campaign wearing “Volt” colours.
- Features the Apple H2 chip and active noise cancelling.
- Built-in heart rate monitors sync easily with fitness apps.
When you look at the landscape of wearable audio, Beats has successfully straddled the line between high-performance athletic gear and pop culture better than any other. Whether it’s BLACKPINK’s Jennie sparking viral trends or LeBron James and some of the world’s most elite athletes using them to lock in before a game, the brand has cemented itself at the exact intersection of music, fashion, and sports. Now, they’re doubling down on the athletic roots with the launch of the Powerbeats Pro 2 – Nike Special Edition (AUD$399.95).
With the sportswear giant’s iconic “Volt” colourway displayed prominently on the wings of the earbuds, it’s a collaboration of two premium brands sharing the same lane. The launch of the new device is carried by NBA superstar LeBron James, who is not dominating the basketball court but navigating the frustrations of learning to play golf.
To unpack the strategy behind the new launch, the Nike partnership, and the future of fitness tech at Beats, Man of Many sat down with Oliver Schusser, Apple’s VP of Music, Sports, and Beats. Overseeing all of the Apple Music ecosystem and the cultural heartbeat of the Beats brand, Schusser offers rare insights into how the audio empire continues to innovate while staying true to its artist-driven roots and brand identity.
The Powerbeats Pro 2 – Nike Special Edition
Key Specifications:
- Battery Life: Up to 45 hours (with charging case).
- Noise Cancellation: Adaptive Active Noise Cancelling (ANC).
- Audio Passthrough: Transparency mode.
- Biometrics: Built-in Heart Rate Monitor.
- Fitness Integration: Syncs with Apple Fitness app and Nike Run Club.
- Water Resistance: IPX4-rated (sweat and water-resistant).
- Fit: Signature wrap-around earhooks.
When we first heard about the collaboration between Beats and Nike, it was a no-brainer. Beats has always had a clear link to sports, fashion, and related subcultures, and with the rise of athleisure and run clubs, doubling down on this just makes sense, according to Schusser.
“Nike and us, we’re in the same lane in terms of, we both stand for premium products and for high performance,” he said. “This is our highest performance product, in the sense that it’s really for athletes who do any kind of extreme workout, whether it’s a casual run, or whether you’re an Olympian who wants to do backflips or anything. It’s also one of our newest products, packed with technology and engineering. So we decided to pick that product because it felt the best fit between Nike and us.”
Like a quality pair of running shoes, these earbuds aren’t cheap ($399.95 AUD). The design leans heavily on Nike’s high-energy “Volt” colourway, a deliberate choice to ensure the earbuds pop visually, as the reference campaign with LeBron James shows. “We love our products in black. We think that’s our signature colour. Obviously, everyone recognises their volt. So we thought the two of them together would make a great mix,” Schusser explains.
“Beats has always been at the intersection between music, technology, sports, and fashion. They’ve always been a form of self-expression. And the volt is, I think, a perfect continuation of that.”
While the exterior of the Powerbeats Pro 2 – Nike Special Edition is core to both brands, the internals are purely Apple. That’s important for those who value consistency across their tech devices, and, like other Beats products, it’s a seamless experience with your iPhone thanks to the Apple H2 chip, the same one that powers AirPods Pro 2. Technically speaking, the new Beats earbuds boast Adaptive Active Noise Cancelling (ANC), Transparency mode, and up to 45 hours of total battery life with the charging case.
“These are Apple engineers making these products, and they have the same quality measures and same bar like AirPods and AirPods Maxes,” adds Schusser. “But we sort of have our own lane, with our own target audience, with our own marketing and our own brand.”
One of the biggest parts of that brand identity is the signature Beats sound profile, which has evolved but remains deeply tied to the music industry.
“If you remember how Beats got started, we had so many collaborations with artists in the early days, whether it’s Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Lil Wayne,” Schusser notes. “We originally had a very dark, deep bass. We’ve lightened that up a little bit, but even today, Beats headphones have a very unique, distinct sound that’s really optimised for a music experience. I think the sound in your ear, in the preparation of getting ready for your performance, is incredibly important.”
Beyond audio, the Powerbeats Pro 2 takes the brand further into the wearable tech space. The built-in Heart Rate Monitor now syncs seamlessly with the Apple Fitness app and, fittingly, the Nike Run Club app. It highlights a growing trend within the Apple ecosystem in which the ear is the primary biometric collection point. “We were the first Apple headphone to have the heart rate monitoring, which obviously then got adopted by AirPods,” said Schusser. “I think people care more and more about their life and their metrics in an easy way. And the ear is a great place to measure some health KPIs for your body. So we continue to experiment there.”
Collaborations have always been core to the Beats brand, and Schusser assures us that this will continue. “I can definitely reassure you, we’ll do more collaborations,” he teases. “This is a much bigger one. It’s going on sale in much greater units, and I think people will absolutely love it. We’ll continue to work with Nike… we’re both about high performance, and it’s been great to work with.”
The Powerbeats Pro 2 – Nike Special Edition will be available to purchase starting Saturday, March 20, for AUD$399.95 at Apple.com/au and Nike.com, linked below.
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