Apple fans are aware that the company, with a market cap of $2.577 trillion, typically holds three or four events to unveil new products. The first one happens around spring, in March or April, followed by another around September focused on the iPhone and Apple Watch. Before April ends, the tech giant has done the needful, albeit in an off-beat way with a ‘beat’—pun intended. Blame it on basketball star LeBron James, who was strutting in a clip uploaded on social media, holding what appears to be a Beats speaker like a pet on a leash.
The LA Lakers player was walking with what looked unmistakably like a gold, pill-shaped device in his right hand. The Beats logo confirmed the identity, but there was one change that could add to some confusion: the speaker was held on a short lanyard, which hasn’t been seen before with a Beats speaker. It didn’t take the hawk-eyed netizens long to join two and two, and comments about what the device could be poured in. ‘Unreleased Beats Pill Bluetooth speaker,’ one user suggested.
Another stated, ‘Is that the new Beats Pill?’ One unabashed fan called James out, ‘How much did Apple give you for advertising this new Beats thing?’ Apple acquired Beats Music & Beats Electronics in 2014, and quietly discontinued the Pill+ in early 2022. With one of the biggest sports personalities walking around with the device, it is a big enough clue that the Beats speaker is readying for a comeback.
