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Beats Pill- Stick to the Beat While You Can

The Beats Pill was one of the first products released by Beats that was totally designed and manufactured by Beats.  Prior to that, Beats relied on Monster Cable for help in design and manufacturing and with the Pill+, all that is now done as part of Apple.  

Both the original Pill and Pill 2.0 come with NFC but unlike wireless speakers from Sony where NFC is used to pair your smartphone or Walkman to the speaker, NFC is used by the Beats Pill to pair different Beats speakers together.  The original Pill actually has NFC labelled on the back while the NFC label disappears with the Pill 2.0.  Unfortunately the NFC on the original Pill and Pill 2.0 are not compatible.  With the Pill+, NFC goes away altogether.

Another difference between the original Pill and the Pill 2.0 is the addition of a USB Type-A port to charge your smartphone or audio device while playing.   Oddly enough, the USB port is on the bottom of the Pill 2.0 but that gets corrected in the Pill Plus which places the USB port in a more easily accessible location in the back but still hidden through a flap door.

The Beats Pill packaging is nice but the Pill+ has definitely adopted a lot of Apple's techniques on premium packaging design.  One cute thing about the Beats Pill Box that is missing from the Pill+ are pictures of the Pill from 3 sides of the box.

In terms of accessories, the Beats Pill comes with a carrying case, USB cable, and USB power adapter.

The Beats Pill unique use of the color red goes away with the Pill+ so if red is your thing, then get the Beats Pill while you can.

The Beats Pill also uses a USB Micro B connector for power charging.  USB Micro B cables are a lot more common among Android phones and tablets.  Not surprisingly, the Pill+ has replaced the USB Micro B with Apple's Lightning so if you are an Android user with more USB Micro B than Lightning cables lying around, the Beats Pill might be more convenient to use.

The Beats Pill is a great little speaker that is highly portable but gives you a lot more sound compared to what you get from your smartphone.  Use it to charge your smartphone or audio player when needed.  If you want even more sound, don't mind the larger size, like tighter integration with Apple devices, and want more style despite the lack of red, the Beats Pill Plus might be better for you.