•Beats by Dre has teased an upcoming collaboration with Pokémon, according to a report for IGN.
A six-second video teaser posted to the official Beats by Dre YouTube channel shows the shadow of the Beats Pill speaker enveloped by animated sparks and flames. The video, titled “Time to catch something new,” ends with an electrified Beats logo next to a Poké Ball.
The teaser offers no product or release date information but suggests the collaboration will include a Pokémon-branded version of the company’s wireless speaker.
The ‘electric’ animations suggest a focus on Pikachu, the franchise’s mascot. To support that theory, unconfirmed images of a bright yellow Pikachu-themed speaker have already begun circulating online. The flaming purple animations point to a possible second product design, potentially inspired by Gengar.
The standard edition of the Beats Pill speaker currently retails for $149.99. A full reveal alongside a release date is expected in the coming weeks.
Pokémon is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, giving the world’s biggest franchise the excuse to drop more collaborations than ever. Themed hardware has appeared from tech companies like Razer, shoe drops have come from Crocs, and entire merch collections have partnered with retailers such as Target.
The amount of buzz surrounding the Pokémon brand right now would suggest any collaboration with the gaming giant is an easy win. However, an ongoing scalping crisis in the TCG market continues to bleed into all things Pokémon, with some commenters on the Beats by Dre teaser already deriding the collab as “The beats shill.”
Beats by Dre, which is owned by Apple, launched the first Beats Pill speaker back in 2012. The speaker has gone through a number of upgrades, most recently with a 2024 re-release focused on portability and power.
One thing that hasn’t changed is the company’s commitment to collaborations. The Beats Pill once popped up in pretty much every YouTube channel, but nowadays the company focuses on unique themed designs, having recently released product lines with Jennie of Blackpink fame and Kim Kardashian.
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