Beats design to be overseen by iconic former HTC mobile designer
posted Saturday May 15, 2021 by Scott Ertz
One of the most loved and iconic Android hardware designs was the HTC One. It was such a popular design that HTC made a Windows Phone variant of the hardware. The designer responsible for that phone was Scott Croyle. That phone also included a technology that few mobile devices had at its disposal: Beats Audio. This tech allowed for deeper bass controls and a higher bitrate for digital audio. While today the underlying technology is available on almost all phones, it was unique to HTC at the time (and HP before that). Now, Croyle will take his design chops, and his experience with the Beats brand, and combine them to lead the Beats team at Apple.
Apple has used design firm Ammunition for its Beats products since purchasing the brand in 2014. But, since Apple took over, the brand has almost completely stalled out. When the product was designed and manufactured by Monster, you saw people wearing them everywhere all the time. After Monster exited the brand, its ubiquity diminished significantly. In fact, today, outside of a TV show, you are unlikely to see Beats headphones. Apple says that Ammunition will continue to be the lead design team for Beats products, but Scott Croyle will act as the company's voice in the process.
Bringing a talented design lead into the company to oversee what Ammunition is doing could potentially help return what Monster built during its time at the helm. However, Apple has never put a strong focus on the quality of its audio products. Most iPhone users replace their headphones immediately upon receipt of a new device. In recent years, it has been with another Apple product, but for years it was with Beats designed by Monster. A firm hand on the design wheel is a good start, but the product has to begin to sound like it did in the early days if they ever want to be the powerhouse they once were.
