Put a Pokemon character, especially Pikachu, on just about anything — including a $100 Polaroid camera — and fans will take notice. On Monday, Beats by Dre teased an upcoming collaboration where the colorful characters seem to be coming to decorate Beats Pill Bluetooth speakers.
Beats by Dre didn’t share a lot of information, but the caption “Time to catch something new” plays off the classic Pokemon tagline, “Gotta catch ’em all!” The 6-second video shows electrical charges in yellow and purple flashing over a shadowed Beats Pill speaker. It ends with a screen showing the Pokemon Poke Ball logo and the Beats by Dre “b” logo, with an X between them, teasing a product collaboration.
The inclusion of yellow sparks in the video seems to hint that the Beats speaker will be themed around the popular yellow Pokemon, Pikachu. Tech site 9to5Toys suggests that the purple flashes might mean another Beats speaker could be themed around a purple character, such as Mewtwo, Gengar or Ditto.
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Beats’ teaser did not announce a release date for a Pokemon-themed Pill speaker, but Apple’s Welcome Home event, expected to focus on new smart home devices, is scheduled for Tuesday. Apple bought Beats by Dre for $3 billion back in 2014.
The speaker isn’t a brand-new revelation for those who stay up to date on all things Pokemon. Last week, a Pokemon fan who goes by BritBrattv posted a photo to Facebook showing a bright yellow Pikachu-themed Beats Pill speaker in what appears to be a Target shopping cart, though that photo hasn’t been confirmed as official.
And former Apple CEO Tim Cook shared a video on X in August showing Pikachu visiting Apple Park.
“Today’s agenda at Apple Park,” Cook wrote. “Introduce the @Pokemon team to John, talk gaming, and politely ask Pikachu to stay out of the pond. Two out of three were accomplished.” By “John,” he presumably means John Ternus, the new Apple CEO.
Representatives for Beats by Dre and Pokemon didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
The Beats Pill speaker, in non-Pokemon designs, is priced at $129 at Target and Amazon as of Monday. In a 2024 review, CNET executive reviews editor David Carnoy called the Pill “a very good compact Bluetooth speaker,” praising its sound quality and strong battery life.
Gael Cooper
CNET editor Gael Fashingbauer Cooper, a journalist and pop-culture junkie, is co-author of "Whatever Happened to Pudding Pops? The Lost Toys, Tastes and Trends of the '70s and '80s," as well as "The Totally Sweet '90s." She's been a journalist since 1989, working at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine, Twin Cities Sidewalk, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and NBC News Digital. She's Gen X in birthdate, word and deed. If Marathon candy bars ever come back, she'll be first in line. See full bio