Beats by Dre Studio (Black)

Pros: overall style, comfort, sound, packaging, accessories, carrying case, did I mention style?

Cons: noise cancellation, batteries, feel a little flimsy in comparison to competitors, SOUND LEAKAGE!!!!!

Summary: I want to love these headphones, but they are honestly useless for any student that is considering them for the library. I got these as a Christmas present from my fiance and was initially blown away. The packaging is amazing and these headphones ooze style. As an owner of the Bose original quiet comfort's and QC2's, I can tell you that the sound quality of the Beats is unmatched. However, the Beats still require 2 AAA batteries. The noise cancellation on the Bose is also far superior. And one problem I have noticed with noise-canceling headphones in general is that listening to music at low volumes has a sort of muffled quality to it.
The fatal design flaw is the enormous amount of SOUND LEAKAGE from these headphones!! While listening to music on my computer at a 40 to 50% volume, I was asked numerous times by family members to turn my music down because they couldn't hear the tv!! I thought they were crazy, but later in the night my fiance used them to watch a movie on her computer while I read. I was able to hear everything as if it was playing through the speakers on her computer. After closer inspection and comparison to the Bose models, I realized that the plastic on Beats' ear cups is very thin with many movable hinges that make sound leakage possible.
I am sad to say that these will be going back to best buy and would warn anyone that is considering buying these headphones to ask yourself these questions:
Will I be using these in a quiet place?
Do I live with other people from whom I would like isolate my music?
Do I want headphones that are actually headphones and not speakers strapped to the side of my head?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, they probably aren't the headphones for you.

P.S. - Very disappointed that this wasn't addressed in the review, especially considering that the major user demographic for these headphones is probably college students, who have roommates and would probably use these to study.